How to get more screen space on a MacBook
Fit more on a small screen: a denser display setting, hiding the Dock and menu bar, and a layout that lets windows run past the edge instead of shrinking.
The biggest single gain: System Settings, Displays, and pick the option towards More Space. Everything gets a little smaller, so more fits on the screen.
Every way to make room
- Display: More Space. Pick a denser setting in Displays. Text gets smaller; try one step at a time.
- Hide the Dock with ⌥ ⌘ D. See auto hiding the Dock.
- Hide the menu bar. See hiding the menu bar.
- Zoom out in apps. ⌘ − in browsers and many editors shows more per window.
- Fewer sidebars. Most apps hide their sidebar with ⌃ ⌘ S or a View menu option.
The real limit: width
A 13 or 14 inch screen fits two windows side by side, three at a squeeze. Every window past that has to overlap or shrink.
ClutterFreeMac takes the third way: windows keep a useful width, and the strip runs past the edge of the screen. On a MacBook that means two windows in view and the rest one swipe away, never squeezed into slivers. See a window manager for MacBooks.
Questions
How do I make my MacBook screen show more?
In System Settings, Displays, choose a setting towards More Space. Hiding the Dock and menu bar adds a little more.
Read next
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Full screen or maximised: which is better on a Mac?
Full screen gives an app its own Space and hides the menu bar. Maximised keeps everything in one place. What each is good at, and a third way.
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