Best Reviewed
Desktop Search Engines
- Best desktop search tool overall Google Desktop 5 *Est. $0
- Searches the most file types Copernic Desktop Search Professional 3.1 *Est. $50
- Fastest desktop search for PC Everything *Est. $0
Get info about new reports and updates
Best desktop search tool overall
- Fast and customizable
- Windows, Mac, Linux and Mobile versions
- Lots of add-ins and widgets available
- Indexes Gmail, instant messages, inside zipped files
- Minimal categorization of results
- Limited formatting of previews
- Not quite as fast as Copernic
March 2009. Google Desktop earns kudos for continual improvement as well as for cross-platform availability. Free versions are available for Linux, Mac and PC, plus an Enterprise version that indexes Lotus Notes, a new QuickSearch version for Mac and a mobile version. You can customize the optional sidebar with widgets to draw information from the Internet, as well as choose which drives, folders and file types to index. Since the index is usually extensive, reviews say the initial indexing can take hours. After that, searches are very fast. For better categorization and formatted previews of results, reviews recommend Copernic Professional 3.1 (*est. $50).
We found the most up-to-date and credible review of Google Desktop at Download.com, where it is rated by CNET editors and over 280 users. At another download site, DownloadSquad.com, Brad Linder tests a slightly earlier version, comparing it with Windows Desktop Search 4, the search tool built into Vista. Lifehacker compares Google Desktop with three other desktop search engines and publishes results of a poll of over 2,000 users. A brief review at MakeUseOf.com also covers the latest version. Earlier comparison reviews at several other sites are still useful even though they cover a previous version, Google Desktop 4.
Our Sources
1. Download.com
CNET editors give this latest version of Google Desktop the highest possible rating, praising its new preview capabilities and useful widgets. Over 280 users at Download.com give Google Desktop a much lower average rating, but only five add comments so it's not clear that all the ratings apply to the latest version. One user notes that to track files that you've moved requires manual re-indexing.
Review: Google Desktop 5.8.809.23506, Editors and contributors to Download.com
Google Desktop Search 5.5 beats Windows Desktop Search 4 based on DownloadSquad's indexing speed tests, but the reviewer finds Windows Desktop Search easier to customize, with much better organized results.
Review: Windows Search 4.0 vs. Google Desktop 5.5, Brad Linder, Mar. 30, 2008
This review praises Google Desktop for its cross-platform availability and extensive indexing, but notes that the optional widget sidebar gets mixed reviews. In a poll to find out what nearly 2,000 readers use, Google ranks third -- narrowly edged out by the latest default tools built into Windows and Mac OS.
Review: Five Best Desktop Search Applications, Adam Pash, Aug. 14, 2008
Comparing Google Desktop with three other desktop search engines, this anonymous reviewer praises the way Google can search chats and Gmail, but notes that for PCs, it's designed for 32-bit systems; using it on 64-bit computers is tricky and limited.
Review: Top 4 Desktop Search Tools To Find That Elusive File, "Ben", Jan. 10, 2009
5. Kalio
The objective tests at Kalio.com compare Google Desktop 4 with four other desktop search engines available at the time. Google Desktop indexes slowly, making a large database, and though very fast at searching, is not as fast as Copernic or Yahoo! Desktop (now X1). The specifications chart here is slightly outdated but still useful.
Review: Evaluation of desktop search applications, Michael Lowe, 2006
6. PC Pro
Editors give an earlier version, Google Desktop 4, a very low rating of only two stars on a six-point scale, favoring Copernic as the best choice because of faster indexing and search, as well as better categorization of results.
Review: Product Reviews: Google Desktop, Editors of PC Pro, Mar. 2007
7. PCMag.com
Although an earlier 2005 comparison review ranks Yahoo! Desktop (now X1) at the top, PCMag.com editors are enthusiastic about the fun and useful widgets available for Google Desktop 4, giving it a rating of four on a five-point scale.
Review: Full Review: Google Desktop 4 (beta), Davis D. Janowski, May 2006
As of 2006, Google Desktop 3 earns top ranking at PC World, edging out the 2005 choice, Copernic.
Review: The 100 Best Products of 2006, Editors of PC World, July 2006
Desktop Search Engines Runners Up:
3 picks by top review sites.
2 picks by top review sites.
2 picks by top review sites.