Tool profile
Raycast: cost, fit and limits
Raycast is a Mac launcher made by Raycast Technologies Ltd. of the United Kingdom that includes Clipboard History for text, images, colors and links, and sells Raycast AI as an add-on to paid Pro plans.
What to know first
Raycast is a launcher first and a clipboard manager second. The Free plan includes Clipboard History with three months of items, and Pro at $10 a month removes that limit and adds Raycast AI with 500 credits a month. Plus and Max raise the credit allowance. The company says AI can be turned off in Settings, and that clipboard content is encrypted and kept locally.
Raycast at a glance
| Maker | Raycast Technologies Ltd., United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes |
| Entry price | Free |
| API access | Yes |
| Category | Best AI Clipboard Manager Apps in 2026, rank 2 of 13 |
| Website | raycast.com |
Who Raycast is best for
Mac users who want one tool for launching and copying
Clipboard History opens from the same command bar used for apps, files and snippets, so there is no second utility to learn or keep running in the menu bar.
People who want AI next to their clipboard
Quick AI, chat and AI commands sit on paid plans, and a free Pro trial for eligible new accounts lets you test them before paying.
Teams that share snippets
The free Teams plan is limited to 30 shared Snippets and 30 shared Quicklinks, enough for a small group to share common text.
Raycast plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | Core launcher features including Clipboard History, which keeps three months of history, for personal use with no payment needed. |
| Pro | $10 per month or $96 per year | Raycast AI with 500 credits a month, plus unlimited Clipboard History instead of the three month window of the Free plan. |
| Plus | $20 per month or $192 per year | 3,000 AI credits a month, with the advanced AI models included, for people who lean on Raycast AI across the working day. |
| Max | $50 per month or $480 per year | 7,500 AI credits a month, with the advanced AI models included, the largest allowance on the pricing page we read in November 2026. |
Checked November 2026.
What Raycast does
- Clipboard History
- Text, images, colors and links are stored and searchable, and entries can be pinned with Cmd Shift P. Items from sensitive sources such as passwords are ignored.
- Raycast AI
- Paid plans add Quick AI, AI Chat, Agents, AI Commands, AI Extensions, Screen Awareness and Memory. Credits reset monthly and unused credits roll over for one billing cycle.
- Local encrypted storage
- The vendor says copied content is encrypted and stored locally, which keeps the history on the Mac instead of in a Raycast account that a second device could read.
- AI off switch
- One setting in Settings disables every AI feature, which lets a security-minded user run the clipboard module on the Free plan with no model ever involved.
How Raycast handles your data
Raycast's clipboard history is stored locally and encrypted, and sensitive items such as passwords are ignored. For AI, the privacy policy says providers are configured so that inputs and outputs are not used to train their models where available, with zero data retention where available. Raycast's own training practice is not stated. Personal data is held primarily on servers in the United States. No certification was named on the pages we read.
Where Raycast falls short in practice
- History cap on Free. Free keeps clipboard items for three months. Anyone who relies on finding something copied half a year ago needs Pro, which makes unlimited history a paid feature.
- Credit allowance. Pro includes 500 AI credits a month, and heavier users must step up to Plus or Max. The credit cost of a given action was not set out in the text we read.
- A launcher comes with it. Choosing Raycast for the clipboard means adopting a whole launcher and its hotkeys, which is a lot of change for a buyer who wanted only a history list.
Works with
Alternatives to Raycast
Raycast: common questions
Is Raycast Clipboard History free?
Yes. The Free plan includes Clipboard History, limited to three months of items. Pro at $10 a month or $96 a year lifts the limit to unlimited history. The pricing page also lists Plus and Max tiers, which differ by AI credits rather than by clipboard features, so most clipboard users stay on Free or Pro.
Can I use Raycast without any AI?
Yes. The vendor says AI can be turned off completely in Settings, which disables all AI features. Clipboard History, snippets and the launcher keep working. That makes it possible to use the free plan as a plain clipboard manager with no model ever seeing your copied text.
Does Raycast keep clipboard data on its servers?
The vendor says copied content is encrypted and stored locally. The privacy policy covers personal data held mainly on servers in the United States, so account data is a separate matter from the clipboard history. Check the policy if you plan to use the AI features with copied material.
What do the Raycast AI credits cover?
Pro includes 500 credits a month, Plus 3,000 and Max 7,500, and unused credits roll over for one billing cycle. The pricing page links them to Raycast AI features such as Quick AI and AI Chat. The credit price per action was not stated in the text we read.
Does Raycast run on Windows?
The pages we read describe Raycast as a Mac app, and the clipboard feature page does not name another platform. Windows users should compare ClipboardFusion or Ditto, which are built for Windows, and Linux users can look at CopyQ, which runs there.