Spotlight vs Fenn on Mac, precise search with privacy
Oct 7, 2025
Spotlight vs Fenn on Mac, precision and privacy for professionals
You remember the clause or quote, not the filename. Spotlight is great for launching apps and finding simple files. It struggles with long PDFs, screenshots, audio and video. This guide shows where Spotlight ends and where Fenn begins so you can find the moment, not the file.
The pain in your words
“The phrase is in a 300 page PDF, I need to jump to the right page.”
“My research lives in screenshots, I need to search the text inside them.”
“I have a 2 hour recording, I remember a sentence, I need the timestamp.”
What Spotlight does well
Launches apps quickly.
Finds files by name and some basic content.
Built in and zero setup.
Where Spotlight and Finder fall short
Limited precision, no reliable jump to a specific page, slide or timestamp.
Weak coverage for text inside images and screenshots.
No semantic search across your work the way you think about it.
Fenn in one minute
Fenn is an AI powered file search engine for macOS. It indexes PDFs, documents, images, audio and video, including text inside images and screenshots. You search in Semantic, Keyword or Hybrid mode with a shortcut. Results open at the exact page, slide, frame or timestamp with contextual snippets. On device by default for privacy. Optional cloud indexing for speed and scale, up to about 100 TB.
Comparison table
Task | Spotlight | Fenn |
|---|---|---|
Search long PDFs and jump to page | Limited | Opens at the exact page |
Find text in images and screenshots | Inconsistent | Indexed and searchable |
Search inside audio or video and jump to time | Not supported | Opens at the timestamp |
Semantic search across folders | Not available | Available, plus keyword and hybrid |
Privacy | System defaults | On device by default, optional cloud |
How to switch your daily search to Fenn
Install Fenn on your Apple Silicon Mac.
Pick sources to index, your case folders, research drives or app libraries.
Let indexing run on device. Enable optional cloud indexing later if you want faster indexing at scale.
Press the Fenn shortcut, type what you remember, a phrase, clause or concept.
Hit Return to open directly to the page, slide, frame or timestamp. Review the snippet for context and continue.
Mini case, lawyer
A partner searches “pari passu 2017 convertibles”. Spotlight lists file names and unrelated memos. Fenn opens to the exact page in a 342 page filing, then to the right moment in a recorded hearing. The task drops from 25 minutes to under 3 minutes. All data stays on device by default.
Mini case, researcher
A PhD student searches across a semester of PNG screenshots and two recorded seminars. Spotlight cannot see the image text or the timestamps. Fenn finds the phrase inside screenshots and jumps to the moment in the seminar video. Notes are finished before lunch.
Privacy first
By default Fenn keeps your index on your Mac. If your policy allows it and you need speed or scale, turn on cloud indexing. Your data, your choice.
See also
System search deep dive, Spotlight on Mac, the ultimate guide
Workflow upgrades, Search inside Office documents on Mac
Visual research, Find text in images and screenshots on Mac