Compare software

ack vs ripgrep: catalog facts
ack	ripgrep
Best for: Programmers searching large source trees from the terminal	Best for: Finding a string anywhere in a codebase, instantly
Free Free and open source.	Free Free and open source, dual licensed under the Unlicense or the MIT licence.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line	Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line
Built for searching source code rather than general text Full Perl regular expressions All 3 strengths for ack Built for searching source code rather than general text Full Perl regular expressions Boolean --and, --or and --not options	Several times faster than grep and git grep on a large tree Respects gitignore, so results are relevant by default All 4 strengths for ripgrep Several times faster than grep and git grep on a large tree Respects gitignore, so results are relevant by default Full Unicode support without losing the speed Single binary with official builds for Windows, macOS and Linux
Needs a Perl interpreter Newer tools such as ripgrep are typically faster on very large trees	Command line only The gitignore defaults surprise people until they learn the -u flags All 4 limitations for ripgrep Command line only The gitignore defaults surprise people until they learn the -u flags Regular expression syntax differs slightly from grep's Not installed by default, unlike grep
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: Artistic-2.0	License: Unlicense OR MIT
No account needed	No account needed
Offline features available	Offline features available
Official website Full listing and sources Sources for ack beyondgrep.com Catalog checked September 23, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Sources for ripgrep github.com/BurntSushi/ripgrep Catalog checked September 21, 2026

“Not stated” means we have not confirmed it. Features can vary by device and plan.