Compare software

Search Light vs Anyrun: catalog facts
Search Light	Anyrun
Best for: GNOME users who want a Spotlight-style search box	Best for: Wayland users who want a KRunner-like prompt they can extend with plugins
Free Free and open source.	Free Free to download and build from the public repository.
Linux	Linux
Spotlight-style popup without leaving the current workspace Uses GNOME's built-in search All 3 strengths for Search Light Spotlight-style popup without leaving the current workspace Uses GNOME's built-in search Configurable through a preferences dialog	Native Wayland support Plugin-based, so results can be extended All 3 strengths for Anyrun Native Wayland support Plugin-based, so results can be extended Nix flake included for NixOS users
Only works on GNOME Shell GNOME extensions can break with new GNOME releases	Linux and Wayland only Nvidia users may need a GSK_RENDERER workaround
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Not open source
License not stated	License not stated
No account needed	No account needed
Offline features available	Offline features available
Official website Full listing and sources Sources for Search Light github.com/icedman/search-light Catalog checked September 24, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Sources for Anyrun github.com/anyrun-org/anyrun Catalog checked September 23, 2026

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