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Alfred

Running with Crayons Ltd · A macOS launcher and productivity app for finding apps and files, searching the web, and streamlining frequent tasks.

CaskProductivityAuto-updatesApple silicon · Intel
Homepage
From homebrew/cask
30-day installs5#2010 in App
1-year installs80Last 365 days
Latest version5.8.1Sep 24 · Sep 24
Download size5.6MBarm64 / x86_64 · gz
Release cadenceMonthly1 release in 30 days

Alfred is a Productivity app for Mac.

About

Alfred is a macOS application launcher and productivity app. This Homebrew cask installs the alfred@prerelease variant as Alfred 5, separately from the alfred cask.

  • Launch applications and find or browse files using keyboard-driven searches; Alfred can prioritize results based on usage.
  • Search websites with default or custom keywords, and use quick tools for calculations, spelling, definitions, and file previews.
  • Use Clipboard History to find previously copied text, images, and files, and create Snippets that expand from abbreviations.
  • Extend and automate tasks with Workflows. The official site identifies Workflows and some other features as requiring Alfred Powerpack; do not assume every feature is included in the free core app.

Install with brew install --cask alfred@prerelease, then open Alfred 5 from /Applications. The official site lists macOS 10.14 or later and support for 64-bit Intel and Apple Silicon for the corresponding Alfred 5 release. This cask conflicts with the separate alfred cask, so they cannot be installed together through Homebrew.

Official Alfred site · Homebrew cask

New What’s new in 5.8.1 Sep 24 · OpenNavo editorial

  • PreferencesImproved Light Mode support in updated General preferences.
  • SearchFixed iCloud and General results in System Settings search on macOS 27.
See all 7 releases

Install and uninstall

Homebrew installs the app in your Applications folder.

Install without Homebrew

Download the same file Homebrew uses: cachefly.alfredapp.com/Alfred_5.8.1_2349.tar.gz

SHA-256 only checks that the download is complete; it is not a security certification. See the SHA-256 and download address

Uninstall command
$ brew uninstall --cask \alfred@prerelease

A regular uninstall removes the app and keeps its settings and caches.

Deep clean (optional)
$ brew uninstall --zap --cask \alfred@prerelease

--zap also deletes the settings, caches and other files listed in the Homebrew definition. They can include data shared with other apps and cannot be restored, and it does not guarantee that nothing is left.See which files are removed

Facts and sources

Version 5.8.1
Recorded by Homebrew on Sep 24Released by the vendor on Sep 24

Questions

Is Alfred safe?

Alfred is in Homebrew’s official catalog and has not been disabled. Since September 2026, Homebrew disables apps that fail macOS Gatekeeper checks. When installing, Homebrew checks the download from cachefly.alfredapp.com against its SHA-256 checksum. It was installed 5 times through Homebrew in the last 30 days.

How do I completely uninstall Alfred on a Mac?

Run brew uninstall --cask alfred@prerelease. It quits the app and removes 1 login item. To delete its settings and caches as well, run brew uninstall --zap --cask alfred@prerelease. That also deletes 6 files and folders, including ~/Library/Application Support/Alfred.

Does Alfred run on Apple silicon (M1 and later) Macs?

Homebrew installs it on both Apple silicon and Intel Macs, from the same download.

Where does Alfred store its settings and data?

Its settings are in ~/Library/Preferences/com.runningwithcrayons.Alfred.plist. Its data is in ~/Library/Application Support/Alfred. These locations come from Homebrew’s clean-up list.

What is the latest version of Alfred?

The latest version is 5.8.1, added to Homebrew on Sep 24. Alfred updates itself; to update it with Homebrew, run brew upgrade --cask --greedy alfred@prerelease.