Raycast 2.0 Memory Use on Mac (2026): Why It's Higher, Fixes

Raycast 2.0 uses more memory than Raycast 1 because it was rebuilt around a web view, a bundled Node.js process and a Rust core. Raycast's own figures put a typical session at about 350 to 450 MB, against 200 to 300 MB for v1. Updates since version 2.6 have cut that down, so update first, then check Activity Monitor's memory pressure before worrying.

If you opened Activity Monitor after the upgrade and found several Raycast entries where there used to be one, that's expected, and it isn't a sign something broke. This guide explains what changed inside the new Raycast in plain terms, what a normal footprint looks like, how to read the numbers in Activity Monitor, and which settings actually lower it.

Why does Raycast 2.0 use more memory than Raycast 1?

Raycast 2.0 uses more memory because it now runs four pieces instead of one native app. In Raycast's technical deep dive into the new Raycast, the team explains that version 1 was a Swift and AppKit app, while version 2 splits into a native host app, a shared React interface drawn in the system web view, a long-running Node.js backend and a Rust core. Each piece carries its own baseline cost, even when the window is hidden.

The trade is deliberate. Raycast says one codebase now serves both Mac and Windows, interface changes reload in under a second while they build, and rich text, Markdown and long AI chats render better in WebKit. The cost, as the team puts it, is a higher memory baseline and more runtimes to debug. A side benefit for you: Node.js ships inside the app, so you no longer download it the first time you install an extension.

Is Raycast 2.0 an Electron app?

No. Raycast 2.0 is not built on Electron. The deep dive says the team chose the system web view, WKWebView on macOS, partly so it wouldn't bundle a copy of Chromium on Macs that already have WebKit. Popovers and tooltips are native windows rather than web elements. So the new Raycast sits between a fully native app and an Electron app: native shell, web interface, no bundled browser.

How much memory is normal for Raycast 2.0?

A normal Raycast 2.0 session used roughly 350 to 450 MB when Raycast published its deep dive in May 2026, according to Raycast's own measurements, and the team said those numbers were not final. That figure is the sum of several processes, which is why Activity Monitor shows more than one Raycast line.

Two caveats from the same post matter when you compare numbers yourself. Raycast measures the physical footprint of each process, and it notes that Activity Monitor can count shared framework memory more than once, while compressed and clean memory costs less than the raw figure suggests. Treat the table as a rough guide, not a target your Mac has to hit.

What Raycast changed in the 2.6 to 2.10 updates

Raycast spent most of October 2026 cutting memory use. The macOS changelog lists a run of releases aimed at idle memory, startup and file search, so the single most useful thing you can do about high memory is install the latest version.

Raycast publishes percentages rather than a new total, so there's no official "Raycast now uses X MB" figure to quote. What you can say is that each of these releases trimmed a specific part of the footprint, and anyone still on a September build is carrying the older, heavier version.

To update, open Raycast Settings and check for updates on the About tab, or use the update check in the Raycast menu bar icon, as Raycast's settings guide describes.

How to check Raycast's memory use on your Mac

Check Raycast's memory in Activity Monitor, and judge it by the memory pressure graph rather than one process's number. Raycast's troubleshooting guide recommends Activity Monitor specifically, because some third-party memory tools report inflated figures.

1. Launch Activity Monitor, either from Applications > Utilities or by typing its name into Raycast itself.
2. Switch to the Memory tab.
3. Type Raycast in the window's search field to list every Raycast process together.
4. Add up the Memory column for those processes to get Raycast's rough total.
5. Find the Memory Pressure graph in the panel below the process list. That graph, not Raycast's total, tells you whether your Mac is short of memory.

Apple describes the Memory Pressure graph as a measure of how well memory is meeting your needs, worked out from free memory, swap rate, wired memory and cached files. On my laptop I only start pruning apps when that graph climbs and Swap Used keeps growing; a launcher sitting at a few hundred megabytes while pressure stays low is doing no harm. If Activity Monitor is new to you, the walkthrough in the Mac task manager guide covers the other tabs.

How to reduce Raycast 2.0's memory use

The settings that lower Raycast's memory most are the ones that shrink what its file indexer and extensions have to hold. Start with the first two, since they're quick and cost you nothing.

