dockpicks

Launchers

Launch apps, run commands and automate tasks from the keyboard.

4 apps, listed best first · prices checked October 2026

  1. Raycast

    Free tier

    Extendable launcher with a large extension store

    A keyboard launcher with built-in clipboard history, snippets, window management, calendar and calculator, plus a store of community extensions for apps like Linear, Slack, Spotify and 1Password.

    Our take The best all-round pick and the free plan is generous, covering all built-in and public extensions. Paid plans are mainly about AI features, and you need to sign in for some team features.

    Free; Pro $10/month or $96/year as of Oct 2026by Raycast

    Website

  2. Alfred

    Free tier

    Veteran launcher with powerful paid workflows

    Launches apps, finds files and searches the web with hotkeys and keywords. The paid Powerpack adds workflows, clipboard history, snippets with text expansion and more.

    Our take A strong choice if you prefer a one-time purchase and local, account-free software. Most of the value is in the Powerpack, and the free version does little more than Spotlight.

    Free; Powerpack £34 (shown in GBP) as of Oct 2026by Running with Crayons Ltd

    Website

  3. LaunchBar

    35 €

    Keyboard launcher that doubles as a file browser

    Opens apps, documents and bookmarks from short abbreviations, browses the file system, and includes clipboard history, snippets, a calculator and script-based actions.

    Our take Good for long-time Mac users who want a polished, fast launcher with strong file handling and no subscription. It has a smaller community than Raycast or Alfred.

    35 € single license (shown in EUR) as of Oct 2026by Objective Development Software GmbH

    Website

  4. Quicksilver

    FreeOpen source

    Free, open-source launcher with plugins

    Starts apps, manipulates files and runs actions from the keyboard, with triggers and hundreds of plugins for mail, browsers, clipboard history, calendars and more.

    Our take The original Mac launcher, still maintained by its community. A good free option if you like its object-and-action style, though it looks dated next to Raycast.

    FreeApache-2.0 licence

    Website Source
Compare all 4 side by side
AppPriceModelOpen sourceApp Store
Raycast Free tier Free tier – –
Alfred Free tier Free tier – –
LaunchBar 35 € Paid – –
Quicksilver Free Free Apache-2.0 –

Not sure which launcher to pick?

Paste this into ChatGPT, Claude or any AI assistant that can open links. It reads the list, asks about your Mac and budget, and suggests a short list.

Help me choose the right launcher for my Mac. Read https://dockpicks.com/launchers/ and its plain-text version, https://dockpicks.com/launchers.md. Ask me which Mac I have, what I use it for and my budget, then recommend a short list from that page with the free and paid trade-offs, and say if the tool built into macOS is enough.

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