Mac app · 7-day free trial
DisplayShift
Plug in a monitor and choose which windows move over.
A menu bar app for anyone who docks a MacBook. When a display connects, a panel drops out of the notch with every open window listed, full screen apps and other desktops included. Tick what should move and it glides across. It remembers your layouts, puts windows back after sleep, and tiles up to six apps side by side, in shapes you can draw yourself.
Every plan is the full app; monthly and yearly are for 1 Mac. You can still switch at checkout. Prices exclude tax.
All three apps, save 20%
$19.97 $15.98 once
DisplayShift (1 Mac) + Notchet (2 Macs) + Scrollwise Pro (2 Macs), lifetime. One key for each app arrives by email.
Buy the bundle · $15.98v1.7.20 · 5.2 MB zip · macOS 14 Sonoma or later · Apple silicon and Intel
# Install with Homebrew
brew install --cask aqibjavedzeepalm/tap/displayshift
In motion
Watch it work
What it does
The window shuffle, handled
Asks the moment you plug in
Plug in a monitor or start an AirPlay display and the picker drops out of the notch with every window that isn't on the new screen yet, including full screen apps and other desktops. Tick what moves.
Full screen apps, without the flashing
Full screen apps leave full screen, move and go full screen again on the new display, behind a soft curtain instead of macOS's own animations.
Remembers where everything was
Unplug and your MacBook layout comes back. Plug in again, wake from sleep or ride out a dock hiccup, and every window returns to its spot, on its own desktop and in its Split View. Every move has an Undo.
Tile up to six apps
Side by side, in thirds, quarters, a grid or a layout you draw yourself, picked in the notch. Drag the bar between tiled windows and the neighbours resize together.
Rules per app
Keep an app on the MacBook, send it to the external display, or never move it. Moving one against its rule asks first. Save layouts by name, like Coding, and give each its own shortcut.
Private by design
No analytics and no account. Saved layouts store a hash of each window title, never the title. It only goes online to check your license key and look for updates.
Screens
What you will see
Tick what moves, or tap a saved layout. Windows already on the monitor are counted, not listed. Switch the destination to send windows back to the MacBook. Connect: the link draws in and the monitor lights up. Disconnect: the link snaps and the app tells you where the windows went. No notch, or another app lives in yours? The picker drops from just under the menu bar instead. Progress while full screen apps hop across. Settings: move everything to one screen in a click, and keep your monitor arrangement when macOS shuffles it.
Install
Three steps and you are done
Signed and notarized by Apple, so it opens like any other app.
Download and unzip
Double-click the downloaded zip in your Downloads folder, then drag DisplayShift into your Applications folder.
Open it and follow the setup
DisplayShift walks you through it: it moves itself into Applications, asks for Accessibility access once and ticks it off as soon as you switch it on, then asks whether to open at login. If a switch looks on but nothing happens, click Reset and try again.
Plug in a monitor
DisplayShift lives in the menu bar and opens the picker whenever a display connects. Everything works for 7 days; after that, buy it once inside the app and paste the license key from your email.
Prefer Homebrew?
One line in Terminal installs the same notarized app into Applications. It keeps itself up to date after that.
# Install with Homebrew
brew install --cask aqibjavedzeepalm/tap/displayshift
Questions
DisplayShift, in short
- Price
- 7-day free trial, then $6.99 once, or $1.49 a month or $4.99 a year
- Licence
- One payment for life, or monthly or yearly; on 1 Mac either way (2, 3 or 5 Mac lifetime keys at checkout)
- Requires
- macOS 14 Sonoma or later
- Runs on
- Apple silicon and Intel
- Latest version
- 1.7.20, Nov 3, 2026
- Checked by Apple
- Yes, notarized
What is DisplayShift?
- DisplayShift is a macOS menu bar app for people who connect a MacBook to an external monitor. When a display connects, a picker drops out of the notch listing every open window, full screen apps and other desktops included. Tick what should move and it glides across to the new screen.
What are DisplayShift layouts?
- A DisplayShift layout is a saved arrangement of your windows for one screen setup, such as Coding or Writing, kept by name. Switch to one with a tap in the DisplayShift panel or its own shortcut, and every window goes back to its screen, desktop and position. Layouts store a hash of each window title, never the title itself.
Can DisplayShift move full screen apps?
- Yes. Full screen apps leave full screen, move to the other display and go full screen again there, behind a soft curtain instead of macOS's own animations.
What happens when I unplug the monitor?
- DisplayShift remembers where every window was. Unplug and your MacBook layout comes back; plug in again, wake from sleep or ride out a dock hiccup, and every window returns to its spot.
Can DisplayShift tile windows side by side?
