Raycast vs Spotlight in 2026: Search, AI, Clipboard and Price

Raycast 2 requires macOS Tahoe and Apple Silicon, and that rule now shapes the Raycast vs Spotlight choice before any feature does. According to the Apple Newsroom, Spotlight got its biggest update ever with macOS Tahoe 26, which lets users directly execute hundreds of actions, and in macOS 27 you can choose Ask Siri as the top hit in Spotlight.

Raycast’s pricing page lists Raycast Free at $0 a month and Raycast Pro at $96 billed annually, with 500 AI credits a month. Apple announced macOS Tahoe as a free software update. Spotlight now covers launcher basics such as app search, actions and clipboard history, so the question is whether extensions, AI credits and window commands are worth a second launcher. Every feature and price below comes from Apple Support, the Apple Newsroom and Raycast’s own pages, current as of October 2026.

Key Takeaways

• Raycast 2 requires macOS Tahoe and Apple Silicon, and Raycast v2.0 shipped on August 25, 2026.
• Per Raycast’s pricing page, Raycast Pro costs $96 a year billed annually or $10 month to month.
• Raycast Pro includes 500 AI credits a month, while Siri AI in Spotlight is in beta on macOS 27 and usage limits may apply.
• Raycast Free keeps 3 months of clipboard history and Pro keeps it unlimited, while Apple warns that sensitive information may appear on the Clipboard.
• Raycast’s Teams Pro plan costs $144 per user a year billed annually.
• Raycast v2.7 arrived on October 8, 2026, and Spotlight automatically assigns quick keys to actions you take.

Editor’s Choice

• Lowest cost: a tie at the entry level, because Apple announced macOS Tahoe as a free software update, and Raycast Free costs $0 a month.
• Built-in AI on a budget: Raycast Pro with 500 AI credits a month.
• Heavy AI use: Raycast’s Max plan at $480 a year with 7,500 AI credits a month.
• Longest clipboard history: Raycast Pro, with unlimited history against 3 months on Free.
• Trying Pro first: when Raycast v2.0 shipped on August 25, 2026, Raycast said signing in gives you a 7-day free trial of Pro to help with the transition, with no credit card required.
• Teams: Teams Pro at $144 per user a year billed annually.

Spotlight Overview: macOS Tahoe and macOS 27

Spotlight shows suggestions from apps, files, actions, the internet and the Clipboard, and you can open or copy an item, see its location or take action. It takes hundreds of actions without lifting your hands off the keyboard, and quick keys help you perform them even faster.

Apple’s guide to Spotlight opens by calling it the fastest way to find anything on your Mac, then turns to Siri. When you turn on Siri AI, Spotlight becomes the place where you start a conversation with Siri, ask for personal context or take actions across your apps. You open Spotlight with Command-Space bar, and pressing Tab on a result reveals Quick Actions. The Spotlight usage figures show how many Mac owners already start there.

Raycast Overview: What Raycast 2 Adds

Raycast Free includes Clipboard History, Quicklinks, Calculator, Snippets, Emoji Picker and Window Management, plus thousands of extensions, at $0 a month. With version 2.0 out of beta, Raycast v2 replaces v1, and the changelog runs from v2.0 on August 25, 2026 to v2.7 on October 8, 2026.

Type a filename or folder into Root Search and File Search results show alongside other results, with no separate command needed. On installation, the new Raycast replaces Raycast V1, with a handful of missing features still to be added. The Raycast vs Alfred comparison covers how the same release changed its race with Alfred.

Raycast vs Spotlight Head-to-Head

Spotlight wins on reach because it ships with the Mac, and Raycast wins on depth. The redesigned Spotlight comes with macOS Tahoe, which Apple announced as a free software update, while Raycast Pro costs $96 a year billed annually. Every row below comes from Apple Support, the Apple Newsroom and Raycast’s own pages.

Source: Apple Support, Apple Newsroom, Raycast, October 2026

The table splits on two rows more than any other: price and the Mac you own. Spotlight is built into macOS and runs on every Mac that takes the update, while Raycast asks for Apple Silicon and, for AI, a subscription. The sections below take each row in turn.

Price and Team Plans

Both start at no cost, because Apple announced macOS Tahoe as a free software update. Raycast’s pricing page lists Free at $0, Pro at $96 a year, Plus at $192 a year and Max at $480 a year, all billed annually, so the gap opens only at Raycast’s paid tiers.

Month-to-month billing costs more. Monthly billing runs $10 for Pro, $20 for Plus and $50 for Max, so twelve months of Pro billed monthly add up to $120.

