When comparing ueli vs Spotlight, the Slant community recommends Spotlight for most people. In the question“What are the best keystroke launchers for Mac?” Spotlight is ranked 2nd while ueli is ranked 3rd. The most important reason people chose Spotlight is:
Spotlight comes packaged with OS X and iOS.
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro You can choose how deep into the launcher you want to go
Light or advanced user - both will have a positive experience.
Pro Doesn't keep annoying you with "I'm here!", "I can also do ... " pop ups
Pro It's easy to make scripts which can start all the programs you need for your task
Pro RESTART, HIBERNATE, SHUT DOWN or SLEEP at your finger tips - no screen needed
Pro You can quickly write system commands
Pro Execute command line commands directly
Pro Free and Open Source
Pro Everything compatibility
Pro Built-in translator
Pro Native to OS X
Spotlight comes packaged with OS X and iOS.
Pro Intuitive
Cons
Con The tray icon is only available in white
If you run the bright version of Windows, the icon is virtually not there.
Con Limited customization
Allows for very little customization, not theming, and no custom scripting.
Con No longer launches applications at all in Sierra
After updating to Sierra, typing an application name in Spotlight results in "No Results" or random wikipedia matches. True even after reloading com.apple.metadata.mds.plist and adding/removing "Macintosh HD" on the "Privacy" tab. Launchpad still works.