The Ultimate Raycast Setup for Developers

Raycast has replaced Spotlight, Alfred, and half a dozen other apps on my Mac. It’s become the command center for everything I do. Here’s my complete setup for developer productivity.

Why Raycast?

Raycast is a launcher, but that undersells it. It’s:

• A clipboard manager
• A window manager
• A snippet expander
• An AI assistant
• An extension platform

And it’s fast. Blazingly, noticeably faster than alternatives.

Essential Extensions

Development

GitHub - The GitHub extension is essential:

• Search repositories
• Create issues from anywhere
• View PR status
• Quick clone

npm - Search and install packages:

npm react-query
# Shows package info, opens docs, copies install command

VS Code / Cursor - Open projects instantly:

• Recent projects list
• Open in new window
• Search workspace files

Docker - Manage containers:

• Start/stop containers
• View logs
• Quick exec into containers

Productivity

Clipboard History - Never lose a copy:

• Searchable history
• Pin frequently used items
• Merge multiple clips

Window Management - Better than paid apps:

• Halves, thirds, quarters
• Custom layouts
• Multi-monitor support

Calendar - My Schedule view:

• See today’s events
• Join meetings instantly
• Create events with natural language

AI Features

Raycast AI is worth the Pro subscription alone:

Quick AI Chat:

⌘ + Space, type question
# Instant AI response

AI Commands:

• Explain selected text
• Translate content
• Summarize articles
• Fix grammar

Custom AI Commands (my favorites):

• “Explain this error” - Paste error, get solution
• “Code review” - Review selected code
• “Write commit message” - Generate from diff

My Hotkey Configuration

Custom Scripts

Raycast lets you create custom script commands. Here are mine:

New Project Setup

#!/bin/bash
# @raycast.title New Next.js Project
# @raycast.mode fullOutput

read -p "Project name: " name
cd ~/projects
npx create-next-app@latest $name --typescript --tailwind --app
cd $name
code .

Git Quick Commit

#!/bin/bash
# @raycast.title Quick Commit
# @raycast.mode compact
# @raycast.argument1 {"type": "text", "placeholder": "Commit message"}

git add -A
git commit -m "$1"
git push
echo "Pushed: $1"

Open in Cursor

#!/bin/bash
# @raycast.title Open in Cursor
# @raycast.mode silent

cursor .

Snippets That Save Time

Code Snippets

!log → console.log('$1', $1);

!async →

async function $1() {
  try {
    $2
  } catch (error) {
    console.error(error);
    throw error;
  }
}

!comp →

interface $1Props {
  $2
}

export function $1({ $2 }: $1Props) {
  return (
    $3
  );
}

Text Snippets

!email → your@email.com

!addr → Your full address

!meet → “Let’s schedule a call. Here’s my calendar: [link]“

Workflow Automations

Morning Startup

I created a quicklink that:

1. Opens Slack
2. Opens my calendar
3. Opens my main project in Cursor
4. Opens my task manager

One command: morning

Deploy Flow

A script that:

1. Runs tests
2. Builds the project
3. Deploys to Vercel
4. Opens the preview URL

One command: deploy

Integration Tips

With Claude Code

Create a Raycast command that opens terminal and starts Claude:

#!/bin/bash
# @raycast.title Claude Session
# @raycast.mode silent

osascript -e 'tell application "Terminal" to do script "claude"'

With Cursor

The Cursor extension is good, but I supplement with:

• Custom “open project” scripts for common repos
• Snippets for frequently used prompts
• Quick switch between open Cursor windows

Raycast Pro Features

Worth the subscription for:

1. AI Chat: Faster than switching to ChatGPT
2. Sync: Settings sync across Macs
3. Cloud Snippets: Access snippets everywhere
4. Custom Themes: Aesthetic matters

My Complete Extension List

Essential (free):

• Clipboard History
• Window Management
• Calculator
• File Search
• System Commands

Development (free):

• GitHub
• npm
• VS Code
• Docker
• Homebrew

Productivity (free):

• Calendar
• Reminders
• Notes
• Color Picker

Pro Features:

• AI Chat
• Translator
• Define Word

Performance Tips

Keep Raycast fast:

1. Disable extensions you don’t use
2. Limit clipboard history to 100 items
3. Use native commands over scripts when possible
4. Organize with aliases

The Result

After optimizing my Raycast setup:

• App switching: 70% faster
• Clipboard actions: 5 seconds vs. 30 seconds
• Project opening: Instant vs. navigating Finder
• Meeting joins: One command vs. hunting for links

The initial setup takes an hour. The time saved pays that back in the first week.

Getting Started

1. Download Raycast (free)
2. Install these extensions: GitHub, Clipboard History, Window Management
3. Set up the core hotkeys
4. Add one script per week as you identify repetitive tasks

Don’t try to set everything up at once. Build your perfect configuration over time.

Raycast isn’t just a launcher—it’s a productivity multiplier. Once you’ve customized it to your workflow, you’ll wonder how you worked without it.