Launcher
Super Shortcuts vs Raycast: a local Raycast alternative
Raycast is a launcher you summon and type into; Super Shortcuts is a command layer that fires in place, scoped to the app or site you're already in. They coexist well.
Updated
At a glance
| Super Shortcuts | Raycast | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $39 one-time | Free; Pro $96/year or $10/month |
| Platform | macOS 12+ | macOS (Windows in beta); iOS companion app |
| How you trigger it | Hyper-key chords (and voice) that fire in place | A global hotkey opens a search palette you type into |
| Context scoping | Per app, website, and window | Commands configured globally; no per-site command layer |
| Voice | On-device push-to-talk commands | Dictation (speech to text) only |
| Offline / account | Fully offline, no account | Core works offline; AI, sync, and Pro need an account and the cloud |
| App coverage | Any app with a UI you can drive | Apps with an extension or script you've added |
| Best for | Fast, repeated, in-place actions you do all day | Launching apps, searching, and an extension command center |
What Raycast is
Raycast is the popular keyboard-first launcher for macOS (with a Windows beta and an iOS companion). You hit a global hotkey, a command palette appears over your current app, and you type to launch apps, search files, run calculations, manage windows, paste from clipboard history, expand snippets, and trigger thousands of community extensions. In the last couple of years it has leaned hard into AI - chat, AI commands, natural-language “AI Extensions,” and dictation. It is the mature flagship in the launcher category, and its extension store is the biggest reason to use it.
The core difference: summon vs fire in place
The honest distinction isn’t quality, it’s paradigm. Raycast is a thing you summon: interrupt what you’re doing, open a window, type or search, then dismiss it. Super Shortcuts is a thing that fires in place: a hyper-key chord runs the action without a window ever appearing, and the same chord can mean different things depending on where you are.
That last part is the wedge. In Super Shortcuts, ⌃⌥⌘ M can mute your call in Zoom and open Gmail in Chrome - one chord, scoped to the app, the website, even the window. Raycast commands are configured globally; there’s no per-site command layer that changes what a key does based on context.
Where Super Shortcuts is different
- In-place, context-scoped chords. One trigger, different meaning per app / site / window, with no palette to open.
- Works in any app, not just the ones with an extension. Raycast’s app-specific powers come from its extension catalog (or script commands you write). Where no extension exists, Super Shortcuts still works - it drives the app’s own UI, so any menu item or button you can reach is one chord away.
- A real hyper-key layer with discovery. Hold the hyper key and a cheat sheet shows every binding available right now, so you never have to remember them.
- On-device voice commands. Push-to-talk that runs commands, not just dictation that types text.
- One price, forever. $39 once. No subscription, and the headline features don’t sit behind a monthly fee.
- Local and offline by default. No account, nothing leaves your Mac.
Where Raycast wins
Credit where it’s due. Raycast’s extension ecosystem is something Super Shortcuts doesn’t try to match - thousands of community integrations for Linear, Slack, GitHub, Notion and more. Its window management, clipboard history, and unified multi-model AI chat are excellent, and if you want a do-everything launcher with a huge plugin catalog, Raycast is the better fit. Its free tier is also genuinely generous.
Can you use both?
Yes, and many people do. Keep Raycast as your launcher and extension hub; add Super Shortcuts for the fast, repeated, in-place actions a launcher makes you stop and type for. They don’t conflict - Super Shortcuts lives on the collision-free hyper key.
Feature by feature
| Super Shortcuts | Raycast | |
|---|---|---|
| Fires actions in place, scoped to your app, site, or window | Yes | No |
| Hyper-key layer with a hold-to-see cheat sheet | Yes | No |
| On-device voice commands (not just dictation) | Yes | No |
| Collision-free trigger (⌃⌥⌘ + a letter) | Yes | Partial |
| Reaches into any app through its UI, nothing to build first | Yes | Partial |
| Deep third-party extension store | Partial | Yes |
| Runs fully offline with no account | Yes | Partial |
| One-time purchase, no subscription | Yes | No |
- Built in
- Possible with setup
- Not available
Frequently asked questions
Is Super Shortcuts a Raycast alternative?
It overlaps for some tasks, but it's a different tool. Raycast is a launcher: you press a hotkey, a search window opens, you type a command, it runs. Super Shortcuts is a command layer: you press a hyper-key chord and the action fires in place, scoped to the app or website you're already in - no window to summon. Many people run both.
Does Raycast have a hyper key like Super Shortcuts?
Raycast has a feature called Hyper Key, but it's a different idea. It remaps a single physical key (like Caps Lock) into the ⌘⌃⌥⇧ modifier so you have more combos to assign. Super Shortcuts' hyper key is a full command layer: hold it to see a cheat sheet of what every key does right now, scoped to your current app or site.
Can Raycast control things by voice?
Raycast offers dictation - you speak and it types cleaned-up text into the active app. That's speech to text, not voice command execution. Super Shortcuts has on-device push-to-talk that runs an actual command (mute a call, open a doc, fire a workflow) without typing.
Can Raycast automate an app that doesn't have an extension?
Only if you write a script command for it (AppleScript or shell). Raycast's ready-made app actions come from its extension store, so an app with no extension is limited to launching and window management. Super Shortcuts takes a different path - it drives the app's actual UI, so you can bind any menu item or button to a chord even when no one has built an integration for that app.
Is Raycast cheaper than Super Shortcuts?
Raycast's core launcher is free, so for launcher features it can cost nothing. But its AI features are a subscription - Pro is $96/year or $10/month. Super Shortcuts is $39 one-time with no subscription. If you only want the free launcher, Raycast is free; if you want ongoing AI, the costs add up.