Docs / ⌘Tab Switcher
Cmd+Tab (⌘Tab) SwitcherPro
The macOS app switcher shows apps and knows nothing about your Stages. BetterStage 2.2 can replace it with a switcher that lists every window, grouped by Stage, and takes you straight to the one you pick. It is optional: you can keep the macOS ⌘Tab.
Want to see it first? Try the interactive demo on the homepage.
Turn it on
- During onboarding, choose Use BetterStage ⌘Tab instead of Keep macOS ⌘Tab. You can also pick its layout there.
- Or open Settings > ⌘Tab Switcher and turn on Use BetterStage ⌘Tab.
The switcher is a Pro feature and is off by default. If you choose it before Pro is active, it turns on automatically once Pro is active, including during the 7-day trial or a daily Pro preview on eligible Macs.
Keys
| Keys | Action |
|---|---|
| ⌘Tab | Tap to switch to the next window in the list. |
| Hold ⌘ + Tab / ⇧Tab | Move forward or back through windows. Release ⌘ to switch. |
| Arrow keys | Move the selection while the switcher is open. |
| Keep holding ⌘ and type | Search windows, apps, and Stages. Return opens the selection; Esc cancels. |
| ⌘⌥B | Bring the selected window into the current Stage. |
| ⌘` | Next window of the same app. |
Letters and numbers always type into the search, with or without ⌘ held, so a search such as “best” never triggers a command. Screenshot shortcuts such as ⌘⇧4 still reach macOS while the switcher is open.
How windows are grouped
- Stages appear in the same order as the Stages Bar. The current Stage keeps its place and is marked, rather than moved to the top.
- Empty Stages keep their heading so you can still see them.
- Windows on a Pinned Display are listed in their own Pinned section.
- A window you show in several Stages appears under each of them, so you choose where to land.
- The selection starts on the window after the one you are using, so a quick ⌘Tab returns to the previous window.
Jump to the exact window
Pick a window on another Stage and BetterStage switches to that Stage, then brings up that exact window. This works even when the window is a TabStack tab hidden behind another tab, or a minimized window, which is restored. Picking a window on a Pinned Display focuses it without switching Stages.
After the switch, BetterStage briefly outlines the window that received focus and pulses its TabStack tab. Control this with Highlight the window you switch to in Settings > Stages > Navigation & Focus. That highlight also works with the macOS ⌘Tab and does not require Pro.
Search
Keep holding ⌘ and start typing. Matching is forgiving: letters only need to appear in order, word starts count extra, and accents and capitals are ignored, so “xc” finds Xcode and “gc” finds Google Chrome. Each word you type must match the window title, the app name, or a Stage name; titles rank above apps, and apps above Stages. Type a Stage's name to narrow the list to that Stage.
Bring a window here
Select a window from another Stage and press ⌘⌥B to bring it into the Stage you are in, instead of switching to it.
Settings
Open Settings > ⌘Tab Switcher.
| Use BetterStage ⌘Tab | Replaces the macOS app switcher. Off by default. |
| Layout | Grid (default) shows window cards in rows under each Stage. List + Preview shows a list next to a large preview of the selection. |
| Background tint | How strongly the glass is tinted to keep text readable. |
| Show window previews | Live thumbnails of each window. On by default; needs Screen Recording. Without previews, the switcher shows app icons. |
| Include minimized windows | On by default. Minimized windows are restored when you pick them. |
| Current display only | Off by default. List only windows on the display under the pointer. |
Window previews and Screen Recording
Live previews are drawn with macOS ScreenCaptureKit, which requires the Screen Recording permission. BetterStage uses it only to draw previews in the switcher: previews are kept in memory on your Mac, and nothing is recorded, saved, or sent anywhere. The permission is optional. Without it, the switcher shows app icons and every other feature works the same. Accessibility remains the only permission BetterStage requires. See the privacy policy.
Turn it off
Turn off Use BetterStage ⌘Tab in Settings, or quit BetterStage, and the macOS ⌘Tab works again straight away. If Pro is no longer active, BetterStage also stops intercepting ⌘Tab and leaves the macOS switcher alone. If BetterStage quits unexpectedly, the macOS ⌘Tab comes back the next time BetterStage starts, or when you log out of macOS.
Troubleshooting
⌘Tab still opens the macOS switcher
Check that Use BetterStage ⌘Tab is on in Settings > ⌘Tab Switcher and that Pro is active in Settings > License. BetterStage also hands ⌘Tab back to macOS while its input handling is paused, for example while Accessibility permission is missing.
The switcher shows icons instead of previews
Turn on Show window previews, then allow BetterStage in System Settings > Privacy & Security > Screen Recording. The switcher shows a hint with a shortcut to these settings while previews are missing.