MLaunchy is a native macOS menu-bar app launcher. It lets you search and launch applications and Siri Shortcuts with aliases, favorites, acronym and fuzzy matching, and open any of 36 System Settings panes by selecting System Settings and pressing Tab.

Which keyboard shortcut opens MLaunchy?

Control+Space, Command+Space and Option+Space are all preconfigured. You can add, remove or remap any combo in Settings.

Does MLaunchy send any data?

MLaunchy 1.4, the current download, sends crash reports to Sentry by default. With the Sentry SDK's defaults it also sends app session start/end events (release health) and attaches recent app events (breadcrumbs) to crash reports; the SDK adds a random per-install ID. No performance traces, and your launch statistics are never uploaded. MLaunchy 1.4 also checks amzu.ch for a new version at launch, at most once a day. From version 1.5, crash reports and automatic update checks are off by default.

Can I turn crash reporting off?

Yes. Open Settings → General, scroll to the Privacy section, and switch off 'Send crash reports'. The Sentry SDK is shut down immediately. In 1.4, 'Reset All Settings' switches it back on. MLaunchy 1.4 has no switch for the automatic update check; from 1.5 it is off by default and has its own toggle.

Does MLaunchy track which apps I launch?

Only locally, and it is on by default. The Usage tab counts launches per app, shortcut and settings pane so you can see your own habits; the counts do not affect ranking. The list is stored in launch_stats.json in ~/Library/Application Support/MLaunchy, never uploaded, and can be switched off with 'Track launch statistics' in Settings → Usage.

Does MLaunchy integrate with other amzu apps?

With MShot, yes. MShot writes a provider manifest that MLaunchy reads when it starts; select MShot in the launcher and press Tab to run a Full Screen, Window, Region, Scrolling or Timed capture. MExplorer's manifest uses a newer format that MLaunchy does not read yet, so there is no MExplorer integration for now.

Yes. MLaunchy is provided free of charge, as is, without warranty. Use at your own risk.

MLaunchy

A fast, lightweight menu-bar app launcher for macOS.

Install with Homebrew:

brew tap amzu-ch/tap https://dev.azure.com/amzu-ch/Homebrew/_git/homebrew-tap

brew install --cask mlaunchy

Download for macOS Explore features

Version 1.4 · macOS 26.4 or later · Apple silicon · Free · Not notarized — see Install · Use at your own risk

Why MLaunchy

Everything you need, one shortcut away.

Instant Launch

Press ⌃Space, ⌘Space or ⌥Space to summon the launcher. Register any number of custom hotkeys on top.

Smart Ranking

Alias prefix, name prefix, substring, acronym and fuzzy subsequence matching — find what you want with the fewest keystrokes.

Lightweight

Native SwiftUI app. Lives in your menu bar — no dock icon, no background bloat. Favorites, aliases and stats are stored on your Mac.

App Launcher

Launch anything in milliseconds.

Search apps and Siri Shortcuts from one place, and reach 36 System Settings panes with one Tab. Favorites float to the top, aliases let you type "ff" for Firefox, and Tab lets you hand the query to the selected app.

Multiple Hotkeys. Preconfigured with ⌃Space, ⌘Space and ⌥Space. Add, remove or remap any combo in Settings.
Favorites. Pin your most-used apps so they always appear first in results.
Aliases. Create custom shorthand names for any app. Type "calc" to launch Calculator.
Smart Ranking. Alias prefix, name prefix, substring, acronym ("vsc" → Visual Studio Code) and fuzzy subsequence matching — in that order.
Tab Search. Press Tab on a browser to open a Google search in that browser, or on System Settings to filter its panes inline. MShot surfaces its own capture actions here instead — see Works With.
Auto-Indexing. FSEvents monitors your Applications folders in real time. Add custom folders too.
Siri Shortcuts. Your macOS Shortcuts are indexed and runnable straight from the launcher.
System Settings Panes. Select System Settings, press Tab, and filter 36 panes (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Displays, Privacy, …) inline.
Exclude Apps. Right-click to hide apps you never use from search results; bring them back in the Excluded tab.
Drag to Reposition. Drag the panel by its top edge to move it.
File Browser. Menu bar → File Browser… opens a small window that finds files by Finder tag via Spotlight, previews text and images, and can open, reveal or copy the path.
11 Languages. English, Deutsch, Español, Français, Italiano, 日本語, 한국어, Português (Brasil), Русский, Українська and 简体中文 — follows the system or pick one in Settings.

Customization

Make it yours.

