Windows on Mac
How to switch between windows on a Mac
The quick answer
To switch between windows on a Mac, press Command-Backtick for the next window of the app you are in, or Command-Tab to change apps. Control-Up Arrow opens Mission Control with every window on the current desktop, and Control-Down Arrow opens App Exposé with one app's windows, minimized ones included. None of them has a search box.
Julien Schweter Updated 6 min read
The short version
- Command-Tab changes apps: one icon per app, however many windows it has.
- Command-Backtick cycles the windows of the app you are in.
- Control-Up Arrow opens Mission Control: every window on this desktop.
- Control-Down Arrow opens App Exposé: one app's windows, minimized ones too.
- Searching every window of every app takes a window switcher.
macOS has six ways to reach a window, and each leaves some windows out. The keys come from Apple's list of Mac keyboard shortcuts.
| Item | Shortcut | What it shows | Where it stops |
|---|---|---|---|
| Command-Tab | Command-Tab | One icon per open app | Lands on the window you used last |
| Command-backtick | Command-Backtick | Nothing, the windows swap | One app, skips minimized windows |
| Mission Control | Control-Up Arrow | Every window on this desktop | Other desktops are thumbnails, no search |
| App Exposé | Control-Down Arrow | The front app's windows, minimized too | One app at a time |
| Dock or Window menu | Right-click the Dock icon | The app's windows by title | One app, slow with many |
| Stage Manager | Control Center | A few recent windows at the side | Older windows fall off, no search |
Hold Command and tap Tab: one icon per open app, most recent first. Let go, and that app comes forward with its last-used window on top.
- Tab moves right, Shift-Tab moves left, Escape cancels.
- Press Down Arrow on an icon to lay out that app's windows, then pick one with the arrows and Return.
- Switching to an app on another desktop takes you there, if the matching Desktop & Dock setting is on.
More tricks are in how to get more out of Command-Tab, and the Alt-Tab on a Mac guide matches each Windows shortcut to its Mac one.
Command-Backtick brings the next window of the app you are in to the front, and Command-Shift-Backtick goes back. Nothing pops up. The windows just change places.
- It stays inside one app and skips minimized windows.
- With two windows it works well. With eight, you cycle blind and count.
For Chrome, see how to switch between Chrome windows on a Mac.
Mission Control spreads every window on the current desktop out flat, so none of them overlap.
-
Open Mission Control
Press Control-Up Arrow, press the Mission Control key (F3 on an Apple keyboard), or swipe up with three fingers.
-
Click the window you want
-
Or go to another desktop
The Spaces bar along the top shows other desktops and full-screen apps as thumbnails. Click one to go there.
Press Control-Down Arrow with an app in front and all of its windows spread out, minimized ones in a row along the bottom.
- App Exposé is the only built-in view that shows minimized windows as pictures, for one app at a time.
- Right-click an app in the Dock for its windows by title, or choose Show All Windows for App Exposé.
- The app's Window menu has the same list: a checkmark marks the front window, a diamond a minimized one.
Even with all six, there is no view of every window of every app, on every desktop, minimized ones included, that you can type into.
| Item | Every app | Minimized | Search |
|---|---|---|---|
| Command-Tab Apps, not windows | |||
| Command-backtick | |||
| Mission Control This desktop only | |||
| App Exposé One app at a time | |||
| Better Window Switcher Every desktop, and browser tabs |
Browser tabs have the same gap: none of the built-in ways lists them, and each browser searches only its own. How to find any open tab on your Mac goes browser by browser.
A window switcher adds that view on a shortcut of its own. Prices and the full side by side are in the best window switchers for Mac.
- AltTab is free and shows a Windows-style row of thumbnails, with search in its paid Pro tier.
- Contexts shows a text list of window titles that narrows as you type.
- Witch has list panels for apps, windows and browser tabs, with search.
- Better Window Switcher, which we make, shows every window and the tabs of seven browsers as 3D cards, and searches both.
Questions people ask
How do I see all open windows on a Mac?
Press Control-Up Arrow or swipe up with three fingers to open Mission Control, which spreads out every window on the current desktop. Other desktops are thumbnails along the top, and minimized windows stay in the Dock. To see every window on every desktop at once, you need a third-party window switcher.
How do I switch to a window on another desktop?
Press Control-Up Arrow to open Mission Control and click a desktop in the Spaces bar along the top, or press Control-Left Arrow and Control-Right Arrow to move one desktop at a time. Command-Tab also follows an app to its desktop while the matching Desktop & Dock setting is on. A window switcher lists windows from every desktop in one view.
Why does Command-backtick not work?
Usually it is on another key. macOS calls the shortcut "Move focus to next window", and on many non-US keyboards it sits on the key next to the left Shift. Check or change it in System Settings, Keyboard, Keyboard Shortcuts, Keyboard. It also does nothing when the app has only one window open, and it skips minimized windows.
How do I switch between windows of the same app?
Press Command-backtick to bring the next window of the current app forward, and Command-Shift-backtick to go back. Control-Down Arrow opens App Exposé, which lays out all of that app's windows, minimized ones included, so you can click one. The Window menu in the menu bar also lists them by title.
Does Stage Manager help with switching windows?
A little. Turn it on in Control Center and the window you are using stays in the middle, with a few recent apps in a strip at the left side of the screen. Click one to bring it forward. Older apps drop off the strip, it has no search, and it rearranges your windows for as long as it is on.
Does Mission Control show minimized windows?
No. Mission Control shows the windows on your current desktop, and minimized windows sit in the Dock rather than in the layout. App Exposé, on Control-Down Arrow, does show them, one app at a time. Third-party switchers such as AltTab and Better Window Switcher show them with everything else.
Checked on macOS Tahoe 26 and macOS 27, against Apple's own help pages.
Read next
Mac window switchers Window switchers for Mac The best window switchers for Mac side by side: AltTab, Contexts, Witch, HyperSwitch and Raycast on previews, search, other desktops, tabs and price. 
Mac app switching Get more out of Command-Tab Get a better Command-Tab on Mac: press Down Arrow for an app's windows, H to hide, Q to quit, fix desktop jumps, or add a switcher on Option-Tab. 
From Windows to Mac Alt-Tab on a Mac How to Alt-Tab on a Mac: Command-Tab switches apps and Command-backtick switches windows. The Windows shortcuts you know, with their Mac keys from Apple. - Comparison vs Mission Control A spatial overview you look at vs a switcher you aim.
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