Comparisons

Cling vs Raycast

Updated 2026-08-05 · 5 min read

Raycast already has a file search. People who use it heavily still add Cling, and there is a specific reason why.

What Raycast's file search actually is

Raycast is a launcher and command palette. Its file search is, at bottom, a front end to Spotlight's index — which means it inherits Spotlight's coverage exactly. Files Spotlight excludes do not appear in Raycast either, because Raycast is asking the same index.

That is not a criticism. Raycast is not trying to be a file indexer.

What Cling adds

Its own index, covering the places Spotlight omits: ~/Library, package contents, dotfiles, application data. If your search failed in Raycast because Spotlight never indexed the file, a second index is the only fix.

Cling also has a Raycast extension, so you can keep one entry point and get the other index behind it. If you already live in Raycast, that is the neatest arrangement available and it is a genuine point in Cling's favour.

When Raycast alone is enough

If your searches are for documents in Documents, Desktop and Downloads — which describes most people most of the time — Spotlight indexes those well, and Raycast is a pleasant way to reach them. Adding a second index buys nothing.

When it is not

The moment you go looking for something in a Library folder, inside an app bundle, in a .noindex build directory, or on a drive Spotlight has decided not to index. Raycast will report nothing, confidently.

The three-way position

	Raycast	Cling	Everywhere
Own index	no, Spotlight	yes	yes
Sees ~/Library	no	yes	yes
Contents	via Spotlight	no	chosen folders
Also a launcher	yes	no	no
Oldest macOS	recent	14	13

Raycast is a launcher that finds files. The other two are file indexes. Most people who care about this end up running a launcher and an index, not one tool for both.

Common questions

Does Raycast have its own file index?

No. Raycast's file search queries Spotlight's index, so it finds exactly what Spotlight finds and misses exactly what Spotlight misses.

Can I use Cling from inside Raycast?

Yes, Cling offers a Raycast extension, so you can keep Raycast as the entry point and search Cling's index through it.

Why does Raycast miss files that are definitely there?

Because Spotlight excludes ~/Library, package contents and dotfiles. Raycast inherits those exclusions.