Is there a window manager that allows a fixed 2-column layout?
I’m looking for an app that works like having two monitors on Windows, but on a single Mac screen. I’ve looked at tiling managers like yabai, Amethyst, and AeroSpace, but they seem focused on dynamic tiling rather than maintaining two permanent slots. The…
I’m looking for an app that works like having two monitors on Windows, but on a single Mac screen. I’ve looked at tiling managers like yabai, Amethyst, and AeroSpace, but they seem focused on dynamic tiling rather than maintaining two permanent slots. The behavior I want: Open Chrome: +-------------+ | | | Chrome | | | +-------------+ Then open VS Code: +-------------+-------------+ | | | | Chrome | VS Code | | | | +-------------+-------------+ Then open Slack (the oldest focused window gets minimized): +-------------+-------------+ | | | | VS Code | Slack | | | | +-------------+-------------+ Does anyone know an app that can do this?
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Quick reframe that might solve it without a new category of app: a "dynamic" tiler only behaves dynamically once you have 3+ windows in a space. With exactly two windows, yabai (bsp) or Amethyst (Tall/Column layout) IS a fixed 2-column split, Chrome left, VS Code right, permanently. So the trick is to keep two windows per space and push everything else to other spaces, you get your two permanent slots and never trigger the dynamic behavior. The one thing none of the pure tilers do is keep an empty slot reserved when you close one of the two, they reflow the survivor to fill the screen. If "the slot stays even when empty" is a hard requirement, that's genuinely unusual on macOS, and the pragmatic fix is to drop tiling entirely and use manual snapping: Rectangle or Magnet with fixed keybinds (Chrome always to left half, VS Code always to right half). It never reflows because it isn't tiling, it's just throwing each window to a fixed spot.
yabai and Amethyst add the third window to the botttom of the right window, and will keep adding windows to the screen fitting them like a bento box. I don't need to keep an empty slot reserved when you close one of the two, I'm fine with expanding full screen when there's only one window left.
https://www.reddit.com/r/macapps/comments/1umq68y/update_i_posted_betterstage_here_3_months_ago/ Yes, BetterStage's tabbed layout mode does pretty much exactly that
You can achieve this with aerospace and some scripting. If you are not into scripting there is also Keyboard Maestro or Alfred with workflows
https://betterstage.app/ amazing app
The thing you're describing (two fixed slots, and opening a third pushes out the oldest one) is basically a most-recently-used stack, and that last part is why none of the usual tilers do it out of the box. yabai, Amethyst, and AeroSpace all think in dynamic tiles, not permanent slots with an eviction rule. Closest without scripting: AeroSpace in an accordion/tiles layout gets you the fixed two-column feel, and you just pull the third app in when you need it. If you specifically want the auto-minimize-the-oldest behavior, that's custom logic. Keyboard Maestro or a small AeroSpace/yabai script is realistically the only way to get exactly that. Someone already mentioned BetterStage's tabbed mode, which is worth a look if you'd rather not touch config at all.
Suggest you try Click2Minimize - Although it does not fix the column, the easy gesture makes the fix not necessary at all. I have similar setup on external wide-screen monitor and multiple windows stacked with 2 columns. Swipe to the app switcher can bring any app to front within a blink. If I ever want to pick one specific window of same app, just 4-finger swipe up to the enhanced mission control, then click the one needed to front.
Aerospace stacks might have a feature called auto add new windows to stack? That way you can always have windows side by side, and new windows get added to the stack/accordian?
the tricky part is the "oldest focused window gets minimized" rule. most tilers can keep two columns, but they don't usually manage focus history like a queue. if you can't find an exact fit, i'd solve it as two pieces: fixed left/right slots plus a hotkey/script that sends the previous frontmost window away when a new one opens. also watch out for apps with multiple windows, because they can make the queue behavior feel random.
yeah so the native sequoia tiling kinda does this buts super inconsistent. like half the time it just doesnt snap properly. Rectangle is probably your best bet for free, you can set up a left hald/right half shorcut and it works pretty reliably. if you want something more advanced where you can save the actual layout and have it restore automatically when you plug in whatever, theres a few paid options that do that. but some apps are really stubborn about minimum widths and that can mess up any tiling setup
I used to use an app called moom. It does what you wanted.
https://github[.]com/wojciech-kulik/FlashSpace FlashSpace does exactly this for free. It uses one main space and the app minimize functionality to create virtual work spaces.
You can do what you’re asking natively in macOS