Zush vs AI Renamer (2026): Desktop, CLI, Price

Quick answer: Zush is a complete Mac and Windows desktop AI file renamer at $10 one-time with 23 image formats (incl. RAW), 11 document formats, folder monitoring, undo, and BYOK. AI Renamer comes in two unrelated products with the same name: an open-source CLI (free, image + video, no automation/undo) and a $19 Desktop app (images + PDF/TXT, no folder monitoring, no undo, no BYOK). Pick by how much workflow you want included.

If you are searching “Zush vs AI Renamer”, first know the comparison covers two different products that share the name “AI Renamer”: an open-source CLI (ozgrozer/ai-renamer on GitHub, GPL-3.0) and a separate commercial desktop app at airenamer.app. They are not made by the same team. We compare both against Zush below.

TL;DR comparison

Zush

Platform

Mac (macOS 14+) and Windows 10/11

Pricing

Free demo (5 files), Pro $10 one-time for 10,000 renames, BYOK unlimited at API cost (Gemini/Groq/OpenAI/Claude), Local Ollama on supported Mac builds

Website

zushapp.com

Zush is a complete desktop AI file renamer for Mac and Windows. The differentiators in this comparison are the things AI Renamer (either version) does not do: 23 image formats including 11 RAW variants, 11 document formats including PDF/DOCX/XLSX/PPT, folder monitoring for automatic ongoing renames, full rename history with one-click undo, and BYOK across 4 providers without paying extra.

AI Renamer Desktop (airenamer.app)

Platform

Mac and Windows desktop

Pricing

10 free credits on signup, Local Mode $19 one-time (unlimited local), Cloud Mode $10 per 200 credits (1 credit per rename)

Website

airenamer.app

The AI Renamer Desktop app costs $19 one-time for unlimited local processing or $10 per 200 cloud credits. The supported file format list per their site is short: JPG, PNG, GIF, WEBP for images and PDF + TXT for documents. The site does not list folder monitoring, undo, or BYOK as features — meaning if you set up a bad rename, there is no built-in history to roll back to.

AI Renamer CLI (open-source)

The AI Renamer CLI is ozgrozer/ai-renamer on GitHub — a free GPL-3.0 Node.js command-line tool. Install via npx ai-renamer /path or globally with npm. Backends: Ollama (default), LM Studio, OpenAI. It handles images and videos (via ffmpeg) but does not rename documents like PDFs.

The CLI is the right pick for developers who want a local-only renaming tool, are comfortable in a terminal, and accept the trade-offs: no folder monitoring, no undo, no GUI for preview.

Format support

RAW + HEIC: only Zush

Zush is the only one of the three with explicit RAW format support: CR2, CR3, NEF, ARW, DNG, ORF, RAF, RW2, PEF, SRW, SR2. Both AI Renamer products list only standard image formats (JPG, PNG, GIF, WEBP). For HEIC iPhone photos, Zush supports them; the AI Renamer products do not list HEIC.

Documents: Zush has 11 formats; AI Renamer Desktop has 2; CLI has 0

Zush handles PDF, DOCX, XLSX, PPT, PPTX, TXT, MD, JSON, EML, CSV, DOC. AI Renamer Desktop adds PDF and TXT to its image-rename feature. The CLI does not parse document content — it can rename files but only based on what its model can infer from the filename or video frames.

Video: only the CLI

The AI Renamer CLI can rename videos by extracting frames with ffmpeg and feeding them to the AI. Neither Zush nor AI Renamer Desktop renames video files at this time.

Features that differ

Folder monitoring

Zush has folder monitoring — a “Watch” feature that automatically renames new files dropped into specified folders. Neither AI Renamer product offers this. If your goal is “make my Downloads folder clean automatically forever,” Zush is the only fit here.

Undo / rename history

Zush keeps a full rename history with one-click revert per file. The AI Renamer Desktop and CLI do not advertise undo functionality. If you batch-rename hundreds of files and 5% of names are wrong, Zush lets you fix those individually; with AI Renamer you would need to manually rename them back.

BYOK with multiple providers

Zush includes BYOK with the $10 Pro purchase across Gemini, Groq, OpenAI, and Claude. The AI Renamer CLI supports OpenAI keys directly. The AI Renamer Desktop app does not list BYOK on its site.

Local-only setup

For privacy-first users, the AI Renamer CLI’s local-only Ollama path is the lightest setup once you have Ollama installed. Zush’s Offline AI mode (Ollama on Mac builds) is similar but bundled into a GUI. Both keep files on-device.

Pick by use case

Pick Zush if:

• You want a complete desktop app, not a CLI
• You handle RAW/HEIC photos or office documents (DOCX/XLSX/PPT)
• You want folder monitoring for ongoing automatic renaming
• You want undo/rollback when batch-renaming hundreds of files
• You want BYOK across 4 providers included in the $10 price

Pick AI Renamer CLI if:

• You are a developer comfortable in the terminal
• You want a free, open-source, local-only renaming tool
• You are fine with images and videos (no documents)
• You can live without folder monitoring and undo

Pick AI Renamer Desktop ($19) if:

• You want a GUI but only for JPG/PNG/GIF/WEBP + PDF/TXT
• You do not need folder monitoring or undo
• $19 fits your budget and you do not want to set up Ollama

Honestly, the AI Renamer Desktop is the hardest to justify — for $9 more than Zush you get less (no RAW, no HEIC, no Office docs, no monitoring, no undo, no BYOK).

Setup effort

Zush installs as a native Mac or Windows app via .dmg / Microsoft Store. Drag-and-drop, no terminal.

AI Renamer Desktop installs the same way (commercial download).

AI Renamer CLI requires: Node.js, npm/npx, Ollama (4–8GB disk), a vision model (LLaVA), and terminal comfort. The setup itself takes 15–30 minutes if you have not done it before.

FAQ

Are AI Renamer Desktop and AI Renamer CLI from the same company?

No. The CLI is ozgrozer/ai-renamer on GitHub (GPL-3.0). The Desktop app is at airenamer.app, a separate commercial product. They share the name “AI Renamer” but are not the same project.

Can the AI Renamer CLI rename PDFs and Office documents?

No. The CLI handles images and videos (with ffmpeg). It does not parse document content. For PDFs/DOCX/XLSX, you need a tool that reads document text — Zush, NameQuick, Renamer.ai, or Renamed.to.

Does AI Renamer Desktop have folder monitoring?

Their site does not list folder monitoring as a feature. If you need ongoing automatic renaming, Zush is the fit.

Is the AI Renamer CLI really free?

Yes. GPL-3.0 open source. The only “cost” is potential OpenAI API charges if you use OpenAI as the backend; if you use Ollama or LM Studio locally, it is fully free with no API cost.

Which has the most formats?

Zush has the broadest official format support: 23 image formats (incl. RAW + HEIC) and 11 document formats. AI Renamer Desktop lists 4 image formats + PDF/TXT. The CLI handles images + video (with ffmpeg) but does not parse documents.

Verdict

The three tools are different in ambition, not just price:

• For a finished desktop app with the most coverage: Zush at $10 one-time.
• For free, local, terminal-based renaming: AI Renamer CLI on GitHub.
• The AI Renamer Desktop at $19 sits in an awkward middle — pay more than Zush for less coverage. We would only recommend it if you specifically need a GUI but cannot or will not pay the extra $9 over the CLI for Zush.

For a broader market view, see Best AI File Renamers 2026 . For free options including the AI Renamer CLI in detail, see How to Rename Files with AI for Free .