Google Desktop Alternatives

Google Desktop is described as 'The power of Google on your desktop. Hit ctrl twice and you are ready for a full Google search of you hard drive and networked drives you may have. Indispensable if you need to find files quickly... the price doesn't hurt either!' and is a popular File Search utility in the network & admin category. There are more than 10 alternatives to Google Desktop for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and iPad apps. The best Google Desktop alternative is Everything, which is free. Other great apps like Google Desktop are Rainmeter, Alfred, Albert and Agent Ransack.

Google Desktop alternatives are mainly File Search Utilities but may also be Application Launchers or Clipboard Managers. Filter by these if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of Google Desktop.

Google Desktop alternatives page was last updated

Google Desktop

Free • Proprietary
File Search Utility

The power of Google on your desktop. Hit ctrl twice and you are ready for a full Google search of you hard drive and...

More about Google Desktop

Everything
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Proprietary
File Search Utility
File Manager
Windows
100 Everything alternatives
"Everything" is an administrative tool that locates files and folders by filename instantly for Windows. Unlike Windows search "Everything" initially displays every file and folder on local or removable NTFS volumes on your computer (hence the name...
- - Everything is the most popular Windows alternative to Google Desktop.
- - Everything is the most popular free alternative to Google Desktop.
Suggest and vote on features
Everything Features
1. LightweightEverything consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
2. PortableEverything can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
3. Ad-freeEverything doesn't contain any form of external advertising.
Instant results
Fast file and folder search
Clean design
Support for regular expressions
Quick search
Monitor File Changes
Exclude files and folders
Data export/import
Search-in-files
Search output is not sortable
Comments about Everything as a Alternative to Google Desktop
Some users think Everything is a great Google Desktop alternative, some don't.
Guest
It doesn't search in the files content.
Negative comment•
3

