Four ways to rewrite selected text on a Mac.
The exact steps for each approach, so you can pick the one that fits how you write.
Copy-paste into ChatGPT
- Select and copy the text
- Switch to the ChatGPT app or a browser tab
- Paste it and type what you want changed
- Wait for the response, then copy the result
- Switch back and paste over your original text
The most flexible option — any instruction, any rewrite — but it is a five-step, app-switching round trip for something as small as one Slack message.
Apple Writing Tools
- Select the text
- Open the Writing Tools menu (right-click, the Edit menu, or a Touch Bar/menu-bar entry)
- Choose Friendly, Professional, Concise, or a custom description
- Review the suggestion and accept it in place
Built into macOS Sequoia 15.1+ on Apple silicon Macs, and it never leaves your document. Its tone presets are similar to Rephrase’s (Friendly, Professional, Concise). The tradeoff is discoverability — it lives inside a right-click menu rather than one memorable shortcut, and availability depends on macOS version and Apple silicon.
Raycast AI Commands
- Select the text
- Open Raycast with its launcher hotkey
- Search for and run an AI command like "Change Tone to Professional"
- The selection is replaced with the result
Fast once configured, and Raycast’s AI commands cover more than rewriting. AI features are part of Raycast Pro, a paid subscription, and the workflow goes through a general command launcher rather than a single dedicated rewrite action.
Rephrase
- Select the text, in any app
- Press your Rephrase shortcut
- Choose a preset from the floating panel
- Press Enter to paste the result back in place
One dedicated shortcut for one job: rewrite what’s selected, review it, paste it back. No launcher to search, no chat window to manage.
