ql-win/quicklook

Analysis updated 2026-05-18

★ 23,244C#Audience · vibe coderComplexity · 2/5LicenseSetup · easy

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((QuickLook))
    What it does
      Instant file preview
      Spacebar trigger
      No app launch
    Supported formats
      Images and video
      Documents
      Code and text
      Archives and 3D
    How to use
      Press space to preview
      Press space to close
      Works in File Explorer
    Benefits
      Save time browsing
      Check before opening
      Lightweight background app

mindmap root((QuickLook)) What it does Instant file preview Spacebar trigger No app launch Supported formats Images and video Documents Code and text Archives and 3D How to use Press space to preview Press space to close Works in File Explorer Benefits Save time browsing Check before opening Lightweight background app

Click or tap to explore — scroll the page freely

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Quickly preview photos, videos, or documents in File Explorer without waiting for apps to load.

USE CASE 2

Browse code files with syntax highlighting to find the right script before opening it in an editor.

USE CASE 3

Check file contents in save/open dialogs to confirm you're selecting the right file.

USE CASE 4

Preview archives, 3D models, and fonts to decide if you need to extract or use them.

What is it built with?

C#.NETWindows API

How does it compare?

	ql-win/quicklook	dotnet/maui	devolutions/unigetui
Stars	23,244	23,240	23,552
Language	C#	C#	C#
Setup difficulty	easy	moderate	easy
Complexity	2/5	3/5	1/5
Audience	vibe coder	developer	ops devops

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Use it freely, but any project you distribute that includes this code must also be GPL-licensed and open source.

In plain English

QuickLook is a Windows application that brings one of macOS's most loved features to Windows: press the spacebar on any file in File Explorer and instantly see a preview without opening the associated program. Press space again or click away and the preview disappears. On macOS this works natively for images, PDFs, videos, and more. Windows has never had this. Without QuickLook, previewing a file on Windows means double-clicking, waiting for an application to load, viewing the file, and then closing the application, several slow steps just to peek at something. QuickLook handles over 100 file types: images (JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP, RAW), videos (MP4, MKV, AVI), documents (PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint), code files with syntax highlighting, Markdown, 3D models (OBJ, STL), archives (ZIP, RAR), fonts, audio files, and more. It also supports plugins to add even more formats. It integrates with File Explorer, Windows open/save dialogs, and some third-party file managers. You would use this if you frequently browse files on Windows and want a faster way to check what a file contains before deciding whether to open it fully. It installs as a background application and stays out of the way until you press space. It is written in C# and runs only on Windows.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1

How do I install QuickLook on Windows and set it up to preview files in File Explorer?

Prompt 2

Show me how to create a custom plugin for QuickLook to preview a file format it doesn't support yet.

Prompt 3

What are the keyboard shortcuts in QuickLook and how do I configure them?

Prompt 4

How do I troubleshoot QuickLook if the spacebar preview isn't working in File Explorer?

Frequently asked questions

What is quicklook?

Press spacebar in Windows File Explorer to instantly preview any file without opening it, images, videos, PDFs, code, and 100+ formats.

What language is quicklook written in?

Mainly C#. The stack also includes C#, .NET, Windows API.

What license does quicklook use?

Use it freely, but any project you distribute that includes this code must also be GPL-licensed and open source.

How hard is quicklook to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is quicklook for?

Mainly vibe coder.

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