Pivit vs Flow Launcher
Flow Launcher is the enthusiast's pick on Windows. It is open source, fast, and its in-app plugin store makes extending it genuinely easy rather than a GitHub scavenger hunt.
If you enjoy assembling a launcher from parts, Flow is hard to beat. Pivit takes the opposite position: the useful things are already there, supported as one product, and the AI is built into it rather than being a plugin someone maintains in their spare time.
At a glance
| Feature | Pivit | Flow Launcher |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Built for Windows 10 and 11 | Windows only |
| Pricing | Free forever, Pro £8/month with AI included | Free and open source |
| AI | Included on Pro — 70+ models, no API key, no add-on | Community plugins, usually with your own API key |
| App and screen context | Reads your current app, screen, clipboard and media | Not offered |
| Extensions | Plugin SDK with typed commands and settings | Large catalogue with an in-app plugin store |
| Gesture launcher | Pivit Wheel — hold, flick, release | Not offered |
| Window management | Free, built in | Through plugins |
| Cloud sync | On Pro | Not offered |
| Support | Maintained team, one product | Volunteer maintainers per plugin |
| Source | Closed source | Open source |
Comparison last checked 21 July 2026. Flow Launcher is a product of its respective owner and its features change often — check their site for the current state.
Where Pivit is stronger
- AI across 70+ models with no API key, provider account or billing to set up
- Context the AI can actually use: your current app, screen, clipboard, files and media
- Window management, calculator, search and system controls supported as one product, not a stack of third-party plugins that can go unmaintained
- The Pivit Wheel, a second way in for the commands you run constantly
- Cloud sync so your setup follows you to another machine
- A settings and theming system designed once, rather than per plugin
Where Flow Launcher is stronger
- A big plugin catalogue you can browse and install without leaving the app
- Free, open source, and yours to fork
- No account required, and deep configuration for people who enjoy tuning their tools
Which should you pick?
Choose Pivit if: You would rather the launcher arrive complete and stay supported, with AI that already understands your current context instead of a plugin you have to key in and maintain.
Choose Flow Launcher if: You want a free, open source launcher, you are happy wiring up plugins to get the feature set you want, and you like owning the configuration.
Common questions
Yes. Flow Launcher is free and open source, with an in-app plugin store for extending it.
Not as a core feature. AI arrives through community plugins, which generally means supplying your own provider API key, paying that provider directly, and maintaining the setup yourself. Pivit includes AI across 70+ models on Pro with none of that.
Pivit ships a Plugin SDK for building your own commands, with typed arguments, relevance scoring and declarative settings. Flow's catalogue is larger and has had years to grow; Pivit's advantage is that the things most people install plugins for are already built in and supported.
Both open in well under a second on modern hardware. Speed is unlikely to be the thing that decides it for you — the feature set and how much assembly you want to do will be.
Try Pivit on Windows
Free on Windows 10 and 11. The launcher, calculator, window management and themes cost nothing.