These 5 apps totally replaced PowerToys on my Windows 11 PC

• Auto Dark Mode
• Listary
• QuickLook
• Run by FireCube
• Windhawk

PowerToys is a Microsoft-built suite of PC utilities that adds a layer of additional functionality on top of the standard Windows 11 experience. With over 25 modules to choose from, the free program targets not only power users, but also regular every-day people looking for extra customization options and ease-of-use features.

Since PowerToys is made by Microsoft in-house, it’s an unsurprisingly well-polished software program. The utility provided by some of its respective modules is so undeniable, that I just about always install the application right away when setting up any new Windows 11 computer.

Of course, as with any piece of software, PowerToys isn’t flawless. In some cases, I find myself turning to third-party Windows 11 utilities to either supplement the PowerToys suite, or to replace certain modules in their entirety. Here are five free apps in particular that I use in lieu of their PowerToys counterparts, partially due to feature set differences, and partially out of sheer familiarity.

Auto Dark Mode

A Light Switch substitute

Light Switch is the freshman of the PowerToys module lineup, having only been released by Microsoft back in October of last year. While it works well for automating Windows 11’s light and dark theme switching based on time of day, it still lacks some key configuration options found in the excellent third-party Auto Dark Mode app.

Critically, Auto Dark Mode offers the option to configure bespoke desktop wallpapers for both light mode and dark mode, which goes a long way in making the feature look and feel seamless. There’s a chance that similar functonality will arrive in Light Switch at some point in the future (there’s a proposed pull request over on GitHub), but, for the time being, Auto Dark Mode gets the job done without a fuss.

Listary

A Command Palette substitute

There are a wide variety of third-party Windows applications that specialize in file search and data indexing. In fact, I’ve previously compiled a list of some of the best options available for Windows 11, and I remember struggling to pick out only five favorites from the bunch. Compared to the default Windows Search experience, you can’t go wrong with any number of alternatives, including Microsoft’s very own Command Pallette utility within PowerToys.

Command Pallette is a well-rounded option for fans of macOS-style Spotlight Search, but I’ve personally grown reliant on Listary, a classic search launcher that’s lightning fast, visually pleasant, and perfectly accurate in surfacing query results. In addition to a basic search bar UI, Listary offers an in-beta File Search Window experience with advanced filters, rich previews, and one of the most user-friendly designs I’ve ever come across.

QuickLook

A Peek substitute

Preview is one of my all-time favorite macOS features, making the contents of images, documents, videos, and other files highly glanceable via a simple hit of the space key. Unsurprisingly, attempts have been made to port similar functionality over to Windows, including by Microsoft in the form of its Peek module for PowerToys.

QuickLook is a free third-party alternative to Peek that I’ve been relying on for some time for all-things preview-related. The app works similarly to macOS Preview, with transient panes of information appearing and disappearing from the screen based on associated keyboard shortcuts. QuickLook is convenient, powerful, and lightweight all at the same time, making it a great standalone alternative to Peek for Windows 11.

Run by FireCube

A PowerToys Run substitute

Late last year, Microsoft began quietly testing a full Run dialogue redesign (via phantomofearth on X) for Windows 11. Built using modern design principles, this new user interface certainly looks nicer than the classic version, but it’s still also currently lacking various capabilities like a browse button or a movable window. Of course, Microsoft also offers a more advanced Run experience courtesy of PowerToys Run, which arguably beats the pants off of both out-of-box Run dialogue options within Windows 11.

Personally, I spring for something else entirely for my quick command-line toolkit needs: the free third-party Run by FireCube application. Aside from offering an attractive design and some unique visual flair through its GlowUI design language, Run by FireCube taps into OpenAI’s GPT 3.5 large language model (LLM) for natural language queries (so long as you have a valid OpenAI key). The app’s window is also fully movable, and it can display up to 30 recent commands at a time for convenience.

Windhawk

A substitute for PowerToys as a whole

Windhawk isn’t a single-purpose software application. Rather, it’s a full-blown customization marketplace for the Windows platform and its accompanying programs. As a free and open-source (FOSS) package, Windhawk plugs into a vast number of community-developed ‘mods,’ each of which alters the system in one way or another. For example, you can use the app to bring back the long-lost Aero Peek feature from the Windows 10 days, or to add a GPU usage ticker to the taskbar’s system tray area.

Rather than being a replacement for PowerToys, Windhawk adds an exceptional amount of value to Windows 11 as a supplementary tool. Both take different approaches to how they present and implement OS tweaks, and so both offer their own sets of unique strengths and weaknesses. When paired together, then, the two programs work in tandem to provide maximum platform flexibility.