How to use Stage Manager on a Mac, and the settings that make it bearable
Turn on Stage Manager, group apps into sets, and set it up so it does not hide your desktop or your other windows, with the settings current macOS uses.
How do I turn on Stage Manager?
Click Control Center in the menu bar and click Stage Manager. Or turn it on in System Settings, Desktop & Dock. It needs Displays have separate Spaces, in the same settings, which is on by default.
How does Stage Manager work?
The app you are using sits in the middle; your other recent apps sit as thumbnails down the left. Click a thumbnail to swap it into the middle. Each thumbnail is a set: an app, or a group of apps you put together.
How do I group apps in Stage Manager?
Drag a thumbnail from the left onto the middle. Both apps now stay together as one set. To take one out, drag its window back to the left.
Which Stage Manager settings should I change?
| Setting in Desktop & Dock | What it does |
|---|---|
| Show recent apps in Stage Manager | Off hides the thumbnails until you move to the left edge |
| Show windows from an application | All at Once shows every window of the app; One at a Time shows only the front one |
| Show items: In Stage Manager | Whether desktop icons show while Stage Manager is on |
| Click wallpaper to show desktop | Only in Stage Manager stops a click on the wallpaper hiding your windows elsewhere |
Is there a keyboard shortcut for Stage Manager?
Not by default. Keyboard Shortcuts lists Turn Stage Manager on/off; give it a key there. With Stage Manager on, ⌘ Tab still switches apps, and brings each app's set to the middle.
Turning it off, and what to use instead: Stage Manager alternatives. How it compares with Mission Control: Mission Control against Stage Manager.
Checked on 16 October 2026 on a MacBook Air (M1) running macOS 27.0.1, by reading its settings and the labels in System Settings. Nothing was changed.
Questions
How do I use Stage Manager on Mac?
Turn it on in Control Center. Click a thumbnail on the left to bring it to the middle, and drag a thumbnail onto the middle to group apps.
Is there a shortcut to turn on Stage Manager?
Not by default. Set one for Turn Stage Manager on/off in Keyboard Shortcuts.
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