Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

FastScripts VS Alfred

Compare FastScripts VS Alfred and see what are their differences

FastScripts logo FastScripts

Quick and streamlined execution of your scripts from a custom menu bar icon, or via keyboard shortcut.

Alfred logo Alfred

Alfred is an award-winning app for macOS which boosts your efficiency with hotkeys, keywords, text expansion and more. Search your Mac and the web, and be more productive with custom actions to control your Mac.
  • FastScripts Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-11-12
  • Alfred Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-09-19

FastScripts features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    FastScripts offers a simple and intuitive interface, making it easy for both beginners and advanced users to navigate and manage their scripts.
  • Keyboard Shortcuts
    The application supports customizable keyboard shortcuts, allowing users to execute scripts quickly and improve their productivity.
  • Lightweight
    FastScripts is designed to be lightweight, ensuring it doesn't consume significant system resources while running in the background.
  • Script Organization
    It provides a convenient way to organize scripts, allowing users to categorize and access them easily, which enhances workflow efficiency.
  • Compatibility
    FastScripts is compatible with a wide range of scripting languages, making it versatile for different automation tasks on macOS.

Possible disadvantages of FastScripts

  • Mac-Only
    FastScripts is available exclusively for macOS, which limits its usage to Apple users and excludes Windows or Linux users.
  • Paid Features
    While it offers a free version, some advanced features require a paid license, which might not be ideal for users looking for a completely free solution.
  • Limited Advanced Features
    Compared to some other scripting tools, FastScripts might lack certain advanced automation features that power users might need.
  • No Integrated Script Editor
    FastScripts does not come with an integrated script editor, requiring users to use an external editor for scripting, which might not be as convenient.

Alfred features and specs

  • Efficiency
    Alfred significantly speeds up searches and workflows with keyboard shortcuts, reducing the time spent navigating through files and applications.
  • Customizability
    Users can create custom workflows, scripts, and hotkeys tailored to their needs, enhancing productivity through personalization.
  • Clipboard History
    Alfred maintains a history of clipboard entries, allowing users to quickly retrieve recently copied items, which is highly useful for multi-tasking.
  • Integrations
    It integrates seamlessly with other macOS features and apps, like Contacts and Safari, providing a cohesive user experience.
  • File Management
    Alfred offers robust file management through quick commands, making it easier to move, copy, and open files without relying on Finder.
  • Snippets
    Users can create and manage text snippets for frequently used phrases, speeding up repetitive typing tasks.

Possible disadvantages of Alfred

  • Learning Curve
    Despite its benefits, Alfred can be complex for new users, requiring time and effort to learn and fully utilize its features.
  • Premium Features
    Many advanced features, such as custom workflows and clipboard history, are only available through the paid Powerpack version.
  • Resource Usage
    Alfred can consume a significant amount of system resources, particularly when using complex workflows, which may affect the performance of older Macs.
  • Inconsistent Results
    Search results and functionality might occasionally be inconsistent, requiring users to refine queries or adjust settings to achieve desired outcomes.
  • Dependency on Spotlight
    While Alfred extends Spotlight's capabilities, it remains dependent on Spotlight indexing. Any issues with Spotlight can affect Alfred's performance.

Analysis of Alfred

Overall verdict

  • Alfred is considered an excellent choice for anyone looking to boost their productivity on a Mac. Its feature-rich environment, combined with a user-friendly interface and robust customization options, makes it a favorite among many Mac enthusiasts.

Why this product is good

  • Alfred is widely regarded as a powerful productivity tool for macOS users. It enhances the user experience with features like a quick keyboard launcher, a comprehensive search functionality, clipboard history, and customizable workflows. Users often praise its ability to speed up daily tasks, integrate with various applications, and automate repetitive processes.

Recommended for

  • Mac users who want to improve their efficiency.
  • Individuals looking for advanced search and application-launch capabilities.
  • Users interested in automation and creating custom workflows.
  • Anyone who frequently works with text snippets and clipboard history.

