CleverUtils vs Raycast: Which Is Better in 2026?

CleverUtils is a free online file converter for people who simply need a file in another format and do not want to install software, create an account or pay for a subscription. It runs in the browser on any device, so the same tools work on a work laptop, a home PC or a phone.

The site covers more than 200 converters across 100+ formats. For audio there are MP3, WAV, FLAC and M4A conversions. Video tools handle MP4, MOV, MKV, AVI and GIF, including turning a video into audio or a short clip into a GIF. Image converters work with JPG, PNG, WebP, HEIC, AVIF, SVG and common camera RAW files, which is handy when an iPhone photo will not open on a Windows machine. Document and PDF tools cover DOCX, XLSX, PPTX and EPUB, and there are also converters for archives, fonts and 3D models.

Beyond plain format changes, CleverUtils includes a set of PDF tools: merge several PDFs into one, split a long document, compress a file so it fits an email attachment limit, and unlock a PDF you have the right to edit. There is also a growing group of AI tools. You can remove the background from a photo, replace it with a new one, upscale a small image, clean up a noisy photo, reduce noise in an audio recording and turn speech into text.

Privacy is kept simple. Files are sent over HTTPS, processed on the server and deleted automatically within two hours. There is no signup, no watermark is added to the results, and you do not need to leave an email address to download a file.

Under the hood the conversions rely on proven open-source engines: FFmpeg for audio and video, ImageMagick for images, LibreOffice for office documents and Ghostscript for PDFs. This keeps the output predictable and close to what desktop tools would produce.

For developers, CleverUtils offers a free public REST API that does not require an API key, so a conversion can be added to a script, a build pipeline or a small internal tool in a few lines of code. There is also an MCP server, which lets LLM agents call the converters directly when a workflow needs a file changed from one format to another.

Typical uses include students converting lecture slides to PDF, freelancers sending clients files in the format they asked for, office workers compressing scans before emailing them, and creators extracting audio from video or preparing images for the web in WebP or AVIF.

CleverUtils is a solo project built in Kyiv, Ukraine, and positioned as a free alternative to Convertio, Zamzar and CloudConvert. New converters and tools are added regularly, and the changelog on the site lists what has changed. If you need a quick, private and free way to convert a file, CleverUtils is built for exactly that.

Alternatives & competitors

Convertio, Zamzar, CloudConvert

Raycast is a blazing-fast launcher and productivity tool for Mac that lets you control your computer and apps entirely from your keyboard through a single command bar. Reaching for the mouse, hunting through menus, and switching between apps adds up to constant small frictions throughout the day. Raycast eliminates much of that by giving you instant keyboard access to launch apps, run commands, search, and perform countless actions from one fast, elegant interface, helping power users and developers move through their work with remarkable speed and fluidity.

The tool replaces and extends the basic launcher experience with a powerful, extensible command bar. From it you can open applications, search files, manage windows, control system settings, run quick calculations and conversions, access your clipboard history, and trigger snippets, all without leaving the keyboard. Its real power comes from an ecosystem of extensions that integrate with the tools developers and professionals use — connecting to services, running scripts, and adding commands — so you can do an enormous range of tasks instantly from one place. It's fast, polished, and designed to keep your hands on the keyboard and your flow uninterrupted.

Raycast is especially loved by developers, power users, and anyone on Mac who values speed and keyboard-driven efficiency. The value is friction removed and flow preserved: by making nearly any action accessible instantly from the keyboard, it shaves countless small delays off the workday and keeps users in a focused, efficient rhythm. For people who do a lot on their computer and care about working quickly, the cumulative time and attention saved is significant, and the experience is genuinely delightful. Raycast has earned a passionate following among productivity enthusiasts by taking the humble launcher and turning it into a fast, extensible command center for the entire Mac.