Can you rename desktops on a Mac? What works instead
macOS calls them Desktop 1, Desktop 2 and gives no way to rename them. Four ways to tell your desktops apart anyway, from wallpaper to assigned apps.
Can I rename a desktop on a Mac?
No. macOS has no setting to name desktops. Mission Control numbers them, and full screen apps show the app's name instead. Double clicking a desktop's label does nothing.
How can I tell my desktops apart?
- Give each a wallpaper. Turn off Show on all Spaces and pick a colour per desktop. See a different wallpaper on each desktop.
- Give each its apps. Right click an app in the Dock, Options, and assign it to This Desktop. It always opens there. See assign an app to a desktop.
- Stop them reordering. Turn off Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use, so Desktop 2 is always the same desktop. See stop Spaces rearranging.
- Jump by number. Turn on Switch to Desktop 1 and the rest in Keyboard Shortcuts, Mission Control, and use
⌃1,⌃2.
Do full screen apps count as desktops?
They sit in the same row in Mission Control and you swipe through them the same way, but they are labelled with the app's name, and they disappear when you leave full screen.
ClutterFreeMac keeps a separate strip on each desktop, so each one also keeps its own windows in its own order. See how it works.
Checked on 22 October 2026 on a MacBook Air (M1) running macOS 27.0.1: Switch to Desktop 1 to 16 and the rearrange setting were read from System Settings.
Questions
Can you name Spaces on a Mac?
No. macOS numbers desktops and offers no way to rename them.
How do I tell desktops apart on a Mac?
Give each a different wallpaper, and assign apps to their desktop.
How do I switch to a desktop by number?
Turn on Switch to Desktop shortcuts in Keyboard Shortcuts, Mission Control, then press Control and the number.
Read next
- Guide
Keyboard shortcuts to switch desktops on a Mac
⌃ ← and ⌃ → move between desktops, and ⌃ and a number jumps to one once turned on. Every shortcut, the mouse and trackpad ways, and why they stop working.
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Mission Control, Stage Manager and Spaces: which to use?
Three built in ways to handle windows on a Mac, often confused. What each does, how they combine, and where a window manager fits with them.
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Magic Mouse gestures for managing windows on a Mac
The Magic Mouse has two finger swipes for switching full screen apps and a double tap for Mission Control. Where to turn them on, and what a mouse can't do.
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