- Yes. Pick a shape in the notch to tile two to six apps side by side, in thirds, quarters or a grid, and drag the bar between them to resize the neighbours together.
Can I make my own tile layouts in DisplayShift?
- Yes. Since 1.7.20 you can split a layout into up to six spaces, drag the lines between them or type exact percentages, and save it with a name. Your layouts show in the notch next to the built-in shapes, and Settings, Tiling lists them to edit or delete.
Does DisplayShift remember which desktop a window was on?
- Yes. A saved layout remembers each window's desktop and Split View partner. Restoring puts every window back on its own desktop, adds a desktop that's gone, and rebuilds Split View pairs, behind a curtain so you don't see the switching.
Can DisplayShift remove empty desktops?
- Yes. The button at the top of the DisplayShift panel removes every desktop with nothing on it in one click, on every screen, so you don't have to open Mission Control and close them one by one. Desktops with any window on them stay, even a minimized or hidden one, and each screen keeps at least one desktop.
How much does DisplayShift cost?
- DisplayShift is free for 7 days, then $6.99 once. You can also subscribe for $1.49 a month or $4.99 a year instead. Every option uses one license key on 1 Mac. Need it on more Macs? One lifetime key for 2 Macs ($12.58), 3 Macs ($16.78) or 5 Macs ($24.47) is at checkout too. Prices exclude tax; VAT or sales tax is added at checkout where it applies.
Does DisplayShift work on Macs without a notch?
- Yes. On a Mac without a notch, the picker drops from a pill just under the menu bar instead of the notch. If another app lives in your notch, you can choose that spot on a notched Mac too.
Does DisplayShift work with AirPlay displays?
- Yes. When you use an Apple TV, a smart TV or another Mac as a separate display over AirPlay, DisplayShift treats it like a monitor on a cable: the picker offers to move your windows there, and brings them back when you stop.
Which Macs does DisplayShift run on?
- DisplayShift runs on macOS 14 Sonoma or later, on Apple silicon and Intel Macs. It needs Accessibility access once, because macOS only lets approved apps move other apps' windows.
Privacy
Permissions, and what it does with them
- No analytics, telemetry or account. It only goes online to check your license key and look for updates.
- Reads window positions, sizes, titles and owning app through the macOS Accessibility API, only to list and move windows.
- Stores preferences and saved layouts in its own preferences file. Layouts keep a SHA-256 hash of each window title, never the title itself.
- Signed with my Apple Developer ID and notarized by Apple. Updates install only after their Apple signature checks out.
Feedback
Tell me what DisplayShift should do next
Ask for a feature, report something that went wrong, or leave a review. It comes straight to me, and I read every one.
Release notes
What changed
v1.7.20Nov 3, 2026
- New: make your own tile layouts. Split a layout into up to six spaces, drag the lines between them or type exact sizes, and pick it from the notch.
v1.7.19Nov 2, 2026
- A calmer look: the introduction, the buy window and the shortcut-saved moment are simpler, with steadier motion and no glow or confetti.
- No more empty Settings window after restarting your Mac.
v1.7.18Oct 30, 2026
- New: remove empty desktops from the notch in one click.
- Bug fixes, including Split View on macOS 27.
v1.7.17Oct 29, 2026
- Bug fixes.
v1.7.16Oct 28, 2026
- Bug fixes, including windows missing on macOS 27.
v1.7.15Oct 27, 2026
- Bug fixes.
v1.7.14Oct 22, 2026
- New app icon.
v1.7.13Oct 22, 2026
- Pick 1, 2, 3 or 5 Macs for a lifetime license right in the app.
v1.7.12Oct 22, 2026
- Supports licenses for 2, 3 or 5 Macs.
v1.7.11Oct 21, 2026
- Bug fixes.
v1.7.10Oct 20, 2026
- Bug fixes and improvements.
v1.7.9Oct 20, 2026
- Much faster: full screen apps change screens without leaving full screen, a Split View comes back in about 3 seconds, and plain layouts restore in under a second.
- A map of your screens shows each window flying to its new spot while things move, and Mission Control never shows while DisplayShift works.
- If a layout needs an app that isn't open, DisplayShift asks before opening it, and opens the right Chrome profile.
- Windows go back to the desktop they were on, even after macOS reorders your desktops, and with an iPad, Vision Pro or third screen attached.
- New prices: $6.99 once, or $1.49 a month or $4.99 a year, on 1 Mac.
v1.7.8Oct 14, 2026
- Bug fixes and improvements.
v1.7.7Oct 12, 2026
- Bug fixes and improvements.
v1.7.6Oct 12, 2026
- Split View comes back with Chrome too: two apps sharing one full screen go back side by side after a restart, sleep or a plug-in, even when a window doesn't report its title.
v1.7.5Oct 11, 2026
- Layouts remember which desktop each window was on and put it back there, adding the desktop if it's gone. Split View pairs come back side by side. A curtain hides the switching.
