Coherence X: what it is, what X6 costs, and why it needs a Chrome extension

Coherence X is a Mac app from BZG that turns any website into a standalone Mac app running on a Chromium browser already installed on the Mac, such as Chrome, Brave, Edge, or Vivaldi. The current version is Coherence X6, sold as a one-time purchase starting at $39.99 for one Mac, with a free version that allows one app with no time limit. Every app it builds carries a small companion extension called Coherence Helper, and that extension is the reason links, sign-in popups, and Dock clicks behave the way a Mac user expects. This page covers what Coherence X does, what it costs, what changed in X6, and what the extension is responsible for. All prices and requirements were checked on the official BZG pages on October 18, 2026.

This site is published by the maker of a competing site to app tool for the Mac. The facts below come from BZG's own pages, linked in each section.

What Coherence X does

Coherence belongs to a category usually called site-specific browsers. Instead of keeping Gmail, Notion, or an internal dashboard as one tab among dozens, it wraps a single site in its own app bundle with its own name, icon, and Dock presence. The app shows up in Command-Tab, can be dragged into the Dock, and opens without the rest of the browser.

What sets Coherence apart from its sibling product, Unite, is the engine. According to BZG's comparison page, Coherence apps run on Chromium-based browsers on the machine, while Unite runs on a WebKit browser BZG builds for this purpose. That choice has practical consequences:

• Chrome extensions work. Coherence apps can run extensions such as 1Password or Grammarly. Unite does not support third-party extensions.
• Apps are larger. BZG lists Coherence apps at 200 MB and up, growing with extensions, against about 90 MB for Unite apps.
• Browser choice matters. The Settings page in X6 lists Google Chrome, Chrome Canary, Brave Browser, Microsoft Edge, Opera, Chromium, Vivaldi, and Helium as supported engines.

Each app can be built in one of three modes: a standard single window, a tabbed app that groups several pages (Gmail, Calendar, and Drive in one window is BZG's own example), or an incognito app that opens in a private window every time.

What Coherence X6 costs

BZG sells Coherence X6 as a one-time purchase per major version. The purchase page lists three licenses:

License	Price	Includes
1 Mac	$39.99	Unlimited apps, all X6 updates
3 Macs	$59.99	Same, on three Macs
5 Macs	$99.99	Same, on five Macs

A few conditions sit around those prices:

• Major versions are paid. A license covers its major version, so X6 updates are included and a future X7 would be an optional paid upgrade. BZG explains this as a way to avoid subscriptions while funding development.
• Upgrades and loyalty discounts. Coherence X5 owners can get up to 25% off X6. Owners of other BZG apps, such as Unite or Quip, can get up to 25% off as well.
• Students get 20% off through a third-party student store.
• Refunds are available within 14 days.
• Setapp. Coherence is also part of the Setapp subscription, from $9.99 per month with a 7-day trial.
• Bundle with Unite. A one-Mac bundle of Coherence and Unite costs $59.99.

The free version is more generous than a trial. BZG's troubleshooting article states that the direct-download free version supports one current-generation app with no time limit. Apps built with older Coherence versions do not count against that allowance until they are updated into X6.

Which macOS versions Coherence X6 needs

This is the detail most likely to trip someone up, because BZG's pages do not say the same thing. The Coherence home page shows "macOS 13.5+ | Apple Silicon & Intel". The purchase page says "macOS 15 and later", and the changelog entry for Coherence X 6.0 says plainly that X6 requires macOS 15 or later.

The changelog is the most specific statement, so a Mac on macOS 13 Ventura or 14 Sonoma should be treated as outside X6's supported range until BZG says otherwise. Apple silicon and Intel Macs are both supported. If an older macOS is a constraint, ask BZG support before buying, and keep the 14-day refund window in mind.

X6 itself is new. The changelog lists 6.0 on September 8, 2026, 6.0.1 on September 14, and 6.1 on September 22. Version 6.0 introduced what BZG calls an all-new engine: apps now run directly from their own bundle, behave properly in the Dock and in Stage Manager, no longer create duplicate Dock icons, and run with Chromium's security sandbox fully enabled instead of launching with sandbox-disabling or testing flags.

Why every Coherence app carries a Chrome extension

A Chromium browser on its own does not know it is pretending to be a Mac app. Clicking a link, opening a sign-in popup, or clicking the Dock icon of an app that is already running all follow browser rules by default. Coherence fills that gap with Coherence Helper, an extension installed inside each app.

