Raycast
Raycast is a private productivity software company that builds a keyboard-first, extensible command launcher for macOS (expanding to Windows and iOS), serving software developers and power users through a freemium subscription model and a community-driven extension ecosystem of thousands of third-party integrations and AI tools.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2020
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Raycast does
Raycast is a productivity software company founded in 2020 that builds a keyboard-first, extensible command launcher originally for macOS. The core product is a native macOS application built with React, TypeScript, and Node.js that provides a unified interface for launching apps, running commands, managing clipboard history, creating snippets, controlling windows, and accessing AI assistance. Its primary users are software developers and productivity-focused power users, with secondary reach into teams and remote workers. The platform's centerpiece is the Raycast extension ecosystem — an open extension framework and Store enabling thousands of community-built integrations spanning Linear, Jira, GitHub, Notion, Slack, VS Code, Google Workspace, Spotify, and major AI services (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and local Ollama models). Select named users/endorsers include Vercel CEO Guillermo Rauch, MKBHD, Framer founder Koen Bok, and Tailwind CSS creator Adam Wathan.
Raycast monetizes through a freemium subscription model with three tiers: a free core product, a "Pro" tier offering enhanced AI and advanced features, and a "Teams" tier providing shared configurations and collaboration tooling. Go-to-market is predominantly product-led growth with strong community-led dynamics — the company maintains a 37,000+ member Slack community, a 90,000+ X/Twitter following, a YouTube channel, and an extension developer ecosystem that drives organic adoption. Distribution is self-serve via direct download from raycast.com and Homebrew on macOS, with public beta expansion to Windows and a waitlist for iOS. The company has raised approximately $47.6 million across four funding rounds (Seed $2.7M in 2020, Series A ~$15M in 2021 from Accel and Coatue, and Series B ~$30M in September 2024 led by Atomico with participation from Accel, Atlassian Ventures, Coatue, World Innovation Lab, and Y Combinator). Leadership comprises CEO and co-founder Thomas Mann and CTO and co-founder Petr Nikolaev.
Beyond the core launcher, Raycast has launched Glaze (March 2026), an AI-powered no-code app-building platform for Mac that lets users create, share, and install "vibe-coded" micro-applications via a Glaze Store marketplace. Raycast 2.0 (May 2026) introduced updated clipboard history with formatting preservation. The company has headquarters stated variously as London, UK (firmographic data) and Berlin, Germany (other profile data), with 11-50 employees as of last disclosure. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed.
Raycast firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Raycast
- Legal name
- Raycast
- Website
- https://raycast.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2020
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Raycast is a private productivity software company that builds a keyboard-first, extensible command launcher for macOS (expanding to Windows and iOS), serving software developers and power users through a freemium subscription model and a community-driven extension ecosystem of thousands of third-party integrations and AI tools.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Raycast industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Productivity Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (513210), Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- AI Application Enablement Platforms (Copilot/Agent Frameworks, SDKs) (HDAEANAJ)
Keywords
Where Raycast is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Markets served
Raycast business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations
Revenue model
- Pro Subscription: Premium subscription tier offering advanced features beyond the free tier. The Pro tier provides enhanced AI capabilities and additional productivity features.
- Teams Subscription: Team-oriented subscription tier designed for team collaboration and shared configurations across team members.
- Free Tier: Core launcher with basic features available for free download. Serves as top-of-funnel for conversion to paid tiers.
- Glaze Platform: New platform for building and distributing AI-generated vibe-coded apps. Monetization model yet to be determined but represents expansion beyond core product.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Free tier with core launcher features |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
Raycast product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Raycast provides a keyboard-first, extendable productivity launcher for macOS (with Windows beta and iOS expansion) that unifies app launching, file search, snippets, clipboard history, window management, and thousands of community-built extensions. The product also includes integrated AI features (Quick AI, AI Chat, AI Commands) and a subscription tier (Pro) and team tier (Teams) for advanced collaboration and AI capabilities.
Product overview
Raycast is a unified productivity platform centered around an extendable launcher for macOS (with expansion to Windows and iOS). The core product combines a lightning-fast command palette with thousands of community-built extensions, AI-powered features (Quick AI, AI Chat), and built-in tools (Clipboard History, Snippets, Window Management, Calculator, Calendar). The ecosystem includes: Raycast Pro (subscription tier), Raycast Teams (collaborative features), Raycast Store (extension marketplace), Glaze (AI-powered no-code app builder), and developer tools (Extension API, Browser Extension, iOS app). The platform emphasizes keyboard-first workflows, native performance, and deep OS integration.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Glaze: An all-in-one AI-powered no-code app platform for building, sharing, and installing vibe-coded micro-applications on Mac.
Products and services
- Raycast A lightning-fast, keyboard-first extendable productivity launcher for macOS (with Windows and iOS expansion) that unifies app launching, file search, snippets, clipboard history, window management, and thousands of community-built extensions with integrated AI features. Targets individual developers, power users, and teams.
- Raycast Pro Premium subscription tier for individual users offering advanced features and enhanced AI capabilities beyond the free Raycast launcher, including Pro-only AI features and additional productivity tools.
