REVIEW · FUZZY NAME SEARCH
Verdict: Cling is worth it if you find files by a rough name and want to act on them instantly: it searches millions of files in under 100 ms, tolerates typos, and sees system files, dotfiles and app data that Spotlight leaves out. Its own makers say it is not for complex queries or for digging through file contents.
24 October 2026 · By Ishtiaque Hossain · 5 minute read
Looking for a file you can describe but not name? Try Shlexball. The first 30 searches are free and need no account.
macOS 15 or later. Apple silicon. 16 GB memory. On a phone? Email yourself the link.
This review is based on Cling's own pages, read on 14 October 2026. Every claim links to the page it came from. We are the makers of Shlexball, so we say plainly where Cling does better.
| Price | Free version forever; Pro is a one-time licence (12 EUR in the press kit; check the buy page) |
| Runs on | macOS 14 Sonoma or later; Pro licence covers up to 5 Macs |
| What it searches | File names across your disk, including system files, hidden files, dotfiles and app data |
| Speed | Under 100 ms across millions of files, with a live index |
| Made by | The low-tech guys |
| Best for | Finding a specific file by its rough name and acting on it at once |
Cling is an instant fuzzy file finder for macOS. Fuzzy means it matches partial or misspelled queries, so a few keystrokes from the name are enough. Press Right Command and slash to show or hide it.
It runs its own search engine on a binary index of your entire disk, kept up to date live as files change. Cling says this gives searches across millions of files in under 100 ms, while using under 100 MB of memory.
Unlike Spotlight, Raycast or Alfred, Cling can find system files, hidden files, dotfiles (configuration files whose names start with a dot) and app data that the Spotlight index does not include.
Queries can include a file extension to narrow results, such as .pdf invoice or .png icon, and when you open Cling it shows your most recently changed files.
Cling has a compact set of operators: list several extensions at once, add name/ to match a folder, put an exclamation mark before a word to hide results containing it, in:~/path to search only one folder, and a leading apostrophe for exact rather than fuzzy text.
Everything is driven from the keyboard. From a result you can Open with another app, copy the path, batch rename, preview with Quick Look, or drag and drop. Search history works with the arrow keys and tab completion.
A preview pane shows images and PDFs you can zoom, plays videos, lists the contents of archives and highlights code. A stash keeps files you collect across several searches, even between restarts.
Cloud folders such as iCloud Drive, Dropbox and Google Drive get their own search scope. Online-only files appear like any other and download on demand from the preview.
Every download starts with a 14-day trial of the Pro features, with no credit card. After that, the free features keep working forever: Home, Library, Cloud Storage and Applications search, fuzzy search, actions, previews, the stash and the MCP server, capped at 500 results.
Pro adds System and Root search, an index of every file on your local disks, external drive and network share indexing that persists while drives are unplugged, a file server for searching your Mac from your phone, Quick Filters, saved folder filters, custom scripts and up to 10,000 results.
Pricing on the site is not entirely consistent: the main page shows a lifetime licence at 15 EUR alongside a discounted price, while the press kit lists a 12 EUR one-time purchase for up to 5 Macs. Refunds are accepted within 14 days.
Send Securely creates a private link for selected files without uploading them anywhere: the files go directly from your Mac to whoever opens the link, and links expire after anything from 1 minute to 3 days.
The file server only listens on private networks, such as your home network or a VPN. You can also exclude folders from the index with a ~/.fsignore file or switch off whole indexes such as System files.
Cling also works from other launchers, through a Raycast extension and an Alfred workflow, and offers an MCP server so AI agents can search files and explain why a file is missing from results.
Cling describes itself as similar to the Everything app on Windows: minimal, keyboard-centric and built for power users. If you came to the Mac from Windows and miss instant name search, this is the closest match.
Its makers are clear about what it is not. Cling is for quickly finding one or more specific files by roughly knowing the name, not for finding all files that match a complex query of metadata and contents; for that they point to apps such as HoudahSpot and Find Any File.
Cling needs a few letters of the name. Shlexball works from what the file was about: describe it in plain English and it searches file and folder names and the text inside files, including PDFs and Word documents.
Shlexball does not show hidden files, so keep Cling for dotfiles and system files. Shlexball's first 30 searches are free and need no account.
When you remember what a file says but not what it is called, try Shlexball: 30 free searches.
▶ DOWNLOAD SHLEXBALLYes, there is a free version that works forever after the 14-day Pro trial, covering Home, Library, Cloud Storage and Applications search with up to 500 results. Pro is a one-time licence.
Yes. Cling can find system files, hidden files, dotfiles and app data that the Spotlight index does not include; System and Root search scopes are Pro features.
Cling is built for finding files by roughly knowing their name. Its makers say it is not for complex queries that use metadata and file content.
Cling runs on macOS 14 Sonoma and later, and a Pro licence covers up to 5 Macs.