An Alfred alternative for Mac
Superhound is a native Mac launcher for apps, files, math, emoji, and clipboard history. It costs $10 once at launch, for 3 Macs, with every feature included. It has no workflows or snippets.
Pick Alfred if you build workflows, expand snippets, need clipboard history for images and files, or use an Intel Mac. Pick Superhound if you want a small, fast launcher that forgives typos and includes clipboard history in one price.
Superhound and Alfred compared
| Superhound | Alfred | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $10 once at launch (regular price $15), for 3 Macs. Free to evaluate with every feature. | Alfred is free. Powerpack £34 for a single user (v5, with a free upgrade to Alfred 6), or £59 with free lifetime upgrades. |
| Apps and files | Yes, with typo tolerance and learned ranking | Yes |
| Web search | Yes | Yes |
| Calculator and units | Yes | Calculator (unit conversion not listed) |
| System commands | Yes | Yes |
| Clipboard history | Last 500 text copies | Powerpack: text, images, and file links, kept 24 hours to 3 months |
| Snippets | No | Powerpack |
| Workflows | No | Powerpack |
| Settings sync | No | Powerpack |
| Platforms | macOS 15 or later, Apple Silicon | macOS 10.14 or later, Intel and Apple Silicon |
Alfred facts as of 2026-10-21, from alfredapp.com, the Powerpack page, the Powerpack price page, and the clipboard history help. Alfred prices are in British pounds; Superhound prices are in US dollars.
Where Alfred is better
- Workflows. With the Powerpack, workflows connect Alfred to other apps and scripts. Superhound has no workflows or extensions.
- Snippets. Alfred expands snippets as you type. Superhound has no snippets.
- Richer clipboard history. Alfred keeps text, images, and file links. Superhound keeps text only: the last 500 copies.
- Older and Intel Macs. Alfred runs on macOS 10.14 or later, on Intel and Apple Silicon. Superhound needs macOS 15 or later and Apple Silicon.
- A free core. Alfred itself is free; the Powerpack is a paid upgrade. Superhound costs $10 at launch after evaluation.
Where Superhound is better
- Small and light. The whole app is about 1 MB. It uses less than 45 MB of RAM and under 0.2% CPU when idle, measured on an Apple M1.
- Fast search. It ranks 100,000 names in about 10 ms. It forgives typos (
safrifinds Safari) and learns what you open. See Apps and files. - Native code. Objective-C and C on AppKit, with SQLite and FSEvents. No Electron, no web views, no JavaScript runtime.
- One price, every feature. Clipboard history comes with the $10 launch license for 3 Macs. In Alfred, clipboard history needs the £34 Powerpack.
- Private and offline. No account. Search, the catalog, and clipboard history stay on your Mac. See Privacy.
- Open source. The code is on GitHub under AGPL-3.0.
We have not measured Alfred’s size, RAM, or speed, so this page gives no numbers for them.
Switch from Alfred
- Install Superhound with one Terminal command. See Install.
- Quit Alfred, or give its hotkey a new key in Alfred Preferences.
- Turn on Use ⌘Space in place of Spotlight in Superhound’s Settings, or pick another shortcut. See Open with ⌘Space.
- Press ⌥⌘V for clipboard history. Superhound starts a new history; it does not import Alfred’s.
Questions
Is Superhound free?
It is free to evaluate with every feature, and shows a reminder every tenth time you open it. A license is $10 once at launch, for 3 Macs, with a 14-day refund.
Does Superhound run Alfred workflows?
No. Superhound has no workflows or extensions. It has a fixed set of features: apps and files, calculator and units, colours, clipboard history, emoji, web search, system commands, and System Settings panes.
Does Superhound run on Intel Macs?
No. Superhound needs a Mac with Apple Silicon and macOS 15 or later. On an Intel Mac, use Alfred or Spotlight.
Can Superhound replace Spotlight on ⌘Space?
Yes. One switch in Settings takes ⌘Space from Spotlight, and turning it off gives it back.
Does Superhound need an account or the internet?
No account. Search works offline. The app contacts superhound.app only to activate a license and to check for updates once a day.
Also comparing Raycast? See Superhound as a Raycast alternative.