--- title: "Mac display and window manager · Universal Display Magnet" description: "Keep your Mac's displays arranged, restore saved window layouts and line up Universal Control across your Macs. A one-time purchase for three Macs." url: https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/ lang: en --- # Universal Display Magnet > Universal Display Magnet is a native macOS app that snaps your monitors together and keeps them that way: a display arrangement editor where screens snap flush, arrangements remembered per set of monitors and re-applied on reconnect and wake, Universal Control arranged across multiple Macs, workspaces that bring every window back to its monitor and Desktop, keyboard window snapping and sync between your Macs with no cloud. Optional Scrolling Windows makes every window a column on a strip that scrolls, with stacks, tabbed columns and grid tiling. A Mac app that keeps your monitors arranged, puts every window back after you reconnect or wake, and lines up Universal Control across multiple Macs. - **Version:** 0.4.1 - **Buy for $9.99:** https://buy.polar.sh/polar_cl_Eun4k8w0lqOhFoU3xI4NvwdweeUAlVw0lkte145VZ95 - One-time purchase · One license for three Macs · macOS 14 or later · [Check compatibility](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/support/compatibility) ## What needs fixing? - **Displays moved?** Keep each monitor where it really is, with the same main display, every time they reconnect or wake. [Display arrangement](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/features/display-arrangement) · [Why the arrangement keeps changing](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/guides/mac-monitor-arrangement-keeps-changing) - **Windows scattered?** Save every window by monitor and Desktop, and put them all back after sleep or a dock change. [Workspaces](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/features/workspaces) · [Windows that move after sleep](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/guides/mac-windows-move-after-sleep) - **More than one Mac?** Line up Universal Control so the pointer crosses where the screens meet, and keep all your Macs in sync. [Universal Control](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/features/universal-control) · [Set up Universal Control](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/guides/universal-control-two-macs) ## Snap your displays and they stay put ### macOS shuffles your displays Wake the Mac or plug in a dock, and the monitors land somewhere new, with every window piled onto one screen. ### The magnet puts them back Each set of monitors keeps its arrangement, and it comes back the moment they reconnect, wake or get moved. Identical monitors are told apart by the serial numbers they report. ### Every window goes home Window positions are saved every few minutes and as the screens go to sleep, so each window returns to its monitor and Desktop. ## Drag a display and it snaps flush Displays snap **edge to edge** and line up their edges and centers. Place one with the arrows, type an exact position, then **Apply**. If anything looks wrong, it reverts by itself after 15 seconds. ## Multiple Macs, one desk Every Mac's displays on one canvas, **exactly where Universal Control has them**. Drag another Mac's screens and they snap flush across your Macs, applied live, with an undo. ## Any window, one keystroke **Halves, quarters, maximize, center** and the next display, on shortcuts you can change. Or drag a window to an edge or a corner and watch the preview. ## Save your desk, restore it in a click A workspace saves every app's windows: **which monitor, which Desktop or full-screen Space, and where**. Restore it with a click or its shortcut, and the apps in it that aren't running open first. ## Windows on a strip, room to keep going Turn on **Scrolling Windows** and every window becomes a column on a strip that runs past the edges of the screen, with **stacks, tabs, grid tiling** and a shortcut for everything. Try it right here: press the keys or click them. Optional and off until you turn it on. While it's on, window snapping and automatic window snapshots pause. - **One click:** Snap Displays Together pulls every display flush. No gaps, no overlaps. - **Remembered:** Saved for each set of monitors and re-applied on reconnect and wake. - **No built-in display needed:** Mac Studio, Mac mini or a MacBook with its lid closed. ## Thought through, down to the menu bar - **Your Macs, in sync:** Arrangements and workspaces travel straight between your Macs over Wi-Fi, Ethernet or a Thunderbolt cable. Encrypted, no cloud, nothing to pair. - **Wake one, wake them all:** Wake or unlock this Mac and your other Macs' screens turn on too. A Mac that's fully asleep gets a Wake-on-LAN call, where its settings and network allow it. - **When Universal Control acts up:** Activity explains dropouts and lost input in plain words. Reset Universal Control restarts its services on your Macs and puts your arrangement back. - **One click away:** Snap buttons, Save Workspace and every workspace, one click away in the menu bar and the Dock menu. - **A shortcut for everything:** Give every snap and every workspace its own shortcut. Clashes with other apps are flagged. - **Speaks your language:** In 18 languages. It follows your Mac, or pick one in Settings. ## Up and running in a minute 1. Buy the app and download it from your purchase. One file for Apple silicon and Intel. 