Alfred
A weekend of work, and real gaps remain.
A macOS launcher with workflows: search, clipboard history, snippets and scriptable automations bound to keywords, bought once rather than rented.
Assemble a launcher from free parts, and know the limits. WHAT A SCRIPT CANNOT DO - Register a global hotkey, watch the clipboard, or search files with system indexing - Those need a native helper. On macOS that is Hammerspoon; on Linux, rofi with a daemon STACK - Hammerspoon or rofi as the launcher, plus your own scripts THE LAUNCHER - One hotkey opens a search field over everything - Sources: applications, files, and your own actions, each returning a common shape CLIPBOARD HISTORY - A daemon storing the last N entries with a size cap - Exclude anything from a password manager window; the exclusion list is not optional SNIPPETS - Keyword expansion through the same daemon, from a plain text file you can version Include the launcher configuration, the clipboard exclusions and the snippet file.
What you lose
- System-level integration — global hotkeys, clipboard monitoring, file search — that a browser or a script cannot reach
- A workflow ecosystem other people have already written
- A one-off price rather than a subscription
If you would rather not build
- The built-in launcher, which is free
The escape hatch
open source · no votes, no paid placement
Hammerspoon
$0Scriptable macOS automation with global hotkeys and window control.
Hammerspoon/hammerspoonfree · open source
ulauncher
$0An extensible application launcher for Linux with a plugin API.
Ulauncher/Ulauncherfree · open source
Why this verdict
our own opinion · changed only by a person
58/100
Verdict kinda at 58. Hammerspoon and rofi cover the mechanics; matching the polish and the workflow library is not a weekend, and the price is a one-off anyway.
History
tracked since 10 Aug 2026 · nothing is ever overwritten
Questions about Alfred
answered from the record above
Is Alfred free?
No — the plan we track is $3 a month. The Powerpack is a one-off licence of around £34; the figure shown spreads that over a year.
Can you replace Alfred by building your own?
ALMOST. A weekend of work, and real gaps remain. Replacement score 58 out of 100, build time a weekend. Read what you lose before you decide.
How much does Alfred cost?
$3 a month on Powerpack — $36 a year. Recorded 10 Aug 2026.
What do you lose by replacing Alfred?
System-level integration — global hotkeys, clipboard monitoring, file search — that a browser or a script cannot reach; A workflow ecosystem other people have already written; A one-off price rather than a subscription. If any of those carry weight for you, keep paying.
Is there an open-source alternative to Alfred?
Yes: Hammerspoon, ulauncher. The prompt on this page is for when you want it your way instead.
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