Getting the most from an ultrawide monitor on a Mac

An ultrawide is too wide for one window and awkward to split in halves. How to arrange windows on a Mac with an ultrawide, from built in tiling to a strip.

Guide · Updated 12 October 2026

One maximised window on an ultrawide monitor puts your text a long way from your eyes. Two halves are still very wide. Most people end up dragging windows around by hand.

With what macOS has

On macOS 15 and later, drag windows to the edges to make halves and quarters. Quarters often work better on an ultrawide than halves, because each one is close to a normal screen's shape. Thirds are not built in.

Thirds work best

On a 34 inch or 38 inch ultrawide, three columns side by side, each about the width of a normal laptop screen, is the layout most people settle on. Editor in the middle, reference on one side, chat on the other.

Three columns, and more beyond the edge

ClutterFreeMac shows as many columns as fit. On an ultrawide that is often three or four at a third width each, with the rest of the strip off to either side. Press ⌃ ⌥ R to cycle a window between a third, half and two thirds. Turn on centre mode to keep the window you are working in straight in front of you.

If the ultrawide sits next to a laptop screen, each display gets its own strip, and you can leave the laptop out if you prefer to arrange it by hand.

Questions

Can a Mac split the screen into thirds?

Not with the built in tiling, which offers halves and quarters. A window manager such as ClutterFreeMac can use thirds.

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