Top 5 free alternatives to Alfred Mac app on Windows

As a Windows user, you've probably struggled with search engines and wondered if there's anything up there with Alfred's launcher app on macOS.

Although Microsoft is working to improve Windows search functionality, it still lacks the simplicity and essential features compared to many third-party launcher app apps created to improve productivity.

So, if you've exhausted the idea of ​​researching on third-party search engines and are feeling more confused than ever, here is a brief list of Alfred alternatives on Windows below. to get you started.

1. Wox

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Wox shows quick results in real time, considered by many to be the Alfred version for Windows. Once installed (which might not be a friendly experience for some), all you have to do is press Alt + Space to launch the app and start searching. You can search for program files and do a web search for IMDb, Wikipedia, Amazon and other popular websites.

The app has many built-in plugins that allow you to search for hex codes, use a calculator, and even execute system commands.

To activate the commands, right-click on Wox in the icon tray and select Settings. Go to the Plugins tab at the top and select Shell from the left column bar. Check the Replace Win + R checkbox .

You can also customize the look of the search bar by choosing from a variety of Themes in Settings.

Download Wox here.

2. Listary

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Finding and launching apps with Listary is lightning fast. As soon as you finish installing and launching the app, the software will take you through a quick guide highlighting basic search functionality. The default hotkey for applications is to press the Ctrl key twice.

After starting to import, you will also see options to search only for files or jump into the Action menu with commands to cut, copy, paste, etc. The search bar goes one step further to provide access. access to favorites, recent items and extended ellipses (ellipsis to the right) commands are integrated in the bar itself.

The app has certain default keywords to choose from when doing web searches for popular websites, including Gmail, Twitter, and eBay. To access Keywords and other settings, select the Listary icon from the system tray and select Options.

The free version does everything you'd expect from a search app, and that's what makes Listary one of the best Windows File Explorer extensions for file management. But if you feel the need to explore bigger features, you have the option to upgrade to the Pro version.

Download Listary here 

3. Keypirinha

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You should have a zip file extractor available before installing. You can open the Launch Box using Ctrl + Win + K . With the application running in the background, you can launch it with a hotkey or click on the system tray icon.

You get immediate results as you type and can see the 'k' icon change to the icon of the popular websites or apps you're looking for. You can do a number of things like linking keywords to items, viewing bookmark suggestions, and expanding the system path location by configuring the apps.ini file .

Compared to all the other apps on this list, Keypirinha settings have to be edited manually using a plain text editor instead of just accessing the built-in Settings or Options menu . Just right-click on the Keypirinha icon in the system tray and select Configure Keypirinha , this will open two notepad files side by side, one is read-only with detailed 'how-to' instructions and the other is for for you to make the changes.

This can be somewhat overwhelming, if not comfortable working with code. There's nothing more than a simple copy and paste, though, allowing you to configure an expandable feature set.

The app also comes with a bunch of different packages that you can configure to your liking. For example, the web search package allows you to run searches on supported search engines in the default system browser.

Start by entering the name of a supported or optional search engine like Yahoo, Twitter or Wikipedia and press Tab. Now type your search query and press Enter again to open the search results page in your default browser.

Download Keypirinha here.

4. Hain

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Hain has a very clean, user-friendly interface and doesn't have many advanced features. On launch, the application opens with a simple panel that highlights its search bar and prompts you to try a few things. Search results are filled in quickly and easily. The application ignores some typos. For example, you can type in excel or WRD respectively for Excel and Word.

There are plugins for finding popular websites, launching commands with cmd.exe, recording simple notes, using a calculator, opening URLs and managing other tasks. You can also use the app's built-in plugins to search for files and file extensions, and add or remove options accordingly.

Hain also has a dedicated setting for the window position, which can be set to Draggable window or Automatically remember window position . It can also be centered or placed to a specific spot on the screen when you launch the app. Internal themes are limited to light and dark modes, but there are external links for supported themes as well.

Download Hain here

5. Jarvis

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Developed under the MIT license, Jarvis is by far the simplest Windows 10 search app. Alt + Space is the default hotkey and when you activate it after the installation, start searching for the query. The UI doesn't have a white search bar and there are only two options in the Settings menu .

While one option is to check for updates and get the update preview, the other is File indexing . You can choose to add permissions for folders and file extensions. The program supports most of the extensions for many different types of files such as audio, video, images and documents.

The app doesn't have the ability to customize the theme, and the developers claim it's built for Windows 10. If you can use it on other versions of Windows, consider that a plus. The app is still in development, and users can expect more features in the future.

Download Jarvis here.

Marvin Fry

Update 01 December 2020