# Alternatives to Raycast

Extensible launcher with an app store.

Raycast ranks #1 of 8 in App launchers, with an Alt Score of 73. It is freemium from $8/mo and available on macOS, Windows, iOS and Browser extension. 9 of 10 checklist rows are verified against a public source.

Source: https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/raycast/
Category: App launchers

## Where Raycast stands out

- **Window management** — 1 of 4 apps with a verified answer have this
- **Clipboard history** — 4 of 8 apps with a verified answer have this
- **Snippets** — 4 of 8 apps with a verified answer have this

## Overview

- **Who it's for**: Raycast is for Mac (and now Windows, in beta) power users — developers, designers, and other professionals — who want to control their computer and tools from the keyboard instead of clicking through apps.
- **What you get**: A fast, keyboard-driven launcher that replaces Spotlight for opening apps, files, and system actions. An extension store with thousands of integrations (Linear, Notion, Slack, Jira, and more) lets you act on other tools without switching windows. Built-in features cover clipboard history, snippets, window management, quicklinks, and calendar access. It also bundles AI features like Quick AI, an AI chat, and an Automation Assistant for building custom commands.
- **How it works**: You trigger Raycast with a keyboard shortcut (default Cmd+Space), type to search for an app, file, extension command, or AI query, then press Enter to run it — all without touching the mouse.

## Profile

- **License**: ?
- **Pricing model**: Freemium (verified 2026-07-09)
- **Starts at**: $8/mo (verified 2026-07-09)
- **Platforms**: macOS, Windows, iOS, Browser extension
- **Status**: active (verified 2026-07-09)

## Ranked alternatives

| # | App | Alt Score | Licence | Platforms |
|---|-----|-----------|---------|-----------|
| 1 | [LaunchBar](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/launchbar.md) | 73 | ? | macOS |
| 2 | [Alfred](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/alfred.md) | 68 | Proprietary | macOS |
| 3 | [Albert](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/albert.md) | 64 | ? | macOS, Linux |
| 4 | [Flow Launcher](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/flow-launcher.md) | 64 | MIT | Windows |
| 5 | [ueli](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/ueli.md) | 60 | MIT | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| 6 | [PowerToys Run](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/powertoys-run.md) | 55 | MIT | Windows |
| 7 | [Ulauncher](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/ulauncher.md) | 55 | GPL-3.0 | Linux |

Alt Score = Verified coverage (90%) + Visibility (10%). See https://altcatalog.com/how-alt-score-works/

## Feature comparison

Legend: Yes / No / Partial / ? (not verified).

| App launchers checklist | Raycast | LaunchBar | Alfred | Albert | Flow Launcher | ueli |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Freemium | One-time | One-time | Free | Free | Free |
| Starts at | $8/mo | ? | £34 | Free | Free | Free |
| License | ? | ? | Proprietary | ? | MIT | MIT |
| Platforms | macOS, Windows, iOS, Browser extension | macOS | macOS | macOS, Linux | Windows | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Extensions / plugins | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Clipboard history | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial | No |
| Snippets | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial | No |
| Calculator & conversions | Yes | Yes | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| File search | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Window management | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? | No |
| Themes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| Open source | ? | ? | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| One-time purchase option | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Cross-platform | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |

## Sources

Sources for Raycast. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.

- **Starts at**: $8/mo — <https://raycast.com/pricing> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “$8 / month”
- **Pricing model**: Freemium — <https://raycast.com/pricing> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Free, Forever.”
- **Platforms**: macOS, Windows, iOS, Browser extension — <https://raycast.com/windows> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Note: iOS confirmed on raycast.com/ios; the browser extension on raycast.com/browser-extension. Linux is explicitly not offered.
  - Quote: “We're hard at work bringing all the features from macOS to Windows.”
- **Status**: active — <https://raycast.com/changelog> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “December 16, 2025”
- **Extensions / plugins**: Yes — <https://raycast.com/store> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Browse and install extensions built by the community”
- **Clipboard history**: Yes — <https://raycast.com/core-features/clipboard-history> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “The Clipboard History extension lets you find and use content that you copied earlier.”
- **Snippets**: Yes — <https://raycast.com/core-features/snippets> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Create, manage, and use custom snippets for faster typing, email responses, and coding.”
- **Calculator & conversions**: Yes — <https://raycast.com/core-features/calculator> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Currencies, Conversions, Time Zones, and Math Expressions”
- **File search**: Yes — <https://raycast.com/core-features/file-search> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Raycast's File Search extension is a powerful tool that allows you to easily find, manage, and open documents and files on your Mac.”
- **Window management**: Yes — <https://raycast.com/core-features/window-management> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Move and resize application windows with Raycast's Window Management for Mac.”
- **Themes**: Yes — <https://raycast.com/pro> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Quote: “Craft your own custom theme or choose one of hundreds from the community.”
- **One-time purchase option**: No — <https://raycast.com/pricing> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Note: Only Free plus recurring monthly/annual Pro and Teams subscriptions; no perpetual licence tier.
  - Quote: “$8 / month”
- **Cross-platform**: No — <https://raycast.com/faq> (verified 2026-07-09)
  - Note: macOS and Windows only (2 desktop OSes); Linux explicitly ruled out.
  - Quote: “We currently don't have plans to bring Raycast to Linux.”

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Ranked by verified data, never by who paid. https://altcatalog.com/trust/