When comparing TextExpander vs Karabiner, the Slant community recommends Karabiner for most people. In the question“What are the best power user tools for macOS?” Karabiner is ranked 29th while TextExpander is ranked 55th. The most important reason people chose Karabiner is:
For example: Fn+C now calls up contextual menus for me with: <!-- Fn + C = same as right-click mouse --> <item> <name>kybd control click</name> <identifier>private.keybd_to_control_click</identifier> <autogen> __KeyToKey__ KeyCode::C, ModifierFlag::FN, KeyCode::VK_MOUSEKEY_BUTTON_RIGHT </autogen> </item>
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Cross-platform
Pro Has an iOS app
Pro Low-level key bindings/mappings
For example: Fn+C now calls up contextual menus for me with:
<!-- Fn + C = same as right-click mouse -->
<item>
<name>kybd control click</name>
<identifier>private.keybd_to_control_click</identifier>
<autogen>
__KeyToKey__
KeyCode::C, ModifierFlag::FN,
KeyCode::VK_MOUSEKEY_BUTTON_RIGHT
</autogen>
</item>
Pro Make FN key into a new modifier key for custom shortcuts across apps
Cons
Con Latest version only available on a monthly subscription
Con Naggy
TextExpander nags about subscribing to their mailing list, and giving it more access to private information such as Contacts.
Con Expensive
Currently a TextExpander license costs $35.
Con Limited iOS app
Con Difficult to configure custom actions
Configuring custom actions requires editing an XML file with very strange syntax, for which it's difficult to find good documentation.