dtSearch Desktop vs Fluent Search
dtSearch Desktop
dtsearch.comFluent Search
fluentsearch.netSide by side
| Figure | dtSearch Desktop | Fluent Search |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $102.08/mo | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 1 |
| Spec score · Desktop Search Software | 8.2 (#6) | 7.6 (#20) |
| Purpose | dtSearch Desktop provides instant searching of desktop-accessible files. | Fluent Search is a keyboard-driven Windows search and productivity tool for finding apps, files, browser data, commands, web results, windows, and more. |
| Support | A Desktop license includes technical support for one year to a single point of contact in the licensee organization. | The plugin documentation lists GitHub, Discord, and [email protected] as community and support channels. |
Plans
dtSearch Desktop
- dtSearch Desktop — single user license$249, paid once
- dtSearch Desktop — annual single individual user “investigative” license$1,225 a year
In their own words
dtSearch Desktop
dtSearch Desktop has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.
Fluent Search
Fluent Search is a free, keyboard-driven search and productivity tool for Windows 10 or 11. It searches installed apps, files, browser history and bookmarks, commands, web results, open windows, settings, calculations, and on-screen interface elements. Screen Search puts character labels over clickable items so users can navigate and interact with them from the keyboard. A built-in file indexer is designed to scan quickly while keeping CPU usage low. Its index stores file metadata by default, not file contents, unless content indexing is enabled for selected paths. Optional semantic search and summarization run locally and can be switched off in Settings. Community plugins can add search sources, previews, actions, and YAML-based task workflows. Configurable web search includes engines such as Google, Bing, and DuckDuckGo, inline previews, and sending prompts to ChatGPT. The maker says searches, indexes, browser data, and most interactions are handled locally; depending on settings, diagnostics, suggestions, sync, and plugins may involve external communication. Windows x64 and ARM64 installers, APPX, portable builds, and Microsoft Store installation are listed. The maker describes ARM64 as newer and not yet battle-tested.