- Raycast is much more than a simple launcher: it centralizes access and workflows on Mac, improving productivity thanks to its integration with extensions and keyboard shortcuts.
- It lets you perform advanced actions such as managing windows, automating tasks, controlling third-party apps, and even leveraging artificial intelligence, all without leaving the keyboard.
- Its free version offers extensive features, while the Pro mode adds exclusive tools such as AI, expanded history, and advanced customization, adapting to both basic and advanced users.
Have you ever wondered How you could save dozens of clicks and searches every day on your MacThe answer may be in a tool that, although it is not so well known outside the techie world, is revolutionizing productivity in the macOS ecosystem: ray castIf you use your computer often, whether for programming, managing tasks, working with files, or simply browsing your favorite apps, you have a world of possibilities before you that you couldn't have imagined until recently.
Raycast is much more than an application launcher; It is the nerve center where you can control almost everything on your Mac with the keyboard and customize it. to your needs. In this article, we take an in-depth look at everything Raycast offers, breaking down its features, benefits, extensions, and even its integration with artificial intelligence, so you know what it's all about and why so many people consider it an essential tool.
What is Raycast? The launcher that goes beyond Spotlight
Raycast is a free launcher app for macOS that aims to take productivity to the next level., serving as an alternative and complement to Spotlight, Apple's native search engine. What sets Raycast apart is that, in addition to searching for and opening applications or files, allows you to perform countless actions and automations directly from its interface, without having to waste time navigating between menus or windows.
With a single configurable keyboard shortcut (by default it is usually + ), Raycast opens and shows you a text box ready to type any command or search. This system, inspired by the command palettes of development environments such as GitHub or VSCode, makes it possible to interact in a way Fast, fluid and almost always without touching the mouse.
But its potential doesn't end there: Raycast has a active community developing extensions to expand its functionality. This way, you can manage tasks, automate actions, check events, control the clipboard, use an advanced calculator, integrate third-party services like Notion, Slack, Jira, or Linear, and even leverage artificial intelligence for queries and automation.
Differences and advantages compared to Spotlight
Spotlight is useful for searching for files, apps, and information on your system, but Raycast multiplies your possibilities by adding integration with external apps, automation, and custom commands. While Spotlight is limited to opening things and basic searches, Raycast allows for:
- Executing system commands (volume, brightness, power off, restart…)
- Clipboard interaction: : history, search and quick insertion of copied items.
- Managing reminders, events, and tasks directly.
- Integration with cloud services and productivity apps.
- Automation and creation of your own advanced flows.
- Integration of Artificial Intelligence to answer questions, generate text, translate, or receive personalized suggestions.
Plus, Raycast adapts and learns from your habits, showing you suggestions and shortcuts to what you use most so you can work faster every time.
Interface and operation: All at hand with keyboard shortcuts
Raycast's interface is minimalist, clean and designed to be ultra-fast. The key is in the keyboard shortcuts: You can customize the shortcut to launch it and others to directly access functions such as the clipboard, calculator, or quicklinks.
When you type a search, Raycast interprets it and suggests applications, files, system preferences, commands or extensions based on what you use most.Favorites and suggestions appear in the main area, and you can set shortcuts for some of your repetitive actions.
Here are some of the most important ones:
- ESC: Return to the previous page.
- ⌘ ESC: Returns to the main search screen.
- ⌘ W: Closes the Raycast window.
- ⌘,: Opens Raycast preferences.
- ⌃ N / ⌃ P: Navigate up or down in lists.
- ⇧ ,: Opens the selected item in Preferences.
- ⌘ ⌥ ,: Opens the group of the selected item in Preferences.
- ⌘ ⇧ F: Add or remove items from favorites.
- ⌘ ⌥ ↑ / ⌘ ⌥ ↓: Reorders favorites in the list.
It is possible to search, select with the mouse or keyboard and execute commands with combinations such as CMD+K, accessing all the possibilities of each element: open, mark as favorite, execute tasks, etc.
Extensions and Community: The True Power of Raycast
One of the great added values of Raycast is its extension market, where the community—or you, if you're so inclined—can create and share new features. Some notable extensions and practical uses include:
- Event and task management: Sync your calendars, add reminders, or check your tasks without opening any additional apps.
- Integrations with third-party servicesRaycast connects with Slack, Notion, Jira, Linear, Apple Music, Google Meet, Zoom, and more to quickly send messages, check tickets, or open meeting links.
- Snippets and templates: You can save reusable text snippets, such as signatures, recurring texts, meeting templates, or code blocks, and expand them with keywords or commands, which greatly speeds up your daily work.