Guest
"Everything" does not search in the files content, only in the files names. This is of course a major difference.
Negative comment•
15
Rainmeter
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Desktop Customization Tool
System Information Utility
Windows
30 Rainmeter alternatives
Rainmeter allows you to display customizable skins on your desktop, from hardware usage meters to fully functional audio visualizers. You are only limited by your imagination and creativity.
- - Rainmeter is the most popular Open Source alternative to Google Desktop.
Suggest and vote on features
Rainmeter Features
Widgets
Customizable
Customize skin
CPU Monitoring
Live Wallpapers
Custom widgets
Colored Text
Skinnable
Hardware Monitoring
Desktop Widget
Comments about Rainmeter as a Alternative to Google Desktop
This alternative is disputed. Rainmeter is still a legitimate Google Desktop alternative, but it might have issues that some users think are important.
Guest
Rainmeter does not have a search feature and requires external plugins to imitate the sidebar
Negative comment•
3
Alfred
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Freemium • Proprietary
Application Launcher
File Search Utility
Clipboard Manager
Mac
iPhone
iPad
101 Alfred alternatives
Alfred is a productivity application for macOS, which boosts your efficiency with hotkeys, keywords and text expansion. Search your Mac and the web, and control your Mac using custom actions with the Powerpack.
- - Alfred is the most popular Mac, iPhone & iPad alternative to Google Desktop.
Suggest and vote on features
Alfred Features
1. Extensible by Plugins/ExtensionsAlfred can be extended with add-ons, plugins and extensions.
2. Dark ModeAlfred supports dark mode for comfortable usage in low light conditions.
3. Full-Text SearchAlfred lets you search for specific words or phrases from inside a document or database.
4. Ad-freeAlfred doesn't contain any form of external advertising.
Launcher
Customizable
Albert
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Application Launcher
File Search Utility
Web Search Engine
Linux
42 Albert alternatives
Albert is a C++/Qt based desktop agnostic keyboard launcher that helps you to accomplish your workflows in a breeze. Its goals are usability and beauty, performance and extensibility.
- - Albert is the most popular Linux alternative to Google Desktop.
Suggest and vote on features
Albert Features
1. Extensible by Plugins/ExtensionsAlbert can be extended with add-ons, plugins and extensions.
2. No Coding RequiredAlbert can be used without an coding or programming skills.
3. Command line interfaceAlbert either have CLI support or is a CLI-only app.
4. AutocompletionAlbert can predict and complete the rest of a word or phrase you're typing.
5. Ad-freeAlbert doesn't contain any form of external advertising.
6. Works OfflineAlbert can be used without the need to connect to the internet.
7. Currency ConversionAlbert lets you convert different currencies based on the latest exchange rates.
8. LightweightAlbert consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
9. No TrackingAlbert will not track you or use your personal data.
Firefox bookmarks
Search Bar
Launcher
No registration required
Dark Mode
Support for scripting
Support for Themes
Customizable
QT Based
Agent Ransack
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Freemium • Proprietary
File Search Utility
Windows
69 Agent Ransack alternatives
Agent Ransack is a tool for finding files and information on your hard drive fast and efficiently. When searching the contents of files Agent Ransack also displays the text found. Users can then quickly browse the results without having to separately open each file!
Suggest and vote on features
Agent Ransack Features
Search-in-files
Context Menu extension
Outlook search
Opinions about Agent Ransack as a Alternative to Google Desktop
Some users think Agent Ransack is a great Google Desktop alternative, some don't.
Cerebro
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Mac
Windows
Linux
42 Cerebro alternatives
Cerebro is an open source and free electron-based productivity software alternative to Alfred and Spotlight. It is focused on speed and good UI and UX. In most cases you don't even need to open another application, because you can see results right in Cerebro, like google...
Suggest and vote on features
Cerebro Features
1. Extensible by Plugins/ExtensionsCerebro can be extended with add-ons, plugins and extensions.
Theme changing
Multiplatform Export
Launcher
Calculus solving
Electron based
RecentX
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Paid • Proprietary
File Search Utility
Application Launcher
Clipboard Manager
Windows
271 RecentX alternatives
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.
- - RecentX is the most popular commercial alternative to Google Desktop.
Suggest and vote on features
RecentX Features
1. File TaggingRecentX can organize and highlight your files with tags and labels.
2. Windows Explorer ExtensionRecentX can extend Windows Explorer in various ways, for example add context menu options, etc..
3. PortableRecentX can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
Tagging
Indexed search
Folder-Search
Tabbed interface
Clipboard monitoring
Image Preview
Tag based
Folder Tagging
Bookmark History
Local Search
SwiftSearch
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
File Search Utility
File Manager
Windows
70 SwiftSearch alternatives
SwiftSearch is a lightweight program whose purpose is to help you quickly find the files you need on your Windows machine without ever requiring you to index your drives. Most search utilities that achieve similar speeds do so by indexing drives while the computer is idle, but...
Suggest and vote on features
SwiftSearch Features
Persistent Linux
Copernic Desktop Search
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Freemium • Proprietary
File Search Utility
Windows
67 Copernic Desktop Search alternatives
Instantly find documents, e-mails(full text), attachments, videos, pictures, music(metadata), and other types of files(file names). The size limit of the index of the free version is 75,000.
Suggest and vote on features
Copernic Desktop Search Features
1. OCRExtract the text from a screen capture or file and paste it into another document for edits.
Outlook search
PDF OCR
Indexed search
FileSearchy
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free Personal • Proprietary
File Search Utility
Windows
71 FileSearchy alternatives
File search utility that provides instant search by file name, and powerful search by file contents, size and date. Supports search inside PDF, Microsoft Office and other documents. Highlights found text in file names and contents. Clean and intuitive multi-tabbed user interface.
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FileSearchy Features
Local Search
Discontinued
The official website is no longer available. Last version, 1.43, released in October 2016, can be still downloaded from Majorgeeks
Archivarius 3000
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Paid • Proprietary
File Search Utility
Duplicate File Finder
Windows
Self-Hosted
32 Archivarius 3000 alternatives
Full-text morphological search among documents and e-books of dozens of file types, including text in archives and disk images; on the your desktop, LAN, clouds (WebDAV) and removable drives.
- - Archivarius 3000 is the most popular Self-Hosted alternative to Google Desktop.
Suggest and vote on features
Archivarius 3000 Features
1. PortableArchivarius 3000 can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
2. Full-Text SearchArchivarius 3000 lets you search for specific words or phrases from inside a document or database.
Multiple languages
Morphological search
Self-hosted search
Fuzzy Finder
Network Scanner
Content Searching
Indexed search
Lookeen Desktop Search
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Freemium • Proprietary
File Search Utility
Windows
Microsoft Office Outlook
70 Lookeen Desktop Search alternatives
A fast and next-generation desktop search and productivity tool for standard and virtual desktops, for private and enterprise search requirements. Finds documents, outlook archives and e-mails, contacts, appointments, folders, etc.
Suggest and vote on features
Lookeen Desktop Search Features
Indexed search
Outlook search
Opinions about Lookeen Desktop Search as a Alternative to Google Desktop
Most users think Lookeen Desktop Search is a great Google Desktop alternative.