FrontBack Scanner · For Switchers From Windows
Both of the big photo splitters stop at the platform line: Windows only, by their own system requirements. On a Mac you don’t need either (or a Windows VM): FrontBack Scanner does the job natively, free.
By Spencer Baker, founder of Timeline Scan · Last updated: August 3, 2026 · platform and price facts checked on each vendor’s site August 3, 2026Neither runs on a Mac. Both are genuinely capable on Windows; on a Mac the free answer is FrontBack Scanner, which splits at scan time and adds two things neither Windows program does: automatic back pairing and oversized stitching.
Trial capped at 10 scans · backs become typed captions[3]
Trial watermarks output · no back handling
Splits at scan time · pairs backs · stitches oversized prints
Side by side
Platform and pricing from each vendor’s own pages, checked August 3, 2026. See the sources.
| Feature | ScanSpeeder | AutoSplitter | FrontBack Scanner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Runs on a Mac | NoWindows Vista–11 only[1] | NoMade for Windows 10/11[2] | YesNative macOS 14+, Apple silicon & Intel |
| Price | $29.95 Standard / $39.95 Pro one-time; trial limited to 10 scans[1] | $24.99 Basic / $34.99 Gold one-time; trial watermarks output[2] | $0Free forever, no trial limits, no watermark |
| Splits several photos per pass | YesScan-time split + deskew[1] | YesScan-time or from existing files[2] | YesScan-time, incl. tilted, nearly-touching, white-bordered prints |
| Turns photos right-side up | Manual rotation tools | Deskews; rotation largely manual | AutomaticOn-device neural network, 99.8% accurate in our benchmarks |
| Backs of photos | Typed captions: you transcribe the back into metadata[3] | NoNo back handling | Scanned & pairedFlip the pile, scan again: every back saves beside its front as scan_0001_b.jpg |
| Photos bigger than the glass | No | No | YesOversized mode stitches overlapping passes (how it works) |
| Splits existing composite files | Pro tier batch-processes files | YesA core feature | NoScan-time only; see options for existing scans |
The honest fine print
FrontBack Scanner splits during scanning, not afterwards. If all you have left are composite scans (and the prints are gone), these are the real Mac options:
Local AI batch cropping; rectangles only per reviews
You upload your family photos to a cloud service
Crop and Straighten has zero options and merges close prints
Orientation, naming, and backs in the same pass; a 400-photo box is ~100 bedfuls
Then put the shoebox back in order
However you split them, every scan thinks it was taken this year. Timeline Scan, the service behind this free app, estimates when each photo was really taken and writes the date into the file, so the collection sorts chronologically in Google Photos, Apple Photos, or Immich. Try it free.
Put my scans in orderSee it before you download it
Four short looping clips on the product page show detection, naming, back pairing, and oversized stitching.
See it in actionCommon questions
No. ScanSpeeder’s own system requirements list Windows only (Vista through Windows 11)[1]; there is no Mac version. On a Mac, FrontBack Scanner covers the same job free: lay several prints on the flatbed and each one is detected, cropped, straightened, turned upright, and saved as its own named file.
No. AutoSplitter is made for Windows 10 and 11 only[2]; searching “autosplitter for mac” mostly finds speedrun timing tools that share the name. For splitting photos on a Mac at scan time, FrontBack Scanner is free; for splitting composite scan files you already have, see the options for existing scans.
If you still have the prints, scan them with FrontBack Scanner: it is completely free, native, and splits at scan time with automatic cropping, straightening, orientation, sequential naming, and front/back pairing. Doing the split during scanning beats post-processing a composite: each photo is cropped from a full-resolution single-exposure master instead of a flattened JPEG.
No. FrontBack Scanner works at scan time, driving the scanner itself; it does not import existing image files. If you have folders of multi-photo composites from an old project, the Mac-workable options are SnipTag ($12.99 one-time on the Mac App Store, rectangles only)[4], AutoCropper (a web service, free for 10 scans a day)[5], or Photoshop’s File > Automate > Crop and Straighten Photos[6]. If the prints are still in the closet, re-scanning with FrontBack usually produces better files than any post-split.
ScanSpeeder’s approach to backs is typed captions: you read the back and type what it says into metadata[3]. FrontBack Scanner scans the backs themselves and pairs them automatically: flip each photo where it lies, scan the bed again, and every back saves beside its front as scan_0001_b.jpg, handwriting preserved as an image. The full mechanics are on the front-and-back scanning guide.
Show your work
ScanSpeeder, AutoSplitter, SnipTag, AutoCropper, Adobe®, and Photoshop® are trademarks of their respective owners. FrontBack Scanner and Timeline Scan are made by Timeline Scan LLC, which is not affiliated with any of them. Details on this page were checked against each vendor’s public pages on August 3, 2026; if something here has gone out of date, tell us and we’ll correct it.
Your Mac and your flatbed can split the whole shoebox today, free.
↓ Download FrontBack ScannerRelated: the full multi-photo workflow · what Image Capture can and can’t do · Epson ScanSmart alternative