Floating windows: keeping some apps out of the layout
Calculator, colour pickers and video players do not belong in a tiled row. How floating works in a Mac window manager and how to choose which apps float.
Not every window wants a column. Small tools, dialogs and picture in picture video are better left where you put them, above the rest.
What floating means
A floating window is left out of the layout. The window manager does not move or resize it, and it sits over the arranged windows like a normal Mac window.
In ClutterFreeMac
- Windows that cannot be resized, like Calculator's, float on their own.
⌃⌥Tfloats the window in front, or brings it back into the row.- Settings, Apps: add an app and choose to always float it, or to always open it full width, or first or last on the strip.
Panels, dialogs and sheets are never tiled; they stay attached to their window the normal Mac way.
Questions
How do I stop a window manager tiling an app on Mac?
Set the app to float. In ClutterFreeMac, add it in Settings, Apps and choose Float, or press `⌃` `⌥` `T` on the window.
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
What is a scrolling window manager?
A scrolling window manager lays windows side by side on a strip wider than your screen. How it differs from overlapping and grid tiling, and who it suits.
Read › - Guide
Scrolling vs tiling window managers: which suits you?
Tiling splits one screen between all your windows. Scrolling gives each window its width and lets the row grow. How they differ, and who each one suits.
Read ›