BZG's help article on Coherence Helper lists three jobs:

1. Link routing. Sends a clicked link to the current app, to another Coherence app, to the default browser, or to a specific browser.
2. Smart window management. Makes Dock clicks, sign-in popups, and payment windows behave like parts of a native Mac app.
3. Session restore. Reopens tabs from the previous session when that option is on.

The article adds that the extension runs locally, keeps its configuration with the app, and makes routing decisions on the Mac. Coherence installs it automatically when it creates or updates an app, so there is nothing to find in the Chrome Web Store.

The Helper's options page is read-only by design. It shows the current routing rules, the destination for unmatched links, and whether session restore is on. To change anything, choose "Manage in Coherence", edit the app in Coherence, and select Update App. Version 6.1 made that button more reliable and made link routing and appearance changes save without rebuilding the app.

How link routing works in X6

Link routing is the feature the extension exists to deliver, and in X6 it replaces the older Intelligent Whitelisting interface. The link routing guide describes a simple rule list:

• A fallback setting, "Links that match no rule", decides what happens by default. New apps keep unmatched links inside the app.
• Each rule pairs a URL pattern, such as *.github.com, with a destination.
• Rules are evaluated from top to bottom, and the first match wins. Narrow exceptions go above broad rules.
• The * character works as a wildcard, so *.example.com covers the domain and its subdomains.

BZG's own example is a Gmail app that sends calendar.google.com links to a separate Calendar app. If a destination browser or app is later removed, Coherence falls back to the system default browser.

Importing browser data, and the limits that come with it

X6 can copy data from an existing browser profile while creating an app: bookmarks, extensions, settings and preferences, browsing history, and passwords and autofill. The import guide stresses that this is a one-time copy. The source browser is left untouched, and later changes do not sync in either direction.

Three limits are worth knowing in advance:

• Keychain prompts. Importing passwords may trigger a macOS Keychain request. Approve it only if saved sign-ins should move into the new app.
• Opera profiles are not supported for import.
• Managed or restricted extensions may not copy. Extensions can still be installed from the Chromium extension store after the app is created.

Choosing an engine also does not share that browser's live session. The engine determines which Chromium build runs the app; cookies and sign-ins stay separate unless they are imported.

Settings that apply to every new app

Coherence keeps app-wide defaults under Coherence, then Settings, which BZG's settings guide splits into App Defaults and Browsers. App Defaults pre-fill the Create App page and can be overridden per app:

• Enable Multi-Tab Support starts new apps as tabbed apps.
• Enable Incognito Mode starts new apps in a private window, which also turns on tabs.
• Register App as Browser lets an app appear in the macOS "Open in" menus without becoming the default browser.
• Default Save Location sets where generated apps are written.
• Automatic App Updates rebuilds created apps in the background when Coherence itself updates.
• Import Data by Default preselects the import categories described above.

The Browsers section shows whether each supported engine was found and the path in use. Configure points Coherence at a browser installed outside the Applications folder, Reset restores the standard path, and Download opens the browser's official download page. Coherence rechecks availability whenever it becomes the active app, so a newly installed browser appears without a restart.

Troubleshooting the extension

When an app stops routing links or Dock clicks misbehave, the Helper is usually missing or disabled. BZG's fix is short:

1. Quit the created app.
2. Open Coherence X6, find the app in Your Apps, open its gear menu, and choose Edit.
3. Select Update App without removing the application.
4. Launch the app and enable Coherence Helper if the browser asks.

If the Helper is present but cannot reach Coherence, confirm that Coherence X6 is still in the Applications folder. If links open in the wrong place, check rule order first, since a broad rule placed above a narrow one hides it.

Other ways to get the same result

Coherence is one of several approaches. Two are built into the system and free. Chrome can install a page as an app from its menu, and Safari on macOS Sonoma 14 or later offers File, then Add to Dock. Neither offers per-URL routing rules of the kind described above.

Other site to app tools also use the Chromium browsers already on the Mac, which keeps extension support and per-app profiles while differing on price, presets, and the number of free apps. For anyone comparing, the deciding questions are usually the same: which macOS version the Mac runs, whether Chrome extensions are needed inside the app, how many apps will be built, and whether a one-time license per major version or a subscription such as Setapp fits better.

What to check first

Check the macOS version before anything else, because X6 is documented as requiring macOS 15. If the Mac qualifies, the free version's one app is enough to test link routing and the Helper on the site that matters most. If the Mac is older or a different price model fits better, Kagemusha builds apps on the installed browser from macOS 12, with three free apps and a one-time Pro price.