Espresso Search syntax
Type anything: Espresso shows every file and folder whose name contains what you typed,
ignoring case and accents (cafe finds Café.png). Results update as you type.
The syntax below is compatible with Everything by voidtools.
Also in the app: Help › Search Syntax (The Menu).
Basics
| You type | Finds |
|---|---|
report 2026 |
names containing both words (AND) |
jpg | png |
either word (OR). OR binds tighter than AND: a b|c = a and (b or c) |
!draft |
names without the word (NOT) |
<report | invoice> 2026 |
grouping with < > |
"annual report" |
an exact phrase, spaces included |
IMG_*.heic, file?.txt |
wildcards: * any text, ? one character. With wildcards the whole name must match |
docs/invoices |
a / searches the full path instead of the name |
Toolbar options
Match Case · Match Whole Words · Match Path · Ignore Diacritics · Barista mode (the whole search is one regular expression) · Lungo (include hidden files and the contents of apps and packages). Defaults are in Settings › Search.
Modifiers (apply to one term)
| Syntax | Meaning |
|---|---|
case:Report |
match case (also nocase:) |
wholeword:art, ww:art |
whole words only |
diacritics:café / nodiacritics:cafe |
accents must match / are ignored |
path:backup |
match against the full path |
regex:^IMG_\d+\.jpg$ |
regular expression (|, <, > are part of the pattern; quote it to include spaces) |
startwith:IMG, endwith:final |
name starts / ends with |
Modifiers chain: case:path:Projects, and apply to groups: case:<Foo | Bar>.
Where
| Syntax | Meaning |
|---|---|
parent:~/Desktop |
directly inside a folder |
infolder:~/Projects |
anywhere inside a folder |
depth:2, depth:>5 |
depth from the disk root (items in the root have depth 1) |
disk:Backup |
only disks whose name contains “Backup” |
online: / offline: |
only connected / disconnected disks |
What
| Syntax | Meaning |
|---|---|
file: / folder: |
only files / folders; folder:src = folders named like “src” |
ext:jpg;png;heic |
extensions |
audio: video: pic: doc: zip: code: app: font: |
kinds (the Blends, also ⌘1…⌘9) |
hidden: |
hidden items |
empty: |
empty folders |
len:>100 |
name length in characters |
tag:Red, tagged: |
Finder tags |
Size
size:>100mb, size:<=10kb, size:10kb..2mb, size:1234. Units: b kb mb gb tb
(decimal, like Finder) and kib mib gib tib (binary). Presets: size:empty (0),
tiny (≤ 10 KB), small (≤ 100 KB), medium (≤ 1 MB), large (≤ 16 MB), huge (≤ 128 MB),
gigantic (> 128 MB). Folder sizes are the total of their contents.
Dates
dm: modified · dc: created · da: last opened (macOS updates this lazily).
Values: today, yesterday, thisweek, lastweek, thismonth, lastmonth, thisyear,
lastyear, last7days (also hours, weeks, months, years), 2026, 2026-03, 2026-03-18.
Comparisons and ranges: dm:>2025, dc:<=lastmonth, dm:2026-01-01..2026-03-31.
Extended details
Read in the background for the kinds enabled in Settings › Metadata, also kept for offline disks:
width:>3000, height:1080, duration:>5m (also 90, 1:30, 2h), pages:>100, author:Rossi.
Double shots (duplicates)
dupe: keeps items whose name appears more than once among the results;
sizedupe: items whose size does. Combine them: dupe: ext:pdf. They apply to the whole search.
Macros
Settings › Search › Macros: projects → infolder:~/Projects !node_modules. Then type
projects: report. A value after the colon is added as a search term: projects:report.
Keyboard
⌥Space pull a shot · ⌘F or just type to search · ↩ open · ⌘↩ or ⌘R show in Finder · Space take a sip (Quick Look) · ⌘C copy file · ⌥⌘C copy path · ⌘⌫ move to Trash · ⌘I get info · ⌘1…⌘9 Blends · ⌘[ ⌘] back/forward · ⌘↑ enclosing folder · ⌘S save as Your usual · ⌘T new tab · ⌘N new window.
Mistakes
Espresso never refuses a search. Problems are underlined in the search field (hover for the explanation) and the rest of the query still runs.