Reference

Shortcuts

Complete reference for BetterStage shortcuts. Stage switching, stage navigation, directional focus, and snap shortcuts can be customized in Settings > Shortcuts. Each action can keep separate keyboard, mouse, and trackpad controls. The defaults below show the Standard keyboard layout preset.

Keyboard Layout Presets

Shortcut defaults come in two flavors: Standard and European. On Option-heavy layouts (German, French, Spanish, and others), Opt+number and Opt+letter combos type characters instead of acting as shortcuts. The European preset adds Ctrlto exactly those bindings — stage switching becomes Ctrl+Opt+1-9, send-to-stage becomes Ctrl+Opt+Shift+1-9, and the loose letter actions (N/M/Z/X/B) gain Control too. Arrow, Tab, and the already-safe snap, focus, and move bindings are unchanged.

The preset is auto-detected from your keyboard layout during onboarding and can be switched anytime in Settings > Shortcuts. Switching presets never touches shortcuts you have customized yourself.

Stage Shortcuts

By default, use Opt + a number key to switch stages, or add Shift to send the focused window to that stage. These defaults can be changed in Settings > Shortcuts.

Shortcut	Action
`Opt+1`	Switch to Stage 1
`Opt+2`	Switch to Stage 2
`Opt+3`	Switch to Stage 3
`Opt+4`	Switch to Stage 4
`Opt+5`	Switch to Stage 5
`Opt+6`	Switch to Stage 6
`Opt+7`	Switch to Stage 7
`Opt+8`	Switch to Stage 8
`Opt+9`	Switch to Stage 9
`Opt+Shift+1`	Send focused window to Stage 1
`Opt+Shift+2`	Send focused window to Stage 2
`Opt+Shift+3`	Send focused window to Stage 3
`Opt+Shift+4`	Send focused window to Stage 4
`Opt+Shift+5`	Send focused window to Stage 5
`Opt+Shift+6`	Send focused window to Stage 6
`Opt+Shift+7`	Send focused window to Stage 7
`Opt+Shift+8`	Send focused window to Stage 8
`Opt+Shift+9`	Send focused window to Stage 9

Quick navigation between stages, directional window focus inside tiled layouts, Window Mode cycling, and manual retile. Retile works in every Window Mode — it re-tiles the Bento grid, snaps windows back into their Tabbed Layout panes, or arranges free-floating windows in macOS Native.

Shortcut	Action
`Opt+Up`	Toggle Stages Bar
`Opt+Left`	Switch to previous stage
`Opt+Right`	Switch to next stage
`Opt+Tab`	Cycle forward through stages
`Opt+Shift+Tab`	Cycle backward through stages
`Unassigned`	Send focused window to previous stage
`Unassigned`	Send focused window to next stage
`Cmd+Opt+J`	Focus window to the left
`Cmd+Opt+K`	Focus window below
`Cmd+Opt+I`	Focus window above
`Cmd+Opt+L`	Focus window to the right
`Opt+N`	Create new stage
`Opt+X`	Close current stage
`Opt+B`	Cycle Window Mode on the active monitor
`Opt+Down`	Retile the active stage

Sending the focused window to the previous or next stage is unassigned by default. Opt+Shift+Left and Opt+Shift+Right pass through to macOS and the active app; you can assign either stage action in Settings > Shortcuts.

Directional focus works best with Bento Box layouts. When you reach the edge of one monitor, BetterStage continues onto the next monitor in that direction when possible.

Snap Zone Shortcuts

These shortcuts can be reconfigured in Settings > Shortcuts. The defaults are shown below. In Tabbed Layout, snap zones move the focused window into the adjacent pane; the Snap Wheel, keyboard, and menu show directional arrows instead of halves and quarters.

Shortcut	Action
`Ctrl+Opt+Left`	Snap to left half
`Ctrl+Opt+Right`	Snap to right half
`Ctrl+Opt+Up`	Snap to top half
`Ctrl+Opt+Down`	Snap to bottom half
`Ctrl+Opt+U`	Snap to top-left quarter
`Ctrl+Opt+I`	Snap to top-right quarter
`Ctrl+Opt+J`	Snap to bottom-left quarter
`Ctrl+Opt+K`	Snap to bottom-right quarter
`Ctrl+Opt+A`	Snap to left third
`Ctrl+Opt+S`	Snap to center third
`Ctrl+Opt+D`	Snap to right third
`Ctrl+Opt+Q`	Snap to left two-thirds
`Ctrl+Opt+R`	Snap to center two-thirds
`Ctrl+Opt+W`	Snap to right two-thirds
`Ctrl+Opt+Return`	Maximize window

Customizing Shortcuts

Open Settings > Shortcuts to rebind any navigation or layout shortcut. Shortcuts settings include a keyboard layout preset picker, a compact stage-shortcut builder, a visual snap-zone map, keycap-style lists with inline conflict warnings, and search. Each action can keep separate keyboard, mouse, and trackpad bindings. Click a shortcut field and press a key combination, mouse button, or trackpad gesture to record it. If that control is already used, you can move it here without losing the action's other inputs.

There is also a separate setting in Settings > General called Focus cycling (⌘`) within active stage only. When enabled, Cmd+` cycles only through windows from the current app that are on the active stage.

Snap Wheel Triggers

Snap Wheel triggers are configured separately in Settings > Snap Wheel. You can add multiple triggers using any modifier+key combo, modifier+mouse button, or modifier-only shortcut. Each trigger can be set to hold or toggle mode. See the Snap Wheel docs for details.

Monitor Management