FastScripts videos

FastScripts Delay

More videos:

  • Review - Fast Scripts UPGRADE SYSTEM [QB-ESX] | discord.gg/fastscripts

Alfred videos

Alfred for Mac [Tutorial] Basics

More videos:

  • Review - Alfred app review is Alfred worth your time?
  • Review - Alfredโ€™s Basic Adult Piano Course [Method Guide + Review]

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to FastScripts and Alfred)
Productivity
3 3%
97% 97
Mac
5 5%
95% 95
Developer Tools
100 100%
0% 0
App Launcher
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare FastScripts and Alfred

FastScripts Reviews

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Alfred Reviews

7 Best Alfred Alternatives To Maximize Your Productivity
While Alfred is a great app, it works solely for macOS. If you get a new computer that doesnโ€™t run on macOS, you wonโ€™t be able to use Alfred. There are many other options available that work on other operating systems.
Source: blaze.today
4 Best Spotlight Alternatives to Increase Your Macโ€™s Functionality
Raycast is a free application launcher for Mac. If youโ€™re overwhelmed with Alfred and donโ€™t want to spend on its powerpack to unlock all its features, Raycast is the best alternative to Spotlight and Alfredโ€”albeit with a limited feature setโ€”you must check out.
Source: techpp.com
6 Best Alfred App Alternatives for Windows to Be More Productive
Alfred app is like the swiss army knife for the macOS ecosystem. But what about Windows? Well, there is Windows Search but itโ€™s not good enough. There are, however, a few Windows apps that can help ease your day-to-day workflows. Letโ€™s see if we can replace Alfred on Windows using a combination of apps. Presenting some Alfred alternatives for Windows users.
Source: techwiser.com
Best Text Expander apps for MacOS
Earlier on I had heard a lot about Alfred, an award-winning Text expander app for the Mac. I tried it for a couple of days and I must say it does deserve the attention it is getting. Before we begin let me clear this up, the Alfred offers a ton of nontext expander features and yet it manages to deliver on its promise. With the Alfred, Mac users can search and browse...
Source: techwiser.com
What's a good alternative to Textexpander for Mac?
14Alfred 3View ProductRogin FarrerDesign Systems Engineer @Wayfair ยท Written 3y agoI used to use aText and Dash, and Alfred replaced both for me. The snippets have gotten a lot smarter over time, with support for smart variables, like date, time and cursor.๐Ÿ™ helpful 2CommentsShare

Social recommendations and mentions

Alfred might be a bit more popular than FastScripts. We know about 6 links to it since March 2021 and only 5 links to FastScripts. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

FastScripts mentions (5)

  • Finder Tab Preset ?
    And as far as running that AppleScript, one option is https://redsweater.com/fastscripts/, and another is https://www.keysmith.app/ (disclaimer: I wrote that second one, Keysmith). Source: over 2 years ago
  • Keyboard tricks from a macOS app dev
    FastScripts[1] might be worth a look. I've been meaning to check it out myself though so I can't offer any personal experience with it. [1] https://redsweater.com/fastscripts/. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • "Edit With" function: What is the location of stored photos that I edited with Photoshop
    Pressing . Will mark a photo as Favorite (or unmark it if already a Favorite). I also use the following AppleScript (open Script Editor, paste the code, then save the script as "Flag Photo.applescript") to add the keyword "flagged" to selected photos (or delete the keyword if already assigned). You can obviously change "flagged" to be any value you want. I use the excellent utility FastScripts to assign a hot... Source: over 3 years ago
  • Fastscripts shortcuts not working anymore?
    I have several keyboard shortcuts to switch applications using FasctScripts. However, when I updated my macOS operating system a few weeks back, these FastScripts shortcuts stopped working while iTerm2 had focus (they worked everywhere else just fine). Source: over 3 years ago
  • macOS Setup after 15 Years of Linux
    I wasn't satisfied with the Automator way to make a new-terminal shortcut, it was kinda slow, and not 100% reliable. I found FastScripts and was able to make it fast and reliable. (I still use version 2.8, version 3 was just released, haven't tried it.) https://redsweater.com/fastscripts/ For the mouse wheel, there's a nice minimal proper fix: https://github.com/emreyolcu/discrete-scroll. - Source: Hacker News / almost 4 years ago

Alfred mentions (6)

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What are some alternatives?

When comparing FastScripts and Alfred, you can also consider the following products

Mac CLi - OS X command line tools for developers

Keypirinha - A lightning fast and flexible keystroke launcher for Windows. No installation required (portable).

Boop - A scriptable scratchpad for developers. Free & open source!

Listary - Listary is a revolutionary search utility for Windows

Midjourney Prompts Generator - Upgrade your Midjourney experience with better prompts

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