- Automation through scriptsIf you have programming skills, you can create scripts or small apps to automate repetitive processes in your workflow.
- Daily utilities such as calculator, conversions, color picker, GIF search, extended clipboard or window manager.
Explore the Raycast Store It's a great way to discover new uses as your needs evolve.
Raycast's most useful everyday features
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Raycast excels at covering, in great depth, everyday tasks that would otherwise waste time navigating through disparate menus. Some of the most appreciated features by users:
- Quickly launch applications, files, or preferences: By typing the name, you open any app, document or system panel instantly.
- Manage clipboard history: Keep a history of everything you copy (text, images, links, etc.) and recover or paste any element passed from Raycast, without fear of overwriting anything important.
- Insert and expand snippets: Define keywords to automatically insert recurring text, such as addresses, tax information, common responses, or even note templates. You can make them dynamic with date markers, clipboard text, or custom selections.
- Improved emoji search and use: Featuring smart word search and the ability to set preferred skin tones, including shortcuts for super-fast, contextual emoji selection.
- Advanced window organization and management: Using shortcuts, you can align windows, split them into thirds or halves, maximize or “almost” maximize, and customize them to your workflow—right from Raycast.
- Quick links: Save direct links to meeting rooms, important folders, or recurring files, which you can access by typing a name or command.
- Powerful calculator and conversions: Perform mathematical calculations, currency conversions, unit conversions, and time conversions between time zones, all without leaving the Raycast bar.
- Color picker and image management: Capture screen colors and manage simple palettes; plus, with utility extensions like TinyPNG, you can compress images directly from the Finder with convenient automation.
- Search and manage GIFs: Search, filter, and save your favorite GIFs so you have them just a command away.
- Automation and script controlFrom small scripts that change keyboard brightness or eject disks, to much more complex automation flows integrated with external apps.
Raycast's flexibility allows it to be adapted to both basic users, who can be limited to the launcher and clipboard functions, and advanced users, who can create their own custom commands and flows.
Raycast AI and exclusive Pro mode features
Raycast has not only focused on automation and rapid access: it has made the leap into artificial intelligence. pro mode It includes a powerful AI integration similar to ChatGPT (model 3.5), which allows you to perform functions such as:
- Answer questions directly from the command bar, with context analysis and intelligent suggestions.
- Reformulate texts, translate sentences and answer technical questions without opening other apps.
- Automate responses or alternative text generation for images, very useful in digital content flows.
- Have personalized chats and save extended histories for frequently asked questions.
Pro mode offers additional benefits such as a larger historical clipboard, improved window organization, and advanced command and shortcut customization, all designed for those looking to get the most out of their Mac.
Raycast AI learns from your usage and preferences to suggest tailored actions and outcomes, becoming a true digital personal assistant.
Extra utilities and tricks to get the most out of Raycast
Aside from the most well-known features, Raycast hides details and utilities that can be very useful to you:
- Direct music control: Change songs, pause, favorite your music in Apple Music, all from the command bar.
- Application administration: You can completely uninstall apps (including configuration files and junk) without the need for any external utilities.
- Features for developers: Access tasks such as checking Jira tickets, launching development scripts, managing projects, and more.
- Automation of common tasks: from the typical "Lorem Ipsum" for testing designs to scripts for keeping your team active or removing paywalls from news websites.
Additionally, you can create quicklinks to access common folders, files, or links directly from Raycast, and add icons to the menu bar for even faster access.
Frequently asked questions and common doubts about Raycast
Is Raycast free? Yes, for personal use, it offers almost all basic and advanced features for free. The paid Pro mode adds the AI layer, expanded history, and enhanced customization.
Does it only work on Mac? That's right. Raycast is built with the AppKit SDK for macOS and doesn't have official versions for Windows or Linux, although there are alternatives inspired by it on other platforms.
Does it consume a lot of resources? Not at all: its size is very small (around 120 MB) and the impact on the computer's performance is practically zero, even with many extensions activated.
Is the Pro version worth it? If you're a power user, want to use the built-in AI for creative work or advanced management, or need more history and customization, the Pro version is worth the investment. For most users, the free version is more than enough.
Raycast has established itself as a must-have for those seeking maximum efficiency in macOS, allowing you to centralize actions, automate tasks, and keep everything under control with just the keyboard. It integrates the best of Apple and the spirit of the open source community, merging power and simplicity like never before. The more you use it, the more you discover it can do, and new extensions emerge every day that expand its possibilities even further.
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