MLaunchy Settings window showing the General tab with Startup, Shortcuts and Search sections — Settings → General. Tabs for Favorites, Aliases, Excluded and Usage sit alongside.

Layout Controls

Tune icon size, row spacing and maximum number of results. The panel adapts its height to the settings you pick.

Hotkey Manager

Record multiple trigger combos with a click. Ships with ⌃Space, ⌘Space and ⌥Space preconfigured.

Reindex Interval

Choose between 1, 5, 10, 30 and 60 minutes. FSEvents also re-indexes in real time when apps are added or removed.

Launch at Login

One toggle in Settings enables automatic startup via macOS Service Management.

Usage Insights

A dedicated Usage tab shows how many times you launched each app, shortcut or settings pane — with last-used timestamps. On by default, stored only on your Mac, and the Track launch statistics toggle is right at the top of the tab.

Works With

Sibling apps plug in with one keystroke.

Select another amzu app in the launcher and press Tab. Instead of a web search, MLaunchy loads that app's action menu — filter by typing, arrow keys to select, Return to run. Each app publishes its action list through a provider manifest in ~/Library/Application Support/MLaunchy/providers/, which MLaunchy reads when it starts. No configuration, no plugins, no polling.

MShot → screenshot actions

Select MShot, press Tab, and kick off a Full Screen, Window, Region, Scrolling or Timed capture without touching the menu bar. MShot must have run once before MLaunchy starts.

MExplorer → not yet

MExplorer writes its folder manifest in a newer format that MLaunchy doesn't read yet, so selecting MExplorer and pressing Tab does not show your folders for now.

Filter inline

Typing after the chevron narrows the action list the same way System Settings filtering does. Arrow keys select, Return launches.

Graceful fallback

Apps without a readable manifest keep the classic Tab behaviour. Malformed or newer-format manifests are silently skipped instead of breaking the launcher.

Install

Up and running in under a minute.

Download MLaunchy.zip and unzip it.
Drag MLaunchy.app into your /Applications folder.
Open it. MLaunchy 1.4 is not notarized by Apple, so macOS blocks the first launch. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security, scroll down, click Open Anyway next to the MLaunchy message and confirm. (Homebrew installs need the same step.)
Press ⌃Space, ⌘Space or ⌥Space to summon the launcher. ⌘Space is also Spotlight's shortcut and ⌃Space switches input sources, so remove the ones you need elsewhere.
Open Settings from the menu bar to customize hotkeys, favorites, aliases and more — and to turn off crash reports if you like (General → Privacy).

Requires macOS 26.4 or later on Apple silicon (arm64). Intel Macs are not supported.

Under the Hood

Built for macOS. No compromises.

Single Instance

Automatically detects and prevents duplicate instances. Only one MLaunchy runs at a time.

Persistent Settings

Favorites, aliases, excluded apps and extra folders stored as JSON in Application Support. Survive upgrades.

Your Data Stays Local

Favorites, aliases, excluded apps and launch statistics are stored on your Mac. No cloud sync; none of it is uploaded.

Crash Reports: On in 1.4

MLaunchy 1.4 sends crash reports to Sentry by default, plus app session events and recent app events (breadcrumbs) attached to crashes. No performance traces. From version 1.5, crash reports are off by default.

You Can Turn It Off

Settings → General → Privacy → Send crash reports disables Sentry with one click; the SDK shuts down immediately. Note: in 1.4, Reset All Settings turns it back on.

Update Check

MLaunchy 1.4 checks amzu.ch for a new version at launch, at most once a day, and never downloads anything by itself. 1.4 has no switch for it; from 1.5 it is off by default with its own toggle.

Built-in Bug Report

Menu bar → "Report a Bug…" opens your mail client with version, build, macOS version, architecture, locale, indexed-app count and hotkeys prefilled.

Minimal Permissions

Global hotkeys need no special permission. Key monitoring is used only while you record a new hotkey in Settings.

Extra Folders

Point MLaunchy at any directory of .app bundles — perfect for portable apps or bundled development tools.

Local Usage Stats

MLaunchy counts how many times you launched each app, shortcut or settings pane (on by default) — stored only on your Mac. Toggle the whole feature off in Settings → Usage any time.

No warranty — use at your own risk

MLaunchy is provided as is, without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.

In no event shall the authors or amzu solutions GmbH be liable for any claim, damages, data loss or other liability arising from the use of this software. You are responsible for evaluating whether MLaunchy is suitable for your environment before running it.

Enjoying MLaunchy?

If this app saves you time, consider supporting its development.

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Found a bug? Use Menu Bar → Report a Bug… in MLaunchy, or email .