- Give any named layout its own shortcut. A simple Save a layout window shows each desktop, full screen app and Split View pair, with the apps in it and where they sit.
- The picker can drop below the menu bar instead of the notch, and moves there on its own if another app keeps the notch busy.
- Windows whose titles changed since you saved, like a browser on another tab, go to the nearest saved spot instead of swapping places.
- Clearer results: a problem shows as a problem, restores show their progress, and every switch works with the keyboard and VoiceOver.
v1.7.4Oct 10, 2026
- Keyboard shortcuts for every action, ⌃⌥⌘ and a letter, changeable in Settings and never one that macOS or your other apps already use.
- Keeps your screen arrangement: if macOS swaps your monitors or the main display after a plug-in or wake, it's put back.
- Several full screen apps moving together now cover each screen once, with a soft glow instead of a black flash.
- The bar between tiled windows is easier to grab and always faintly visible.
- A new introduction shows every option and shortcut; open it again from Settings › Screens.
v1.7.3Oct 8, 2026
- During the free week, the days left and a Buy button sit in the window picker, the menu and Settings.
- Updates install by themselves unless you switch them off, and a What's New window shows what changed after each update.
v1.7.2Oct 8, 2026
- Updates now show in the notch: what's new, the download's progress, and a note when it's done. New versions are found within the hour, or as soon as your Mac wakes.
v1.7.1Oct 8, 2026
- Updates itself: new versions can install automatically, or a dot on the menu bar icon tells you one is out. Switch it on or off in Settings.
- After Effects and other apps with unusual windows are listed, and windows you closed with the red button no longer show up.
- Minimized windows are listed and marked, and stay minimized when they move to another screen.
v1.7.0Oct 7, 2026
- Tiled layouts: two, three or four apps side by side, in thirds, quarters or a grid, picked in the notch. Drag the bar between them to resize neighbours together.
- Full screen moves without the flashing: a soft curtain covers the screens, and only the display that's switching dims for a moment.
- A new icon, and windows from apps like Creative Cloud and settings windows like Xcode's are now listed too.
- Notarized by Apple, so it opens straight away. Free for 7 days. Launch price at the time: $2.99 once for up to 2 Macs (that offer has ended).
v1.6.0Oct 5, 2026
- Puts windows back after sleep and after a dock hiccup, with an Undo.
- Rules per app (stays on the MacBook, goes to the big screen, never moves), with a confirm before breaking one.
- Find lost windows, named layouts you switch in a tap, and reopening closed apps when you restore (optional).
- Opens on the screen you click from, and a redesigned settings window with tabs and short demos.
v1.5.0Oct 3, 2026
- Layout memory: plug back in and a Put everything back card restores every window, full screen apps included.
- Unplug and your MacBook-only layout is offered too.
v1.4.2Oct 2, 2026
- The tip link now goes through aqibjaved.dev, so it keeps working if the tip page ever moves.
v1.4.1Oct 2, 2026
- A Buy Me a Coffee link in Settings and the menu bar menu, for anyone who wants to leave a tip. DisplayShift stays free.
v1.4.0Oct 2, 2026
- Click the menu bar icon and the picker drops out of the notch, without the chime or the connect animation. Right-click for the menu.
- A settings button in the picker. Settings open out of the notch and fold back into it when you close them.
- Shares the notch with other apps: if another panel is already there, DisplayShift waits for it to leave instead of drawing over it.
- Simpler settings window.
- Fixed: windows an app keeps hidden (Claude has one) showed up in the list. Windows no longer grow by a point each move, and Fill screen no longer stops at the MacBook's height on a taller monitor.
v1.3.0Sep 28, 2026
- A setup assistant on first launch: it moves the app into Applications, asks for Accessibility once and waits for it to work, then asks whether to open at login.
- No more stuck permission switch. If an older approval gets in the way, the app clears it and asks again by itself.
- Opening a newer copy closes the older one, so two copies never run at once.
v1.2.1Sep 28, 2026
- Signed with my own developer certificate.
- The zip now opens cleanly with any unzip tool, not just Finder.
v1.2.0Sep 28, 2026
- Multiple monitors: displays that come up a second apart on one dock count as one event.
- Identical monitor models are numbered left to right.
- Docks that drop their displays during sleep no longer trigger the picker on wake.
v1.1.0Sep 28, 2026
- The notch picker, with a Move to switch for any connected screen.
- Connect and disconnect animation and chime, both optional.
- Floating pill for Macs without a notch. Universal build for Intel Macs.
v1.0.0Sep 14, 2026
- First release: move every window to any display in one press, with layout memory.
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