Alfred 5.5 is here - Find out what's new

macOS 10.15 Catalina

This is a legacy page referring to macOS Catalina. We recommend updating to the most current version of Alfred and macOS if you can.

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Using Catalina with Alfred

MacOS 10.15 Catalina was released to the general public on 7th October, 2019. Here are a few tips to make the most of Catalina and Alfred together.

  • Make sure that you are using Alfred 4.0.6+
  • Update to the latest Catalina release, as updates are frequent early in a release cycle and may include bug fixes.
  • If you're doing a fresh install, give your Mac sufficient time to complete its first indexing.
  • If you see duplicated apps in your results, type "reload".
  • Ensure that you've granted Alfred sufficient permissions by following the "Request Permissions..." button in the General tab.

I can't find my apps when searching in Alfred

In macOS 10.15, Apple have moved the location of default applications, so you may find that Alfred doesn't instantly find your apps.

If you have only just installed the new version of macOS, you'll need to give your Mac a few hours to complete the initial index of your data.

  • First, ensure you're using Alfred 4.0.6+
  • Next, go to Features > Default Results > Search Scope and click "Reset" to refresh the search scope.
  • Finally, type "reload" into Alfred to refresh the application cache

This will add the right search scope for apps, and refresh the cache, so you should be all sorted!

Applications are showing twice in Alfred's results

Type "reload" into Alfred to refresh the application cache. As the location for default applications has changed, some apps may appear in the cache in both the old and new location. Reloading the cache refreshes it and removes paths that are no longer relevant.

My Alfred preferences have disappeared and I'm using Catalina or iOS 13 beta

During the Catalina and iOS 13 Beta, there were accepted Apple bugs where iCloud files were just "going missing" if any devices connected to your iCloud had been updated to the latest iOS / macOS betas.

It appears that this issue has generally been resolved in the general public release of Catalina, so make sure that none of your devices are still using a beta version.

If any files have been lost, you should be able to locate them in your Time Machine backup.


I'm using Alfred 3, can I use it on Catalina?

Yes, you can use Alfred 3 on macOS Catalina, but please update to the latest version and ensure you're using Alfred 3.8.5+, as older versions don't include the necessary tweaks for the new file paths in Catalina, amongst other OS changes.

Note that Apple has retired iTunes on Catalina; As a result, the Mini Player is no longer available in Alfred 3 for Catalina users.

If you're seeing any issues in Alfred 3 on Catalina, please take a look at the troubleshooting steps for Alfred 4 above, as in most cases, the solution is the same.

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