How to snap windows on Mac
Every way to snap and arrange windows on macOS, from the built-in tiling to keyboard shortcuts, and how to keep layouts when you unplug a display.
Outline. This guide is a structured draft. Each section lists what it will cover; the full text is still to be written.
What macOS does on its own
- Built-in window tiling in recent macOS versions: dragging to edges, the green button menu, and its shortcuts.
- Where it stops: no cycling, no per-app rules, layouts lost when a display disconnects.
Snapping with the keyboard
- The ⌃⌥ + arrow pattern: halves, quarters, thirds, two-thirds, maximize, center.
- Cycling: press again for ½ → ⅔ → ⅓, then the next display.
- Undo with ⌃⌥⌫.
Multiple displays
- Why windows pile up on the laptop after unplugging, and why they don't come back.
- How Toolnotch restores the layout when the display returns.
Workspaces and rules
- Saving a layout as a workspace; triggering it by keystroke or by plugging in a display.
- Per-app rules, e.g. Terminal always bottom-right.
Drag to the notch
- Pulling a window to the top of the screen to choose a layout target.