An easy-to-use, fast and efficient full-text search tool for your iPad or iPhone. Search for content in files stored on your device, in iCloud, on network folders, USB drives and memory cards.




DocFetcher is described as '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 macOS, and is made available under the Eclipse Public License' and is a very popular File Search utility in the file management category. There are more than 100 alternatives to DocFetcher for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, BSD and Flathub apps. The best DocFetcher alternative is Recoll, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like DocFetcher are Listary, FSearch, Agent Ransack and UltraSearch.
An easy-to-use, fast and efficient full-text search tool for your iPad or iPhone. Search for content in files stored on your device, in iCloud, on network folders, USB drives and memory cards.




CSearcher is a simple and fast free non-indexing search program.
Searching computer files and folders is rather common for every PC user daily. Using standard Windows Explorer solution for this has many disavantages: it's slow, uses lots of RAM and many times it does not fin.




FileSearchEX is the no nonsense file search utility for Windows 7 and higher. It offers the simplified search interface like Windows XP yet in an updated and modern fashion. Unlike other search tools, FileSearchEX works well with limited account permissions.

Wherever you have files DeskRule can locate them. Search your hard disk, but also in mobile phones and cameras, zipfolders, FTP, OneDrive and all the other virtual shell folders.




Indexer++ is probably the best open-source desktop files and folders search utility for Windows.


The Spotlight Search Metadata on your Mac is a truly remarkable thing. Given some text it is able to find all occurrences anywhere on the filesystem in the blink of an eye. At that this point your options are limited however.
SeekFast is a software tool for quick and easy text search on your computer. SeekFast can search in all Microsoft Word documents (doc), PDF, RTF and text files in a folder and its subfolders on your computer.
Panofind allows you to find texts in more than 70 document & media formats (like PDF, Word, Excel, etc.), more formats will be added in future versions. The tool will also index the files in a variety of compressed archives.


Find files fast across folders, drives, disks and machines and emails in MS Outlook, find duplicates. Attach labels, bookmarks and comments, automatic backup, synchronize, messaging. Tag Web pages while downloading. Share labels with others.

Effective File Search (EFS) is a powerful but easy to use search tool. Search any files on your computer or local network with this effective software. EFS is a real replacement for the Windows Search utility. You can save a lot of time with this excellent file search tool.


Great alternative to DocFetcher, should be at top of the list. App updated July 2023. Configurable. Adjust font size. Select directory or folder, which it indexes. Add file types. Shows results list on left, preview on right. Click on a result for the doc, pdf, whatever, to open in your default reader.