RibbonHow to maximize a window on a Mac without going full screen
On macOS 15 Sequoia and later, press Fn⌃F or choose Window → Fill: the window grows to fill the screen and stays on your desktop, with the menu bar and Dock where they were. On any version, Option-click the green button or double-click the title bar to zoom the window instead of making it full screen.
Why the green button doesn't maximize
On Windows, the maximize button makes a window fill the screen. On a Mac, clicking the green button makes the window full screen: the menu bar and Dock hide, and the window moves into a Space of its own. You can't put other windows beside it (except in Split View), and swiping sideways takes you out of it.
Most people who search for "maximize" want the Windows behaviour. These are the ways to get it.
1. Fill (macOS 15 Sequoia and later)
- Shortcut: Fn⌃F (Fn is the Globe key on recent keyboards).
- Menu: Window → Fill in most apps.
- Drag: drag the window by its title bar up onto the menu bar. This needs Drag windows to menu bar to fill screen on, in System Settings → Desktop & Dock.
- Green button: hover over it and choose Fill from the menu that appears.
Fn⌃R puts the window back to its previous size.
2. Option-click the green button (any version)
Hold ⌥ and click the green button. Instead of full screen, the window zooms: it grows to the size the app thinks is best. For most apps that's close to the whole screen. Some apps, like Finder, size the window to fit its contents instead, so the result can be smaller than you expect.
3. Double-click the title bar
Double-click an empty part of the title bar. What happens depends on Double-click a window's title bar to, in System Settings → Desktop & Dock. Set it to Fill (macOS 15 and later) to fill the screen, or Zoom for the same result as Option-clicking the green button. Minimize and Do Nothing are the other choices.
A few apps handle the double-click themselves and ignore this setting.
4. Window → Zoom
Most apps have Window → Zoom. It does the same as Option-clicking the green button. There's no default shortcut, but you can add one: System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → App Shortcuts, click +, choose All Applications, type Zoom as the menu title exactly as it appears, and pick a key.
Full screen, when you do want it
Full screen is useful for focus: no menu bar, no Dock, nothing else. ⌃⌘F (or FnF on recent keyboards) toggles it in most apps.
Maximize, but keep your other windows close
The trouble with maximizing is what happens next. Every other window is now underneath, and getting back to one means ⌘Tab or Mission Control.
On a scrolling window manager, a maximized window is just a wide column. In Ribbon, ⌃⌥F makes the focused window fill the screen's width. Your other windows wait as columns to its left and right, one swipe or ⌃⌥← / → away, and pressing ⌃⌥R cycles the window back through narrower widths. There's no separate full-screen Space, so nothing slides away. Try it in the live demo; Ribbon is $9.99 once.
FAQ
What's the shortcut to maximize a window on a Mac?
On macOS 15 Sequoia and later, Fn⌃F (Window → Fill). Earlier versions have no default shortcut; Option-click the green button or add one for Window → Zoom under App Shortcuts.
How do I stop the green button from going full screen?
You can't change what a plain click does, but Option-clicking zooms instead. On macOS 15 and later, hovering over the button gives you Fill and the tiling options.
What's the difference between Fill and Zoom?
Fill makes the window cover the whole usable screen. Zoom grows it to whatever size the app picks, which is sometimes smaller.
Why does double-clicking the title bar minimize my window?
Desktop & Dock → "Double-click a window's title bar to" is set to Minimize. Change it to Fill or Zoom.