Every Desktop & Dock setting on a Mac, and which ones to change
The Desktop & Dock pane holds thirty switches for the Dock, windows, widgets, Stage Manager, tiling and Mission Control. What each one does, in plain words.
What is in the Dock section?
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Size, Magnification | How big the Dock is, and how much icons grow under the pointer |
| Position on screen | Left, bottom or right |
| Minimize animation | Genie Effect or Scale Effect |
| Window title bar double-click action | Fill, Zoom, Minimize or nothing |
| Minimize windows into application icon | Minimized windows hide inside their app's icon |
| Automatically hide and show the Dock | Dock slides away until you point at it |
| Animate opening applications | The bounce while an app opens |
| Show indicators for open applications | The dot under running apps |
| Show suggested and recent apps in Dock | An extra section of recent apps |
What is in the Desktop & Stage Manager section?
- Show items: whether files appear on the desktop, and in Stage Manager.
- Click wallpaper to show desktop: Always moves every window aside when you click the wallpaper; Only in Stage Manager limits it.
- Stage Manager: turns it on, with its own options for recent apps and windows.
- Show Widgets and Dim widgets on desktop: where widgets appear and how they look.
What is in the Windows section?
- Prefer tabs when opening documents: Always, In Full Screen, or Never. See open documents in tabs.
- Ask to keep changes when closing documents, and Close windows when quitting an application.
- Drag windows to left or right edge of screen to tile, Drag windows to menu bar to fill screen, Hold ⌥ key while dragging windows to tile, and Tiled windows have margins: the built in tiling.
What is in the Mission Control section?
- Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use: see stop Spaces rearranging.
- When switching to an application, switch to a Space with open windows for the application.
- Group windows by application: see this guide.
- Displays have separate Spaces, and Drag windows to top of screen to enter Mission Control.
At the bottom, Shortcuts… sets keys and mouse buttons for Mission Control and Show Desktop, and Hot Corners… sets hot corners.
Using a window manager as well? Turn off the drag to tile settings so the two do not fight: turn off window tiling. ClutterFreeMac's Mac Setup checks these settings for you.
Checked on 22 October 2026 on a MacBook Air (M1) running macOS 27.0.1: every setting name on this page was read from the Desktop & Dock pane's own labels.
Questions
Where are Desktop & Dock settings on a Mac?
Open System Settings and click Desktop & Dock in the sidebar.
How do I stop clicking the wallpaper hiding my windows?
In Desktop & Dock, set Click wallpaper to show desktop to Only in Stage Manager.
Where are the window tiling settings on Mac?
In Desktop & Dock, under Windows: the drag to tile settings and Tiled windows have margins.
Read next
- Guide
What is a tiling window manager?
A tiling window manager arranges every window so none overlap. How tiling works, the main styles, why people love it, and what it is like on a Mac.
Read › - Guide
An infinite desktop for your Mac: windows that scroll
What if your desktop were wider than your screen and you scrolled across it? How an infinite canvas for windows works on a Mac, and why it calms things down.
Read › - Guide
How to show the desktop on a Mac
Every way to clear the windows off your Mac's screen and see the desktop: the keyboard, the trackpad, a hot corner, and clicking the wallpaper.
Read ›