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What is the best window manager for Mac?

31
Options 
Considered
421
User 
Recs.
Last 
Updated
Things To Consider

Window managers help manipulate application windows in order to increase productivity.

A good window manager for Mac will allow moving, resizing and rearranging application windows quickly. It will allow customizing how windows are handled, have keyboard shortcuts for performing window manipulations quickly and allow snapping windows to various locations on the desktop with the mouse.

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The Best 3 of 31 OptionsWhy?

31 Options ConsideredPriceLast Updated
Excellent
Divvy
Apr 16, 2018
Excellent
Slate
Apr 4, 2018
Excellent
Moom
Apr 19, 2018
ShiftIt
Dec 12, 2017
Spectacle
Apr 24, 2018
See Full List
Excellent

Divvy

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mccauls7
thermoplastics
Stuart Kearney
Top Pro

Requires no configuration and is very easy to use

•••
The user simply needs to install Divvy and they can immediately start organizing their windows with no setup time or learning curve involved.
mccauls7
Laura Kyle
Stuart Kearney
Top Pro

Reasonably configurable

•••
You can change the grid dimensions and other visual settings to suit your needs.
mccauls7
Laura Kyle
Stuart Kearney
Top Pro

Offers keyboard shortcuts

•••
Although it's not in the same league as the likes of Slate, Divvy does support the use of keyboard shortcuts to move windows about. You can even create custom shortcuts.
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Multi-monitor support

•••
Laura Kyle
Top Pro

Unlimited free trial

•••
Divvy provides a free trial that never runs out (however, it will encourage you to upgrade with popups).
mccauls7
smoovmaster
Top Con

Expensive at $13.99

•••
Divvy is one of the more (if not most) expensive window managers.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
smoovmaster
Top Con

Missing snap to borders

•••
There is no way to snap to border as in Windows, though there is a way to set keyboard shortcuts to throw windows to the sides or top/bottom of the screen.
See 2 more ProsSee 5 more Pros & Cons
Excellent

Slate

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mccauls7
thermoplastics
Stuart Kearney
Top Pro

Based on hotkeys

•••
Hotkeys can be set to re-size and focus windows, as well as activate layout presets.
mccauls7
Laura Kyle
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Extremely configurable

•••
Slate is similar to Linux WMs like Xmonad in that it is nearly infinitely configurable. You can either use the default configuration file or just Javascript for very complex/dynamic settings. Slate also offers editing a ".js" or a ".slate" file for configuration.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Laura Kyle
Top Pro

It's free

•••
Slate is completely free to download and use, which is a great option in a field of Mac WMs that often costs money to use.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Lets you set default layouts

•••
By using a feature called "snapshots", users can set up different default window layouts in Slate that they can switch to and from on the fly.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Window hints

•••
Slate offers window hints which are an intuitive way to change window focus.
thermoplastics
Andris Pelcbergs
James Patrick
Top Pro

Allows for tiling

•••
Slate allows for customizing the config file in order to emulate tiling windows.
Laura Kyle
Daniel Herzog
Top Con

Project maintainance is on pause

•••
The developer is currently taking a pause to focus on other things as of December 2015.
mccauls7
Laura Kyle
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Con

Hard to configure

•••
There's no graphical user interface for configuring Slate, meaning it has to be done from the command line interface or by editing a config file. This makes it somewhat difficult and time-consuming.
IndependentVejovis
Top Con

Missing features

•••
Unable to perform all tasks of software it was meant to replace. Can not move windows between 'Spaces' (virtual desktops).
AssertiveOri
Top Con

Video fail

•••
Demonstration video failed to highlight any of the advantages of the windowing system. Or at least, the advantages were so subtly intrinsic that no-one who didn't already use the system could appreciate them.
See 4 more Pros & ConsSee 8 more Pros & Cons
Excellent

Moom

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Endi Sukaj
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Multi-monitor support

•••
Moom has excellent support for multi-monitor setups. You can drag a window to the edge of your screen into another monitor and snap it there.
Endi Sukaj
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Simple customization

•••
While you can set keyboard shortcuts, Moom has a very easy-to-use GUI and GUI-based customization features to help you get going right away.
Endi Sukaj
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Adds a zoom button for all apps