During the beta, Dictation and AI Chat were free, and with version 2.0 they became part of Raycast Pro. When version 2.0 shipped, Raycast’s changelog also said that signing in gives you a 7-day free trial of Pro, and no credit card is required.

Teams pay per seat. Teams Pro costs $144 per user a year billed annually, with Plus at $240 and Max at $624 per user a year.

The free team tier caps what a team can share. It allows up to 5 shared commands and up to 30 shared quicklinks and 30 shared snippets.

App and File Search

Both launchers now find apps and files fast, and Apple’s newsroom describes how Spotlight ranks them. During a search, files, folders, events, apps and messages are listed together and ranked by relevance, and Spotlight can surface documents on third-party cloud drives. Its Browse Modes narrow a search from the keyboard.

Source: Apple Support, macOS Tahoe 26

Raycast takes a different route to the same files. Raycast’s File Search runs on a new indexing engine with faster results and more ways to filter them, and it indexes your home folder and, on Mac, the Applications folder by default. Version 2.7 cut File Search memory use by up to 80% at peak and made searches up to 30% faster.

By the numbers: Raycast says its v2.7 launcher can use up to 35% less memory while idle, and File Search uses up to 95% less memory while searching. Those are Raycast’s own measurements against its previous release, not a test against Spotlight, but they show where the v2 rebuild spent its effort.

Spotlight can also filter a search by where a file is stored, such as iCloud. For finding a file or an app, the gap between the two has mostly closed.

Actions and Quick Keys vs Extensions

Spotlight now runs actions natively, and Raycast still has the larger add-on catalog. Spotlight lets you take hundreds of system and app actions, such as sending messages, creating an event and running shortcuts, and it automatically assigns quick keys to actions you take. Raycast lists thousands of extensions on its Free plan.

Quick keys are the fastest way to run an action in Spotlight: assign “ft” to Start FaceTime Call, then type “ft Ashley” and press Return to start the call. Suggested quick keys are automatically assigned after running an action once. Our picks of the best Raycast extensions show what the Store adds beyond system actions.

Can Raycast replace Spotlight?

Yes, for most launcher tasks. Raycast shows File Search results in Root Search alongside other results, with no separate command needed, so it covers apps and files from one bar. You still keep Spotlight available, so you can move Raycast to Command-Space and leave Spotlight for Siri.

AI: Siri in Spotlight vs Raycast AI

Raycast wins on AI choice today, while Siri in Spotlight comes with the Mac but is still in beta. Raycast Pro includes 500 AI credits a month, Plus 3,000 and Max 7,500, while Siri AI in Spotlight is in beta on macOS 27, needs a Mac model with M1 or later or a MacBook Neo, and usage limits may apply.

Max’s 7,500 credits are 15 times Pro’s 500. You can use your own API keys or Claude and ChatGPT subscriptions with Raycast AI without consuming AI Credits, and Quick AI can be your fallback command, so anything that isn’t a command goes straight to AI.

On the Apple side, the Use Model action asks an LLM to answer your question and is only available with Apple Intelligence, and Siri AI is rolling out in English. Our list of Raycast AI commands shows what the Pro allowance buys in daily use.

Why it matters: Raycast AI carries a Profile you write about yourself and a Memory it picks up from your chats, and Agents replace Presets. Siri in Spotlight comes with the Mac, though Apple notes usage limits may apply and it is still in beta, so anyone who already pays for an AI model gets more control from Raycast today.

Clipboard History and Snippets

Spotlight’s clipboard history is built in, and Raycast’s manual documents how long it keeps each item. You open Spotlight’s Clipboard history with Command-4, and the first time you may be asked to click Enable. Raycast lets you keep clipboard items for 1 Day, 1 Week, 1 Month or 3 Months, with 6 Months, 1 Year and Unlimited on Pro.

Source: Raycast manual and pricing page, October 2026

Worth noting: Apple’s own guide warns that sensitive information may appear on the Clipboard, and you erase it by choosing Clear History. Raycast says sensitive information like passwords is automatically ignored and its history respects your password manager, which matters if you copy passwords often.

Does Spotlight have clipboard history?

Yes. Spotlight’s Clipboard browse mode opens with Command-4 and searches your Clipboard history, and you can search text and files you previously copied. For how long Spotlight keeps copied items, check Spotlight settings on your own Mac.

Raycast also expands text snippets. Raycast stores frequently used text snippets and expands them automatically with a keyword, and with Raycast for Teams enabled you can create shared Snippets for all members of your team.

Window Management

Window control from the keyboard is where Raycast pulls ahead, though macOS now tiles windows on its own. On a Mac you can tile windows by dragging a window to the edge of the screen, using the green button or using keyboard shortcuts. Raycast resizes, organizes and moves the focused window from your keyboard.

