Debut turns the macOS Command-Tab switcher into a workspace manager: window previews grouped by space, window moves between spaces, and instant space switching.
Download Debut · macOS 26 or later (desktop management needs macOS 27) · Apple Silicon
Feature demos, the motivation behind Debut, and setup questions are on debutspace.com. This page is the reference.
All defaults can be changed or disabled in Settings › Shortcuts.
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| ⌘ Tab / ⌘ ⇧ Tab | Open the switcher on the current space at the next / last window |
| ⌘ ⌥ Tab / ⌘ ⌥ ⇧ Tab or ⌘ ⌥ ` | Open the switcher and cycle spaces forward / backward |
| ⌥ Tab / ⌥ ⇧ Tab | Open Option-Tab: every window on every space, most recent first |
| ⌃ 1–9 | Switch to space 1–9 |
| ⌃ ⌥ 1–9 | Switch to space 1–9 and focus the current app's window there |
| ⌘ ⌥ ← or ⌘ ⌥ ↑ | Move the focused window to the previous space and follow it |
| ⌘ ⌥ → or ⌘ ⌥ ↓ | Move the focused window to the next space and follow it |
| ⌃ ← / →, trackpad swipe | macOS space switching, made faster or instant |
⌘ ` is left to macOS. The window-move chords require Command-Tab workspace isolation.
Keep the activation modifier held (Command for Command-Tab) and press:
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
| Tab / ⇧ Tab or ` | Next / previous window in the selected space |
| ⌥ Tab / ⌥ ⇧ Tab | Next / previous space |
| 1–8, 9 | Select space 1–8; 9 selects the last space |
| H J K L | Move the selector left, down, up, right |
| ↑ / ↓ | Move the selected window to the previous / next space |
| ← / → | Move the selected window left / right within its space |
| Drag a preview | Move that window to another space |
| Return | Next display's spaces (multiple displays) |
| W | Close the selected window |
| Q | Quit the selected app |
| N | Add a desktop after the selected one (macOS 27) |
| Delete | Remove the selected desktop; its windows join the desktop showing, or a neighbour if it is the one showing (macOS 27) |
| Drag a space, + | Reorder desktops, drop one onto another to merge them, or add one at the top or bottom (macOS 27) |
| Esc | Close the switcher and discard staged changes |
| Space | Lock the switcher open, so releasing the modifier no longer closes it; afterwards Space or a click applies, Esc discards |
| Release the modifier | Focus the selection and apply staged moves and desktop changes |
Option-Tab supports Tab, ⇧ Tab, `, H J K L, W, Q, Esc and the Space lock. Space navigation, move and desktop keys are Command-Tab only.
| Page | Contents |
|---|---|
| General | Launch at login, Dock icon, automatic crash reports, apps ignored by window management |
| Desktops | Faster switching for number keys, Control-arrows and trackpad swipes; transition duration (Instant to 400 ms); desktop-change indicator |
| Switcher | Command-Tab isolation, Option-Tab, window previews, overlay display, preview freshness, hold delay, held cycling pace |
| Appearance | Live preview, card layout and size, inactive-space scale, app icon placement, Liquid Glass, selection highlight; separate values with and without previews |
| Shortcuts | Every binding above, numbered-space modifiers, restore defaults |
| App Shortcuts | Per-app shortcuts that launch, show, or hide an app, reaching windows on other desktops through Debut's switch |
| Support | Bug report form, diagnostic export, window-cache reset, settings reset |
| About | Version, update checks, links |
Fresh defaults and behavior details are in settings and onboarding.
| macOS 26 | macOS 27 | |
|---|---|---|
| Command-Tab, Option-Tab, previews, window moves | Yes | Yes |
| Faster space switching (keys and trackpad) | Yes | Yes |
| Add, remove, reorder and merge desktops from the switcher | No | Yes |
| Fixed Liquid Glass tint | No (follows the system) | Yes |
Requires Apple Silicon. Features that depend on private macOS behavior stay off on releases where it has not been measured, and macOS shortcuts pass through unchanged.
- Accessibility (required): shortcuts and window control.
- Screen Recording (optional): window previews. Without it, Debut shows app icons and titles.
Debut keeps its data on your Mac and sends crash reports only with permission. See privacy.
See contributing for requirements, tests and
./scripts/build-app.sh.
Option-Tab is inspired by Windows Alt-Tab and lwouis/alt-tab-macos. Faster space switching builds on jurplel/InstantSpaceSwitcher, joshuarli/iss, and Tahul/space-rabbit.