Catfish AlternativesFile Search Utilities and other similar apps like Catfish

Catfish is described as 'Handy file searching tool for Linux and Unix. The interface is intentionally lightweight and simple, using only GTK+3. You can configure it to your needs by using several command line options' and is a File Search utility in the file management category. There are more than 25 alternatives to Catfish for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Linux, Mac, Flathub and BSD apps. The best Catfish alternative is Everything, which is free. Other great apps like Catfish are FSearch, DocFetcher, Cling Fuzzy Finder and Recoll.

Catfish iconCatfish
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Catfish is a handy file searching tool for Linux and Unix. The interface is intentionally lightweight and simple, using...

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Catfish alternatives page was last updated Apr 29, 2025
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  1. Everything icon

    Everything

     1195 likes
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    An administrative tool that finds files and folders by filename instantly, displaying all files on local or network drives. Supports filters, 19 languages, portable usage, lightweight resource consumption, no tracking, and dark mode.

    112 Everything alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • AU flagAustralia

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Locate files and folders by name instantly.

    Properties

    1.  Clean design
    2.  Lightweight
    3.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  File Search
    2.  Instant results
    3.  Fast file and folder search
    4.  Support for regular expressions
    5.  Quick search
    6.  Monitor File Changes
    7.  Portable
    8.  Ad-free
    9.  Exclude files and folders
    10.  Works Offline
    11.  Search-in-files
    12.  No registration required

    Everything VS Catfish

     

    • Everything is the most popular Windows alternative to Catfish.

    • Everything is the most popular free alternative to Catfish.

    • Everything is Free and ProprietaryCatfish is Free and Open Source
    • Everything is LightweightCatfish is not according to our users
  2. FSearch icon

    FSearch

     69 likes
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    FSearch is a fast file search utility for GNU/Linux operating systems, inspired by Everything Search Engine. It's written in C and based on GTK+3.

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Flathub
    FSearch screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Indexed search
    2.  File Search
    3.  Support for regular expressions
    4.  Ad-free
    5.  Works Offline
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  No registration required

    FSearch VS Catfish

     

    • FSearch is the most popular Linux alternative to Catfish.

    • FSearch is the most popular Open Source alternative to Catfish.

    • FSearch is Free and Open SourceCatfish is also Free and Open Source
    • FSearch is Lightweight and Privacy focusedCatfish is not according to our users
  4. DocFetcher icon

    DocFetcher

     125 likes
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    DocFetcher is an Open Source desktop search application: It allows you to search the contents of files on your computer. — You can think of it as Google for your local files. The application runs on Windows, Linux and OS X, and is made available under the Eclipse Public License.

    126 DocFetcher alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Filter panel and preview panel enabled

    Top DocFetcher Features

    1.  Search-in-files
    2.  File content indexing
    3.  Indexed search
    4.  Full-Text Search
    5.  Content Searching
    6.  Portable
    7.  Built-in viewer
    8.  Shared Folders
    9.  Reads odt files
    10.  Network Scanner
    11.  Search in Archives

    DocFetcher VS Catfish

     

    • DocFetcher is the most popular Mac alternative to Catfish.

    • DocFetcher is Free and Open SourceCatfish is also Free and Open Source
  5. Ad
    Screenshot
    FileMinutes icon
    FileMinutes

    Work smarter with files on macOS with fast search, easy navigation, and integrated file actions all in one apps.

    https://www.fileminutes.com
    Learn More
  6. Cling Fuzzy Finder icon

    Cling Fuzzy Finder

     8 likes
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    Instant fuzzy find any file, act on it in the same instant.

    53 Cling Fuzzy Finder alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • International

    Platforms

    • Mac
    Cling Fuzzy Finder screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Distraction-free
    2.  Privacy focused
    3.  Lightweight
    4.  Minimalistic

    Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  Works Offline
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  No registration required
    5.  Dark Mode
    6.  Support for scripting
    7.  Support for Hotkeys
    8.  Support for Keyboard Shortcuts
    9.  Hidden files
    10.  Content Filtering
    11.  Fuzzy Finder
    12.  QuickLook File Preview

    Cling Fuzzy Finder VS Catfish

     
  7. Recoll icon

    Recoll

     60 likes
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    This package is a personal full text search package which is based on a very strong backend (Xapian), for which it provides an easy to use and feature-rich interface.

