# Stage Manager alternatives for Mac
Source: https://ribbonformac.com/stage-manager-alternative
Updated: 2026-10-22
Turn Stage Manager off in **System Settings > Desktop & Dock** or from **Control Center**. Then replace it with whatever matches how you work: macOS tiling for two windows side by side, Spaces for separate desktops, a snapping app like Rectangle, or a scrolling window manager if you keep many windows open.
## What Stage Manager does
Stage Manager arrived in macOS 13 Ventura. It puts the app you're using in the middle of the screen and lines up your recently used apps as thumbnails along the left edge. Click a thumbnail and that app takes centre stage. You can also group several apps into a set that you switch to together.
Its settings are short:
- Show recent apps in Stage Manager
- Show windows from an application: All at Once or One at a Time
- Show Items: On Desktop or In Stage Manager
- Show Desktop: Always on Wallpaper Click, or Only in Stage Manager on Click
Some people love it. Others find the thumbnail strip eats width they'd rather give to windows, or that it gets in the way when they want two apps visible together.
## How to turn Stage Manager off
Either of these works:
1. Open **System Settings > Desktop & Dock**, find the **Desktop & Stage Manager** section, and turn off **Stage Manager**.
2. Click **Control Center** in the menu bar and click **Stage Manager** to toggle it. You can also add it to the menu bar through Control Center > Edit Controls.
On Ventura the switch is in the same Desktop & Dock pane, in a section labelled Windows & Apps.
If you can't turn it *on* again later, check that **Displays have separate Spaces** is on under Desktop & Dock > Mission Control. Stage Manager needs it.
## The alternatives
### macOS tiling, for two windows side by side
On macOS 15 Sequoia and later, drag a window to the left or right edge, or press Fn⌃← or Fn⌃→. Fn⌃⇧ with an arrow arranges the active window and the one behind it as a pair. It's free, already there, and covers most "I just want two things next to each other" days. Details in [how to tile windows on a Mac](https://ribbonformac.com/how-to-tile-windows-on-mac).
### Mission Control and Spaces, for separate desktops
If you used Stage Manager's sets to keep projects apart, Spaces do that too. Press ⌃↑, or swipe up with four fingers, to open Mission Control and add a desktop there. Put each project's windows on its own Space and swipe left or right to switch.
A tip from the same settings section: turning off **Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use** keeps your Spaces in a fixed order, which makes switching predictable.
### Snapping apps, for exact placement
[Rectangle](https://rectangleapp.com/) and [Loop](https://github.com/MrKai77/Loop) are free and put the focused window exactly where you say: halves, thirds, corners and more, from a shortcut or a drag. They work on older macOS versions that don't have built-in tiling. See [Ribbon vs Rectangle](https://ribbonformac.com/ribbon-vs-rectangle) and [Ribbon vs Loop](https://ribbonformac.com/ribbon-vs-loop).
### A grid tiler, if you want everything visible
[AeroSpace](https://github.com/nikitabobko/AeroSpace), [yabai](https://github.com/asmvik/yabai) and [Amethyst](https://github.com/ianyh/Amethyst) arrange every window into a grid automatically. Nothing overlaps, and nothing hides, but each new window makes the others smaller.
### A scrolling window manager, if you keep many windows open
This is the closest thing to what Stage Manager was trying to do, without the thumbnails taking up room. A [scrolling window manager](https://ribbonformac.com/what-is-a-scrolling-window-manager) lines windows up as columns on a strip wider than the screen. The window you're working on stays big; the others wait to the left and right, a keystroke or a swipe away.
In Ribbon:
- ⌃⌥← and ⌃⌥→ move focus, and the strip slides.
- Set "Centre the focused column" to Always and your current window stays in the middle, a bit like Stage Manager's centre stage.
- A strip indicator with each column's app icon appears while you move around. Hold ⌃⌥ to keep it up and click an icon to jump.
- Stacks and tabbed columns group related windows, which covers some of what sets were for.
> **Ribbon needs Stage Manager off.** Two systems arranging the same windows fight each other. Ribbon's Mac Setup page checks that Stage Manager is off and tells you if it isn't.
You can see how it moves in the [live demo](https://ribbonformac.com/#demo). On a laptop, also read [the MacBook guide](https://ribbonformac.com/macbook-window-manager), since screen width matters even more there.
## Side by side
| | Stage Manager | macOS tiling | Spaces | Rectangle / Loop | Ribbon |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Main idea | One app centred, recent apps on the left | Snap to halves and quarters | Separate full desktops | Snap on demand | Columns on a scrolling strip |
| Windows visible | Current app or set | Two to four | Whatever's on that Space | Whatever you place | Several, more a swipe away |
| Arranges for you | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| macOS | 13 and later | 15 and later | All | Loop 13+, Rectangle 14+ | 13 and later |
| Price | Built in | Built in | Built in | Free | $9.99 once |
If a strip fits how you work, Ribbon is [$9.99 once](https://ribbonformac.com/buy) for macOS 13 Ventura and later. All sales are final ([terms](https://ribbonformac.com/terms)), so watch the demo before you buy.
## FAQ
### How do I turn off Stage Manager on a Mac?
Go to System Settings > Desktop & Dock and turn off Stage Manager in the Desktop & Stage Manager section. You can also toggle it from Control Center in the menu bar.
### Why can't I turn Stage Manager on?
Stage Manager needs "Displays have separate Spaces" turned on. You'll find it in System Settings > Desktop & Dock, in the Mission Control section.
### What's the best Stage Manager alternative?
For two windows side by side, macOS's own tiling on Sequoia and later. For many windows, a scrolling window manager like Ribbon; for separate projects, Spaces.
### Can I use Ribbon with Stage Manager on?
No. Both try to arrange the same windows, so Ribbon asks you to turn Stage Manager off and checks it on its Mac Setup page.
### Which macOS versions have Stage Manager?
macOS 13 Ventura and later. On Ventura the switch sits under Desktop & Dock in a section called Windows & Apps; on later versions the section is called Desktop & Stage Manager.
## Keep reading
- [Tile windows on Mac](https://ribbonformac.com/how-to-tile-windows-on-mac) — Drag, green button, Window menu and every Fn-Control shortcut, plus how to turn it off.
- [Scrolling WMs explained](https://ribbonformac.com/what-is-a-scrolling-window-manager) — The strip, the columns, the moves, and every scrolling WM by operating system.
- [MacBook window manager](https://ribbonformac.com/macbook-window-manager) — Grids get cramped on 13–15" screens. What works better on a laptop, honestly.
- [Best scrolling WMs for Mac](https://ribbonformac.com/best-scrolling-window-managers-for-mac) — Ribbon, OmniWM, Nehir, Paneru, PaperWM.spoon and the rest, ranked by situation.