2. Drag it into Applications. 3. Open it from the Applications folder. 4. Turn it on under Device Control and Data Access (Accessibility on older versions of macOS). 5. The welcome screen shows each feature. Pick what to turn on; you can change everything later in Settings. 6. Your displays snap together, and stay that way. ## Your setup stays yours - **No account:** Nothing to sign up for. You buy it with your email, and the app only needs its license key. - **No cloud:** Your Macs talk to each other directly on your network, encrypted with a key only your Macs share. - **No analytics:** No tracking and no usage statistics, and nothing is captured from your screen. The app only checks its license and looks for updates. [Privacy policy](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/privacy) ## Questions, answered ### How much does it cost? $9.99, once, with tax added at checkout where it applies. One license covers three Macs, and the app keeps working offline for up to seven days between license checks. [License and updates](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/support/license-and-updates) has the details. ### Which Macs does it run on? Any Mac with macOS 14 or later: one download runs natively on Apple silicon and Intel. Every feature is verified on macOS 14 to 27, on Apple silicon and Intel. See [compatibility](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/support/compatibility). ### Why do my displays keep moving around? macOS rebuilds the arrangement when displays wake or reconnect, and often gets it wrong, especially with identical monitors or a dock. Universal Display Magnet remembers your arrangement for each set of monitors, tells identical monitors apart by the serial numbers they report, and puts it back whenever macOS moves things. ### Do I need more than one Mac? No. Display arrangement, workspaces and window snapping all work on one Mac. With more Macs linked through Universal Control, you can also arrange all their displays together and keep everything in sync. ### What permissions does it ask for? **Device Control and Data Access** (called Accessibility on older versions of macOS) to see and move windows, and **Local Network** to sync with your other Macs. It never asks to record your screen. ### Does it work with Magnet installed? Yes, but two apps can't own the same shortcut. Universal Display Magnet flags any shortcut another app already uses, so you can quit the other app or pick a different shortcut. ### Does it work without a built-in display? Yes. It works the same on a Mac Studio, a Mac mini or a MacBook with its lid closed. ### What is Scrolling Windows? A different way to lay out windows: each one becomes a column on a horizontal strip that scrolls, as in PaperWM or niri, with stacks, tabbed columns, grid tiling and a shortcut for every action. It's optional and off until you turn it on, and window snapping and automatic window snapshots pause while it's on. ### How does it compare with ChainYourMac? Both build on the open-source Paneru engine. Universal Display Magnet's Scrolling Windows adds grid tiling, next to everything the app does for your displays, workspaces and Universal Control, for $9.99 and three Macs. ChainYourMac is a dedicated scrolling window manager, with pinned columns, guided setup and automation. See [the full comparison](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/compare/chainyourmac). ### Does anything leave my Mac? Nothing about your windows or displays, except to your own Macs: sync goes directly between them, encrypted. The app also checks its license key with Polar, the store that sells it, and looks for new versions once a day, which you can turn off. See the [privacy policy](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/privacy). ## Explore - [Download](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/download) - [Compare](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/compare) - [Guides](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/guides) - [Keyboard shortcuts](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/shortcuts) - [Support & FAQ](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/support) - [Changelog](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/changelog) - [All features](https://universaldisplaymagnet.app/features) --- Universal Display Magnet is independent software by [Clever Mechanisms](https://clevermechanisms.dev). It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Apple Inc. Apple, Mac, macOS, Mac Studio, Mac mini, MacBook Pro, Safari and Finder are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions. Email support: support@clevermechanisms.dev