Want weekly shortcuts like this?
Join the Shortcuts community.
Join
For years, the default answer to Mac search was Spotlight. But recent macOS updates have combined Siri AI with native search, making the whole experience feel a little sluggish. If you want a launcher that is lightning fast and replaces half a dozen utility apps, it is time to look at Raycast. Here is exactly why it should be your default Mac launcher.
Raycast is incredibly fast. Whether you are launching an app, running a shortcut, or moving windows, there is zero hesitation.
It also learns your habits. If you type "share", it pulls up all shortcuts with that word. If you run the Share Primary Tech shortcut, Raycast remembers. It pushes that specific shortcut to the very top of the list the next time you search. You do not have to configure anything. Raycast just learns what you prefer.
You can easily map Raycast to Cmd + Space to replace Spotlight completely. Go to Raycast Settings, open the General tab, and set the Raycast Hotkey.
Raycast acts as a full-fledged clipboard manager. You can stop running separate apps for this.
You can map the Clipboard History tool to a global hotkey, like Cmd + 4. Press it anywhere on your Mac, and your clipboard history pops up instantly.
Hit Enter to paste a clipping. You can also use Cmd + K to reveal an Actions menu with options like Paste as Plain Text or Save as Snippet.
If you use tools like TextExpander, Raycast can replace them entirely. You can create snippets for frequently used text, email addresses, or YouTube channel URLs.
The dynamic placeholders make this extremely powerful. For example, you can create a snippet named Share Link and assign it the keyword [share]. You can set the snippet content to say "Check this out:" and follow it with the Clipboard Text dynamic placeholder.
Whenever you type [share], Raycast expands the text and automatically inserts whatever URL is currently sitting on your clipboard.
Where Raycast gets really powerful is with keyboard shortcuts and aliases. You can map global hotkeys to specific actions so they trigger no matter what app you are using.
You can set up a "Hyper Key" directly in Raycast Settings. Navigate to the Advanced tab. By mapping your Caps Lock key to act as a Hyper Key, it registers as pressing Cmd + Shift + Option + Control all at once. This unlocks a whole new layer of keyboard shortcuts that will not conflict with system defaults.
For example, map your Hyper Key + E to open the Search Emoji & Symbols picker. It loads much faster than the default macOS emoji picker.
Aliases let you type short letter combinations inside the main Raycast window to trigger actions. Type gg to search Google, yy to search YouTube, or gif to open the Giphy search extension.
You do not need an extra app to handle your windows. Raycast has comprehensive window management built right in.
Search for "window" in Raycast. You will see options like Right Half, First Two Thirds, or Bottom Left Quarter.
You can assign aliases or global hotkeys to any of these. Setting an alias of ww for First Fourth lets you snap a window perfectly into the corner just by launching Raycast and typing those two letters.
The Raycast Store is packed with third-party extensions. You can install them right from the launcher by searching for Store.
If you use Bear Notes, the Bear extension lets you search your notes without opening the app. Use a global hotkey like Hyper Key + B to instantly bring up your notes search.
The Notion extension is equally powerful. You can assign an alias like n to the Search Notion command. Type n, hit Space, and type a document number to jump straight to that specific workspace page.
Other notable extensions include tools for Apple Notes, Things, Apple Reminders, and CleanShot X.
Raycast recently announced a massive version 2.0 update. The app is built on a hybrid stack utilizing web views, React, and a native Xcode shell. This architecture allows it to remain cross-platform. Big architectural changes are on the horizon, and it will be interesting to see how the new version handles performance and speed.
If you are still relying on standard Spotlight, give Raycast a try. Change your Cmd + Space binding and spend ten minutes setting up a few aliases. You will be amazed at how much friction it removes from your daily workflow.