    43 Recoll alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • FR flagFrance
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    Search results

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  File Search
    2.  Indexed search
    3.  File content indexing
    4.  Full-Text Search
    5.  File preview
    6.  Search-in-files
    7.  Dark Mode
    8.  Ad-free
    9.  No registration required
    10.  Command line interface
    11.  Works Offline
    12.  Semantic Search

    Recoll VS Catfish

     
  8. Clapgrep icon

    Clapgrep

     7 likes
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    Ever had a folder full of PDF files, where you knew, somewhere in there, is what you're looking for. But you did not know in which file. So you had to search each of them at a time…

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
    Clapgrep screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Full-Text Search
    2.  Content Searching
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  Built-in viewer
    5.  Ad-free
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  No registration required
    8.  Works Offline
    9.  File content indexing
    10.  Advanced searching

    Clapgrep VS Catfish

     
  10. SearchMyFiles icon

    SearchMyFiles

     35 likes
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    SearchMyFiles is a non-indexing portable alternative to the standard "Search For Files And Folders" module of Windows. It allows you to easily search files in your system by wildcard, by last modified/created/last accessed time, by file attributes, by file content...

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • IL flagIsrael

    Platforms

    • Windows
    SearchMyFiles screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Local Search
    2.  Portable
    3.  Full-Text Search
    4.  Non-Indexing search
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Works Offline
    7.  Ad-free
    8.  Network Scanner

    SearchMyFiles VS Catfish

     
  11. FileMinutes icon

    FileMinutes

     3 likes
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    Work smarter with files on macOS with fast search, easy navigation, and integrated file actions all in one apps.

    License model

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    FileMinutes screenshot 1

    Top FileMinutes Features

    1.  No registration required
    2.  No Tracking
    3.  Live Preview
    4.  Works Offline
    5.  Dark Mode
    6.  Built-in viewer
    7.  Ad-free
    8.  Keyboard Browsing
    9.  Support for Keyboard Shortcuts
    10. Finder icon  Apple Finder Integration
    11.  QuickLook File Preview

    FileMinutes VS Catfish

     

    • FileMinutes is the most popular commercial alternative to Catfish.

    • FileMinutes is Paid and ProprietaryCatfish is Free and Open Source
  12. RecentX icon

    RecentX

     106 likes
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    RecentX is an innovative launcher that gives you instant access to your files, folders, programs, websites & clipboard history. It automatically remembers your favorite & recent items so that you can launch them even faster.

    293 RecentX alternatives

    License model

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • IN flagIndia

    Platforms

    • Windows
    RecentX screenshot 1

    Top RecentX Features

    1.  File Tagging
    2. File Explorer icon  Windows Explorer Extension
    3.  Portable
    4.  Tagging
    5.  Indexed search
    6.  Folder-Search
    7.  Tabbed interface
    8.  Clipboard monitoring
    9.  Image Preview
    10.  Tag based
    11.  Folder Tagging
    12.  Bookmark History

    RecentX VS Catfish

     
  13. Locate32 icon

    Locate32

     83 likes
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    Locate32 is software which can be used to find files from your harddrives and other locations. It works like updatedb and locate commands in Unix based systems. In other words, it uses databases to store information about directory structures and uses these databases in searches.

    72 Locate32 alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • FI flagFinland
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Locate32 screenshot 1
    Discontinued

    The project seems to be no longer developed. Last version, 3.1.11.8220a, released in May 2015, can be still downloaded from SourceForge.

    Locate32 Features

    1.  Auto Indexing

    Locate32 VS Catfish

     
  14. EasyFind icon

    EasyFind

     37 likes
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    EasyFind is an alternative to (or supplement of) Spotlight to find files, folders, or contents in any file without indexing.

    57 EasyFind alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    EasyFind screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  No registration required
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  Full-Text Search

    EasyFind VS Catfish

     
  15. Desktop Docs icon

    Desktop Docs

     3 likes
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    Desktop Docs is the all-in-one platform to browse, edit, and export your media files.

    License model

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    Desktop Docs screenshot 1

    Desktop Docs Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  No Tracking
    3.  Works Offline
    4.  Built-in viewer
    5.  File Tagging
    6.  No registration required
    7.  AI-Powered
    8.  Local Search
    9.  Video search

    Desktop Docs VS Catfish

     
12 of 30 Catfish alternatives