- Raycast Teams Collaborative subscription tier for development teams and organizations enabling shared configurations, shared snippets, team extensions, and collaborative workflows across team members.
- Glaze AI-powered no-code app building platform enabling Mac users to build, share, and install AI-generated vibe-coded micro-applications without requiring terminal or deployment skills, distributed through a Glaze Store marketplace.
- Raycast Store Extension marketplace with thousands of community-built extensions spanning productivity, AI, developer tools, design tools, project management, and more, accessible in-app and via the web.
- Raycast for Windows Windows version of the Raycast productivity launcher, in public beta as of 2024 with broader availability planned, bringing keyboard-first productivity to Windows users.
- Raycast for iOS iOS mobile version of the Raycast productivity launcher providing keyboard-driven access to apps, files, and extensions on iPhone and iPad, accessed via waitlist.
- ray.so Web-based companion tool to the Raycast launcher for exploring snippets, quicklinks, prompts, and chat presets, with an Icon Maker for creating custom icons for use within Raycast.
- Raycast Browser Extension Browser extension for Chrome and other browsers extending Raycast launcher functionality to web browsing workflows, allowing users to access Raycast features from within the browser.
Quantifiable outcome
- 99.8% crash-free rate demonstrates reliability
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Raycast
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Raycast technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration33 records
AI capability13 records
Feature11 records
Raycast partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators6 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Raycast competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Alfred: Alfred is the canonical macOS productivity launcher and Raycast's closest direct competitor. It offers similar hotkey-driven launching, snippets, clipboard history, and workflows, and targets the same power-user/developer segment on macOS.
- Launchy: Launchy is a long-standing open-source keyboard launcher for Windows and Linux. It is comparable to Raycast in product category (app/file launching via hotkey) though with a much smaller extension ecosystem.
- Wox: Wox is an open-source launcher for Windows offering app launching, web search, and a plugin system. It is comparable to Raycast in core function and extension architecture and targets a similar power-user audience on Windows.
- Cerebro: Cerebro is an open-source cross-platform launcher (macOS/Windows/Linux) with plugin support. It competes with Raycast at the basic launching level, though it has a much smaller extension ecosystem and weaker community traction.
Broad incumbents
- Microsoft PowerToys (PowerToys Run): Microsoft's free, pre-installed Windows launcher utility targeting the same keyboard-first productivity use case. As Raycast expands to Windows, PowerToys Run is the most important direct incumbent it must displace.
- Apple Spotlight: Apple's built-in macOS launcher/search. Spotlight is free, deeply integrated, and increasingly AI-augmented via Apple Intelligence, representing the most fundamental competitive threat to Raycast's macOS core.
- Notion: Notion is a broad productivity/workspace incumbent and a key Raycast integration partner. It is comparable in the sense that both serve the same knowledge-worker productivity surface and compete for a share of the user's daily operating context.
Regional players
- uTools: uTools is a keyboard-first productivity launcher with an extensive plugin marketplace, primarily popular in China. It overlaps directly with Raycast's product concept — launcher + plugin ecosystem — and serves as a regional comparison point.
Emerging players
- Cursor: Cursor is an AI-native code editor that overlaps with Raycast's developer-targeting, AI-augmentation thesis. While it is a code editor rather than a launcher, both products are racing to become the AI front-end for developers' daily workflows.
- Mem: Mem is an AI-powered knowledge and productivity app that auto-organizes notes and integrates with a user's workflow. It is comparable to Raycast as a fellow AI-native productivity tool targeting the same power-user segment, though in the notes/knowledge category rather than launching.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Raycast social profiles
Digital presenceRaycast compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Raycast financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Raycast leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Raycast subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Raycast funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds4 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Raycast M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Raycast
What does Raycast do?
Raycast provides a keyboard-first, extendable productivity launcher for macOS (with Windows beta and iOS expansion) that unifies app launching, file search, snippets, clipboard history, window management, and thousands of community-built extensions. The product also includes integrated AI features (Quick AI, AI Chat, AI Commands) and a subscription tier (Pro) and team tier (Teams) for advanced collaboration and AI capabilities.
Is Raycast a public or private company?
Raycast is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Raycast founded?
Raycast was founded in 2020. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Raycast based?
Raycast is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Raycast make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Pro Subscription is the primary driver. The others are teams Subscription, free Tier and glaze Platform.
Who are Raycast's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Alfred, Launchy, Wox and Cerebro. Broad incumbents are Microsoft PowerToys (PowerToys Run), Apple Spotlight and Notion. uTools is listed as a regional player. Emerging players are Cursor and Mem.
Does Raycast have an API?
Yes. Raycast offers a public API and extension framework designed for web developers to build rich, native extensions using React, TypeScript, and Node.js. The extension API includes built-in UI components, a strongly typed API, hot-reloading, and modern tooling. Developers can publish extensions to the Raycast Store and share them with thousands of users. The platform provides API documentation at developers.raycast.com. Developer documentation is at developers.raycast.com.
What industry is Raycast in?
Raycast's product category is Productivity Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAEANAJ, AI Application Enablement Platforms (Copilot/Agent Frameworks, SDKs). Its NAICS code is 513210 and its SIC code is 7372.