While macOS's Finder has always had smaller previews in Get Info windows or column view, Quick Look allows users to look at the contents of a file at full or near-full size in the Finder, depending on the size of the document relative to the screen resolution.

Quick Look technology is implemented throughout the Apple suite of software starting with Mac OS X 10.5, including iChat Theater, Time Machine, and Finder's Cover Flow.

[2] Developers can customize Quick Look to support additional file types in their applications, expanding the utility of this feature across various software ecosystems.

Plug-ins can also be used to add additional functionality to Quick Look such as syntax highlighting for source code files.

Keyboard shortcuts: Command line:[7] Menu: Quick Look can be exploited when conducting a forensic examination of a computer's contents.