Flow Launcher
Free, open-source Windows launcher for searching apps and files and running commands, extended by community plugins.
How the 8.6 was reached
- Quality of output8/10
15,680 GitHub stars, active with a push on 2026-09-29, MIT licence, recent release. github.com
- Ease of use9/10
Free installer or portable ZIP, or install via winget, Scoop or Chocolatey; default Alt+Space hotkey. flowlauncher.com
- Pricing value10/10
Free forever, MIT-licensed open source, no paid dependency. github.com
- API and integration quality8/10
Plugin development in C#, F#, Python, JavaScript and TypeScript with JSON-RPC and documented references, plus a plugin store. flowlauncher.com
- Solves the problem it claims to solve8/10
Searches apps, files, bookmarks and web, runs system and shell commands; 15,680 stars show sustained adoption. github.com
8.6/10 is the mean of the 5 criteria that apply. Scored on the five-criteria rubric v1, 29 September 2026. How scoring works
Pricing
- MIT licence
- Installer or portable ZIP
- Community plugin store
Key Features
- Searches apps, files, bookmarks and the web
- Runs system commands such as restart, sleep and shutdown, plus shell commands
- Built-in calculator
- Plugins in C#, F#, Python, JavaScript or TypeScript over JSON-RPC
- Install via winget, Scoop or Chocolatey; default hotkey Alt+Space
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Free forever with no paid tier
- Easy install with several package manager options
- Plugin store and documented plugin references
- 15,680 GitHub stars show steady adoption
Cons
- Windows 10 and later only
- Installer is about 97 MB
- Plugin quality varies since plugins are community-made
- Not a workflow automation tool in the sense of n8n or Zapier
Flow Launcher is a strong pick for Windows users who want a fast keyboard launcher at no cost. Mac and Linux users cannot use it, and anyone after multi-step automation should look at the workflow tools in this category. An 8.6 rating fits a polished, free tool.
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