•••
Moom adds an overlay zoom button to the corner of all apps which allows any app to go full screen or be placed to certain sections of the screen (such as the top, bottom, or sides). This works even on apps that do not normally allow for full screen views.
Endi Sukaj
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Customizable keyboard shortucts

•••
Moom comes with many preset keyboard shortcuts. The user can go into the graphical settings of the app and change any one of them to a different combination of keys.
Endi Sukaj
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Pro

You can save tiling window position and size

•••
Users can set window position and size themselves, allowing for a great way to set up a tiling window experience.
Endi Sukaj
thermoplastics
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Windows can be snapped to the edges of the screen

•••
In addition to using the grid or the overlay, Moom can move and zoom windows by dragging them to screen edges.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Con

UI for settings can be confusing

•••
The settings for the app are pretty jumbled and are hard to get a grip of, especially for first time users. While all the settings one would need are there, they are difficult to find or understand, which requires a good bit of playing around with the settings in order to get a feel for them and wh...
Endi Sukaj
mccauls7
Owen Campbell-Moore
Top Con

Not free

•••
Moom is not free: it costs $9.99.
Paolo
ThriftyOdin
Top Con

Two steps needed, while some tools only need one

•••
See 3 more ProsSee 7 more Pros & Cons
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28 Other Options Considered

ShiftIt

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Owen Campbell-Moore
Top Pro

Free

•••
mccauls7
Owen Campbell-Moore
Top Pro

Easy to configure

•••
ShiftIt is configured through a simple UI where you simply press the hotkeys you wish to map to a certain action.
mccauls7
谢非
Top Pro

Intuitive

•••
ShiftIt is very straight-forward to use for most frequent usages.
Joe Masilotti
Ryan
Top Pro

Open source

•••
Shawn Axsom
Top Con

A little slow

•••
Similar to Spectacle, but it has a few more features, such as being able to pick the size adjustment increments. Spectacle was a little faster, though. Repeated size changes or moves in succession can cause it to wait for it to complete.
Paolo
Shawn Axsom
Top Con

Imprecise when readjusting sizes

•••
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Owen Campbell-Moore
Top Con

Doesn't support moving windows between workspaces

•••
There's no way to move a window to a different workspace with hotkeys in ShiftIt.
See 5 more Pros & ConsSee 5 more Pros & Cons

Spectacle

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mccauls7
Laura Kyle
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Free and open source

•••
Spectacle is licensed under MIT with source code available on GitHub.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Low footprint

•••
Spectacle only uses up 18-19 MB of RAM, which means there is not much overhead by using this app.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Mouseless

•••
All windows in Spectacle can be controlled with keyboard shortcuts, so no mouse is needed. This makes for a fast way to control windows.
Laura Kyle
Top Pro

Simple hotkeys

•••
Spectacle offers easy-to-remember preset hotkeys.
Laura Kyle
Andris Pelcbergs
Erik Dana
Top Pro

Great UX

•••
Spectacle is easy to use and configure. It's plug and play.
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Multi-monitor support

•••
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Con

Impossible to add new functions

•••
While keyboard shortcuts can be changed for the available actions, there is no way to add custom actions which in turn limits the functionality of the app.
JM80
Top Con

Not Maintained

•••
The software is free, but no longer seems to be maintained.
JM80
HumblePhilomelus
Top Con

Breaks on macOS High Sierra / Chrome or Firefox

•••
Doesn't support side by side windows.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Sam Fleischer
Top Con

Doesn't work with any Adobe products

•••
There are some apps like Adobe Reader that do not work with Spectacle. Basically, any app with a heavily customized UI that breaks OS X accessibility will not work correctly under Spectacle.
mccauls7
sharq
Top Con

Limited window sizing capabilities

•••
You can use 1/2 of the screen vertically and horizontally (divide into 4 parts). You can also use the screen in thirds too, but only the left and right third: you can't use the 1/3 in the center. There is no way to do a more granular distribution.
See 9 more Pros & ConsSee 9 more Pros & Cons

BetterSnapTool

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Paolo
madkrupt
Top Pro

Custom Snap Areas

•••
With this feature, you can move any window into the desired position, select 'advanced: create a custom snap area (using current window as template)' from the toolbar and also edit settings for the snap area. It is also possible to edit the size, position, and presentation of the drop-zone,...
mccauls7
Tom Woodruff
Top Con