Raycast can move windows between macOS Spaces, and a Respect Stage Manager setting leaves space for Stage Manager. Custom Window Management commands are part of Raycast Pro. If dragging to the screen edge is enough, macOS covers it; if you want every layout on a hotkey, Raycast does.

System Requirements and Mac Compatibility

Spotlight wins on older Macs. macOS Tahoe 26 installs on models including the MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2019), the 27-inch iMac from 2020 and the Mac Pro (2019), while Raycast 2 requires macOS Tahoe and Apple Silicon. Those 3 models are Intel Macs, so they get the redesigned Spotlight but cannot run Raycast 2.

macOS 27 is compatible with MacBook Neo and with MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac and Mac mini models with Apple silicon. On any Mac that can run macOS 27, Raycast 2’s hardware rule no longer rules anything out. The macOS 27 Golden Gate guide lists the full upgrade path.

Privacy and Data Handling

Raycast keeps its file index on the Mac, Spotlight also draws suggestions from the internet, and the rest of the difference sits in the clipboard and in AI. Raycast’s file index is stored locally on your device and is never synced or uploaded to Raycast servers, and Spotlight shows suggestions from apps, files, actions, the internet and the Clipboard. Your copied items stay in your Mac’s clipboard history, are fully encrypted and can only be read by you.

If you enable Cloud Sync, Raycast saves AI Chats on its servers, encrypted at rest and in transit, and its agreements with AI providers prohibit them from using AI interactions to train their models. Siri AI on macOS 27 requires an Apple Intelligence-enabled Mac with Siri and device language set to a supported language.

Release Pace

Raycast changes in weeks, and Spotlight changes with macOS. Raycast’s changelog lists v2.0 on August 25, 2026, v2.4 on September 14, 2026 and v2.7 on October 8, 2026. Apple shipped a macOS Tahoe update that optimizes the Spotlight index in preparation for macOS 27.

Raycast describes the new version as a major update and tells users to expect frequent updates and occasional rough edges. Download and usage numbers sit in our Raycast and Alfred usage statistics.

Verdict by Use Case

Spotlight is enough for app search, file search, quick actions and a basic clipboard, and Raycast is worth adding for AI, snippets, window commands and extensions. Raycast Free costs $0 and includes Clipboard History, Snippets and Window Management, and Spotlight lets you take hundreds of actions without lifting your hands off the keyboard.

Best for most Mac users: Spotlight, because Apple announced macOS Tahoe as a free software update, and Spotlight now directly executes hundreds of actions.

Best for Intel Macs: Spotlight, because Raycast 2 requires macOS Tahoe and Apple Silicon.

Best for AI power users: Raycast, because Pro includes 500 AI credits a month and accepts your own API keys without consuming credits.

Best for text expansion and window control: Raycast, because its snippets expand automatically with a keyword and it moves windows between macOS Spaces from the keyboard.

Best for teams: Raycast, because Teams Pro costs $144 per user a year billed annually.

Is Raycast better than Spotlight?

Raycast is better if you want AI, snippets, window commands and extensions; Spotlight is better if you want a launcher built into macOS that runs actions with no setup. Raycast Free costs $0, so on an Apple Silicon Mac running macOS Tahoe, trying both costs nothing. If neither fits, our ranked list of Raycast alternatives covers the wider field.

Why do people switch from Spotlight to Raycast?

Raycast adds features Spotlight does not bundle. Raycast Free adds Snippets, Window Management and thousands of extensions at $0, and a Pro plan unlocks clipboard retention of 6 Months, 1 Year or Unlimited. Since macOS Tahoe, actions and clipboard history are no longer reasons on their own.

Is Raycast still worth it after the new Spotlight?

Yes, if your Mac meets its requirements and you use more than search. Raycast Free keeps 3 months of clipboard history and includes Window Management at $0, and when Raycast v2.0 shipped on August 25, 2026, Raycast said signing in gives you a 7-day free trial of Pro to help with the transition, with no credit card required.

If you only open apps and files, the new Spotlight is enough and one less app to keep updated. If you write the same text all day, manage windows from the keyboard or want to choose your AI model, Raycast still earns its place.

Conclusion

Raycast Pro costs $96 a year billed annually, while the redesigned Spotlight comes with macOS Tahoe, which Apple announced as a free software update, and directly executes hundreds of actions. Pick Spotlight if you mostly search and launch, and add Raycast on an Apple Silicon Mac when you want AI, snippets and window control in one bar.

Siri AI inside Spotlight is the change most likely to move this verdict. Once it leaves beta in more languages, the AI gap narrows to how much control you want over the model.