1. Update Raycast. The October releases above cut idle, startup and search memory, so an old build is the likeliest cause of a heavy footprint.
2. Quit and reopen Raycast. Raycast's troubleshooting guide says memory should drop after a restart. Quit from the menu bar icon or the Quit Raycast command, wait for it to leave Activity Monitor, then open it again.
3. Exclude big folders from File Search. Open Raycast Settings, go to File Search, and add large or rarely searched folders under Ignore Patterns. Check Search Scopes in the same place so only the folders you search are indexed.
4. Skip external and network drives. Version 2.5 added a setting to turn off indexing of network, removable and virtual volumes entirely, per the changelog. Turn it on if you plug in backup drives or mount servers.
5. Add the cloud-storage patterns if indexing hangs. Raycast's guide names encrypted cloud-storage folders as a known hang point on Macs and suggests adding `/Library/CloudStorage//.Encrypted`, `/Library/CloudStorage//.Encrypted/`, `/Library/CloudStorage//.shortcut-targets-by-id` and `/Library/CloudStorage//.shortcut-targets-by-id/` to Ignore Patterns.
6. Trim extensions you don't use. Each extension runs in its own worker. Disable commands you never run with the toggle beside each one, or uninstall Store extensions you've stopped using.

When I set up Raycast on a new Mac, my archive folder of old project files goes into Ignore Patterns before anything else. I never search it from the launcher, and there's no reason for the indexer to walk thousands of files I'll open from Finder once a year.

If you don't use Raycast to find files at all, turning off Files under Customize Search removes file matches from Root Search. The settings guide documents that option; it doesn't say whether it stops indexing, so pair it with Ignore Patterns if memory is the goal.

Why AI Chat or Notes takes a moment to open

AI Chat and Notes can pause briefly when you open them after a while because Raycast 2.0 closes inactive windows to save memory. The deep dive calls this a short delay when opening cold, and since version 2.7 closed windows free their memory after a cooldown period. That pause is the memory saving at work, not a fault, and Raycast says it's adding grace periods so a window you reopen soon stays ready.

When high memory is a leak: how to report it to Raycast

A leak looks different from a high baseline: Raycast's memory keeps climbing the longer it runs and doesn't settle after you close its windows. Raycast's troubleshooting guide gives a set routine for capturing one, and the team relies on the timing to track it down.

1. Quit Raycast fully from the menu bar icon or the Quit Raycast command, and wait until it disappears from Activity Monitor.
2. In Finder, press Shift-Command-G, paste `~/Library/Logs/com.raycast.macos`, and move that folder's contents to the Trash.
3. Open Raycast again and use it as you normally would.
4. When memory spikes, write down the time, including your time zone. A screenshot of Activity Monitor with the Raycast processes listed helps.
5. Run Copy Raycast Logs in Raycast to copy the latest log.
6. Run Send Feedback in Raycast and include the logs, the spike time and what you were doing just before.

The "what you were doing" line is the part people skip, and it's usually the most useful. The last time I reported a slowdown to a software team, the fix came from one sentence about the extension I'd just run, not from the log file.

Should you install Raycast 2.0 on an 8 GB Mac?

Yes, if your Mac meets the requirements and you rely on Raycast's newer features, but keep it updated and its file index lean. Raycast's v2 page lists two requirements, Apple silicon and macOS Tahoe, so Intel Macs and Macs on Sequoia or earlier can't run it.

Before you switch, know three things from that page. Raycast 2.0 replaces version 1 rather than running beside it. Updating v1 to at least version 1.104.16 first helps custom extensions import correctly. And the Migrate from Raycast v1 command is the route Raycast recommends, because the manual Import Settings and Data option skips Clipboard History, Wrapped and the Emoji picker.

On a Mac with 8 GB of memory, a few hundred megabytes for a launcher is noticeable, but it's one app among many. On my own Macs, the browser is almost always the bigger draw. Watch the memory pressure graph for a week after the switch. If it stays low, keep Raycast 2.0. If it climbs and Raycast is a big part of the reason, Spotlight or a lighter launcher may suit that Mac better, and the Raycast alternatives page compares the options.

One more cost to weigh: some features are paid. If you're mainly upgrading for AI Chat, check what Raycast AI costs before you decide whether the new version earns its memory.