Costs

•••
BetterSnapTool is no longer free and now costs $3.

osxmonad

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Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Free and open source

•••
Osxmonad is licensed under BSD-3 with source code available on GitHub.
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Con

Lacks multiple monitor support

•••

Magnet

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mccauls7
pax
Top Pro

Intuitive handling

•••
Just drag the window to one of the sides of the screen and it snaps there. This is especially useful for those who can't be bothered remembering the shortcuts.
Kristaps
kaznovac
Top Pro

Keyboard centric

•••
Easy to learn keyboard shortcuts.
kaznovac
thermoplastics
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Cheap

•••
At $0.99, it is not that expensive.
hawaii
Top Pro

Up to six external displays supported

•••
Endi Sukaj
Orlando Gonzalez
Top Pro

It's often on sale

•••
For example, at the writing of this pro it's currently at $1.
Monika
Matt Sephton
Top Pro

Mouse controllable

•••
Supports dragging a window along the edges of the screen to activate.
thermoplastics
pax
Top Con

Can't hide the menu bar icon

•••
It would've been nice to be able to hide the icon so it doesn't clutter the menu bar.
Ray
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Con

Can only be purchased from the App Store

•••
Magnet is only available in App Store.
Monika
michaelwoodruff
Top Con

Cannot setup custom sizes and window positions

•••
Unfortunately, you can only move windows to preset positions.
mccauls7
Bob Berberick
Top Con

Interference when switching between folders

•••
Default Folder-X app "warns" that Magnet App may interfere with it's ability to switch between folders in Open and Save dialogue boxes.
Seth Petersen
MeticulousEloiscol
Top Con

Causes cursor bugs in IntelliJ IDEs

•••
Unfortunately, Magnet causes the caret to bounce around in IntelliJ IDEs, this is very annoying.
See 9 more Pros & ConsSee 9 more Pros & Cons

Amethyst

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thermoplastics
Jim Yang
Top Pro

It's free and open-source

•••
Amethyst is published under the MIT license making it open-source and id offered completely free. This allows anyone to give the tiling window manger a try, which is great.
Christian Bagley
thermoplastics
Jim Yang
Top Pro

Recently updated and rewritten in Swift.

•••
The application was written in Objective-C, but was recently updated and completely rewritten in Apple's new native language Swift.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Jim Yang
Top Pro

Works with keyboard shortcuts, no mouse needed

•••
As it's designed to work closely to how xmonad, Amethyst uses keyboard shortcuts to control the windows being used, meaning no mouse input is necessary. This can make for a faster way to control windows.
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Multi-monitor suppport

•••
kaguru
Top Pro

True tiling means never losing track of windows under a huge pile of others

•••
mccauls7
Christian Bagley
Top Con

There are more user friendly window managers available

•••
There are certainly more user friendly window managers available for MacOS, such as Divvy or Moom. Amethyst, however, is more powerful and customizable than the more user friendly options available and therefore may be a better choice for a user looking for more advanced capabilities and customizat...
See 4 more ProsSee 4 more Pros

Hammerspoon

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Ben Creasy
Top Pro

Deeply customizable

•••
Ben Creasy
Top Pro

Automate actions based on the operating system

•••
Paolo
John Holmes
Top Pro

Configurable

•••
John Holmes
Top Con

must be configured

•••
See 2 more ProsSee 2 more Pros

SizeUp

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thermoplastics
Andris Pelcbergs
Rob Warner
Top Pro

Keyboard centric

•••
SizeUp has user-configurable keyboard shortcuts for a set of pre-defined actions.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Sam De La Garza
Top Pro

Simple

•••
SizeUp is easy and simple to use without having to configure.
mccauls7
Andris Pelcbergs
kaguru
Top Pro

Supports multiple monitors / spaces

•••
Windows can be sent to different monitors and spaces. It can also be aligned as needed.
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

AppleScript support allows extending functionality

•••
AppleScript permits adding features such as tiling all open windows. Additionally, FastScripts it allows the user to add keyboard shortcuts to AppleScripts.
thermoplastics
Top Pro

Menubar dropdown for shortcuts

•••
Learning a bunch of keyboard shortcuts right off the bat may be difficult to remember at first, which is why a menubar shortcut for the app exists with all the shortcuts listed.
Monika
IndependentVejovis
Top Con

