diff --git a/src/base/utils/string.cpp b/src/base/utils/string.cpp
index da42f79bb..3e9dbc952 100644
--- a/src/base/utils/string.cpp
+++ b/src/base/utils/string.cpp
@@ -54,6 +54,67 @@ QString Utils::String::wildcardToRegexPattern(const QString &pattern)
     return QRegularExpression::wildcardToRegularExpression(pattern, QRegularExpression::UnanchoredWildcardConversion);
 }
 
+// namespace? private?
+void toLookaheadRegex(QString &name, bool isPositive) {
+    name = QRegularExpression::escape(name);
+
+    if(isPositive)
+        name.prepend(u"(?=.*").append(u")");
+    else
+        name.prepend(u"(?!.*").append(u")");
+}
+
+QString Utils::String::parseFilter(const QString &filter)
+{
+    QString ret;
+    ret.reserve(256);
+
+    ret.prepend(u"\\A"); // Start matching at beginning
+
+    bool inQuotes = false;
+    bool excluded = false;
+    QString tmp;
+    for (const QChar c : filter)
+    {
+        if (c == u'"') // What about patterns without spaces between quotes, like `bla""bla`
+        {
+            inQuotes = !inQuotes;
+            continue; // Don't inlude quotes in pattern
+        }
+        else if (!inQuotes) // ` ` and `-` are left alone inside quotes
+        {
+            if (c == u' ')
+            {
+                if (!tmp.isEmpty())
+                {
+                    toLookaheadRegex(tmp, !excluded);
+                    excluded = false;
+
+                    ret.append(tmp);
+                    tmp.clear();
+                }
+
+                continue;
+            }
+            else if (c == u'-' && tmp.isEmpty()) // only exclude when `-` is at start of word
+            {
+                excluded = true;
+                continue;
+            }
+        }
+
+        tmp.append(c);
+    }
+
+    if (!tmp.isEmpty())
+    {
+        toLookaheadRegex(tmp, !excluded);
+        ret.append(tmp);
+    }
+
+    return ret;
+}
+
 QStringList Utils::String::splitCommand(const QString &command)
 {
     QStringList ret;
diff --git a/src/base/utils/string.h b/src/base/utils/string.h
index 6a72176f2..df43e05e3 100644
--- a/src/base/utils/string.h
+++ b/src/base/utils/string.h
@@ -44,6 +44,7 @@
 namespace Utils::String
 {
     QString wildcardToRegexPattern(const QString &pattern);
+    QString parseFilter(const QString &filter);
 
     template <typename T>
     T unquote(const T &str, const QString &quotes = u"\""_s)
diff --git a/src/gui/transferlistwidget.cpp b/src/gui/transferlistwidget.cpp
index 85ac7b53a..3bd256fa8 100644
--- a/src/gui/transferlistwidget.cpp
+++ b/src/gui/transferlistwidget.cpp
@@ -1328,7 +1328,7 @@ void TransferListWidget::applyFilter(const QString &name, const TransferListMode
 {
     m_sortFilterModel->setFilterKeyColumn(type);
     const QString pattern = (Preferences::instance()->getRegexAsFilteringPatternForTransferList()
-                ? name : Utils::String::wildcardToRegexPattern(name));
+                ? name : Utils::String::parseFilter(name));
     m_sortFilterModel->setFilterRegularExpression(QRegularExpression(pattern, QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption));
 }
 
diff --git a/test/testutilsstring.cpp b/test/testutilsstring.cpp
index 6c1c0c63c..140d08cb3 100644
--- a/test/testutilsstring.cpp
+++ b/test/testutilsstring.cpp
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@
 
 #include <QList>
 #include <QObject>
+#include <QRegularExpression>
 #include <QTest>
 
 #include "base/global.h"
@@ -90,6 +91,57 @@ private slots:
         QCOMPARE(Utils::String::splitCommand(u"   cmd.exe /d --arg2 \"arg3\" \"\" arg5 \"\"arg6 \"arg7 "_s)
             , QStringList({u"cmd.exe"_s, u"/d"_s, u"--arg2"_s, u"\"arg3\""_s, u"\"\""_s, u"arg5"_s, u"\"\"arg6"_s, u"\"arg7 "_s}));
     }
+
+    void testparseFilter() const
+    {
+        QRegularExpression re0(Utils::String::parseFilter(u""_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(u""_s.contains(re0));
+        QVERIFY(u"a"_s.contains(re0));
+
+        QRegularExpression re1(Utils::String::parseFilter(u"a"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(u"a"_s.contains(re1));
+        QVERIFY(u"bab"_s.contains(re1));
+        QVERIFY(!u"b"_s.contains(re1));
+
+        QRegularExpression re2(Utils::String::parseFilter(u"a b"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(!u"a"_s.contains(re2));
+        QVERIFY(!u"b"_s.contains(re2));
+        QVERIFY(u"a c b"_s.contains(re2));
+        QVERIFY(u"b a"_s.contains(re2));
+
+        QRegularExpression re3(Utils::String::parseFilter(u"a -b"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(u"a"_s.contains(re3));
+        QVERIFY(!u"a b"_s.contains(re3));
+
+        QRegularExpression re4(Utils::String::parseFilter(uR"(a "b c")"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(!u"a c b"_s.contains(re4));
+        QVERIFY(u"a b c"_s.contains(re4));
+
+        QRegularExpression re5(Utils::String::parseFilter(uR"(a -"b c")"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(!u"a b c"_s.contains(re5));
+        QVERIFY(u"a c b"_s.contains(re5));
+
+        QRegularExpression re6(Utils::String::parseFilter(uR"(a "b -c")"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(u"a b -c"_s.contains(re6));
+        QVERIFY(!u"a b c"_s.contains(re6));
+
+        QRegularExpression re7(Utils::String::parseFilter(uR"(a-b)"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(u"a-b"_s.contains(re7));
+        QVERIFY(!u"a b"_s.contains(re7));
+        QVERIFY(!u"a"_s.contains(re7));
+
+        QRegularExpression re8(Utils::String::parseFilter(uR"(.)"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(u"."_s.contains(re8));
+        QVERIFY(!u"a"_s.contains(re8));
+
+        QRegularExpression re9(Utils::String::parseFilter(uR"(*)"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(u"*"_s.contains(re9));
+        QVERIFY(!u"a"_s.contains(re9));
+
+        QRegularExpression re10(Utils::String::parseFilter(u"\"a"_s), QRegularExpression::CaseInsensitiveOption);
+        QVERIFY(u"a"_s.contains(re10));
+        QVERIFY(!u"b"_s.contains(re10));
+    }
 };
 
 QTEST_APPLESS_MAIN(TestUtilsString)