Nag window

•••
If a license is not purchased there is a nag window (which suspends function) that pops up when loading the app (at user login). The nag pop-up is also summoned at certain time intervals and by performing a certain number of commands (manually or by keyboard shortcut).
mccauls7
thermoplastics
Top Con

No on-the-fly split screen window settings

•••
Unlike some other tiling window managers, SizeUp has no way to change the size of split screen actions on-the-fly. Any time a user wants to change how much room on the screen a window takes up when using the split screen function, they will need to manually change the settings, which can be time co...
See 5 more Pros & ConsSee 5 more Pros & Cons

Mosaic

Craig Paterson
Top Pro

It's slick, quick, and does the trick…

•••
Mosaic is probably the best window manager I have ever used for Mac. There are so many options available, you're sure to be able to set it up to suit your workflow… and the Mosaic Remote app gives Touchbar like control, without a Touchbar!
EnchantingCopacati
Tali Walt
Top Pro

Stays out of the way

•••
While still allowing for insane customization.
Endi Sukaj
CulturedProphasis
Top Con

Only the trial is free

•••
See 1 more ProSee 1 more Pro

Hyperdock

mccauls7
Jonathan
Eric Lugo
Top Pro

Scroll up/down to change size

•••
Simply scroll up or down on the menu bar to make size alterations.
Eric Lugo
Top Pro

Snaps to corners

•••
Jonathan
Top Pro

Lets you easily find a window you have open

•••
mccauls7
Jonathan
Top Pro

Select individual application

•••
Select individual application windows just by moving the mouse on a dock item. The user can also use mouse clicks to quickly open new windows and many more.
mccauls7
Jonathan
Top Pro

Lots of small improvements to the dock

•••
Hyperdock adds a lot of small improvements to the default Mac dock, like better iTunes controls and calendar event previews.
Monika
NonchalantOccopirmus
Top Con

Does not work on High Sierra

•••
Jonathan
Top Con

Not under active development

•••
Hyperdock doesn't seem to be under active development and hasn't been updated since october 2014.
See 5 more Pros & ConsSee 5 more Pros & Cons

Optimal Layout

Add Video or Image
thermoplastics
mike walker
Top Pro

Adds more to the menu

•••
Andris Pelcbergs
Dave Stephens
Top Pro

Highly configurable

•••
Andris Pelcbergs
Top Pro

Keyboard-driven

•••
Know any negative aspects of this option?
See 2 more ProsSee 2 more Pros

XMonad

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Solon
Top Pro

Highly configurable

•••
If you enjoy programming, you can even add features to XMonad to make it your perfect desktop environment, and the Contrib modules give you most of what you need to do exactly that.
Solon
Top Pro

Absolutely minimal

•••
The entire window manager is extremely small, and includes nothing beyond basic window manipulation and tiling. Out of the box, there are no window decorations, status bar nor icon dock; just clean lines and efficiency.
Ben Creasy
Top Con

macOS is not the primary target platform

•••
For a macOS-specific XMonad, see osxmonad (https://www.slant.co/topics/526/viewpoints/7/~best-window-manager-for-mac~osxmonad). The instructions primarily target Linux. There are specific macOS instructions but as of 2018-02 they have not been updated since 2014-11. These instructions note that &...
Solon
Top Con

Requires knowledge of Haskell for configuration

•••
Understanding of Haskell is required in order to configure XMonad.
Solon
Top Con

Steep learning curve for uninitiated users

•••
Like a lot of tiling window managers, the learning curve for XMonad is quite steep.
See 3 more Pros & ConsSee 3 more Pros & Cons

VEEER

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PatientTaneRore
Top Pro

Various features regarding window control ❤️

•••
It doesn't only allow the alignment of windows, it also lets you drag windows and close & maximize windows using customizable keys.
PatientTaneRore
Top Pro

VEEER allows me to drag, minimize, maximize and center Windows using mouseclicks

•••
Additional features that really saves time when working!
Know any negative aspects of this option?
See 1 more ProSee 1 more Pro

Cisdem Window Manager

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Chloe Montanez
Janet Lauren
Top Pro

Easy to use

•••
Chloe Montanez
Janet Lauren
Top Con

A little expensive

•••

Sticker

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mccauls7
Chomp Stomp
Top Pro

Detects other windows

•••
Sticker can detect edges of other windows so you can choose to stick your window to a part of a screen without overlapping others (or not).
mccauls7
Chomp Stomp
Top Pro

Highly intuitive

•••
Drag a window to a part of the screen and tell it to fill an area. It's as simple as that.
DeterminedApsat
Top Con

No longer free - costs $ 4.99

•••
See 1 more ProSee 1 more Pro

DoublePane

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mccauls7
Nick Aspinall
Top Pro

Simple and cheap

•••
DoublePane is a low cost solution for basic window snapping similar to that on Windows7.
Know any negative aspects of this option?

AROW

Add Video or Image
Andris Pelcbergs
geraldni181
Top Pro

Support for multiple monitors

•••
If you use external monitors, the app is useful. It also supports retina screen without problems.
mccauls7
Andris Pelcbergs
geraldni181
Top Pro

Customizable options

•••
You can customize the app in Option, for example, where you can change the appearance of the preview outline, adjust the width of the recognition areas, and set keyboard hotkeys for quick window snapping.
mccauls7
geraldni181
Top Pro

Define OS X window buttons

•••
AROW enables you to change the actions of OS X’s window buttons. It only requires either a right or a left-click for the action to take place.
mccauls7
geraldni181
Top Pro

Smart Panel to move and resize windows

•••
The customizable grid panel is very intuitive and is an accurate way to resize and move windows. Simply drag your mouse across its grid, the window will be moved, and resize to the exact position instantly.
mccauls7
geraldni181
Top Pro

Easy ways to snap windows

•••
Simply drag windows to the edges of your Mac’s screen. Once the cursor reaches the screen’s edge, the window will automatically move and resize to fill exactly half or quarter of the screen.
WhiteLilac
Christian Padovano
Top Con

Trouble with GUI

•••
Yosemite (10.10.5) it works but it's impossible to open the application GUI.
See 4 more ProsSee 4 more Pros

Windownaut

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Breeze

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mccauls7
Daniel Finlay
Top Pro

Simplicity

•••
In Breeze, the user can very quickly assign pre-set window positions to hot-keys, although there are not many advanced hot-key options.
mccauls7
Lynda Moss
Top Pro

Ease of use

•••
The following are number of benefits of using Breeze: It's super simple to setup. It focuses on basic window management. It works with Spaces. "Nag" mode cab be used indefinitely.
mccauls7
Lynda Moss
Top Pro

Runs in the menu bar

•••
Breeze lives in the menu bar and there are no windows to clutter my UI.
mccauls7
Lynda Moss
Top Con

No Adobe CC support

•••
Adobe CC products do not respond to Breeze.
See 2 more ProsSee 2 more Pros

VEEER

Add Video or Image

421 Community Recommendations

Paulo Silva
Erik Dana
fan fan
kaznovac
Rob Warner
elementaltm
Kevin Li
Ben Creasy
John Holmes
Matt Sawyer
Roger Meyer
+355
Request recommendations from the community
Mar Zumaya
Mar
Contributor for 2 months
1
Total 
Recs.
50
Total 
Karma
VEEER
Recommended 2 months ago
I love it. Managing my windows is easier and faster than ever before. I highly recommend it. ✨✨
Pro
 Various features regarding window control ❤️
Pro
 VEEER allows me to drag, minimize, maximize and center Windows using mouseclicks
See full
PatientTaneRore
PatientTaneRore
Contributor for 2 months
2
Total 
Recs.
300
Total 
Karma
VEEER
Recommended 2 months ago
Best window manager for designers like me - allows superfast window switching and ramps up your overall workflow speed!
Pro
 Various features regarding window control ❤️
Pro
 VEEER allows me to drag, minimize, maximize and center Windows using mouseclicks
See full
Christian Padovano
Christian
Contributor for 5 months
1
Total 
Recs.
10
Total 
Karma
AROW
5 months ago
Installed on Yosemite (10.10.5) it works but it's impossible to open the application GUI to show the Preference pane or other. It seems to work in a some strange STEALTH mode. You can stop it only killing the process.
Con
 Trouble with GUI
See full
Currently displaying 3 out of 421 total recommendations.
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