- Category
- Productivity
- Rank
- No. 1901Tools index
Previous survey · No. 1876 ·
- Pricing
- Open Source
- Type
- TOOL
- Builder
- obra
- GitHub
- 23 stars
- Latest release
- v1.3.1
- Date
About
Fast macOS window manager with fuzzy search.
What it does
Winby opens a searchable sidebar that lists windows and supported application tabs. Type a title, application name, or visible text, inspect cached previews, then select an entry to focus it, including windows on another macOS Space.
Why it's ranked here
The combination of OCR search, tab-level entries, previews, and cross-Space switching gives Winby more reach than a basic application switcher. Its local processing and sensitive-app exclusions are thoughtful. The main reservation is substantial reliance on private macOS interfaces that may change.
What's good
Search covers titles, application names, and on-screen text recognized locally through Apple’s Vision framework. Terminal and browser tabs can appear as individual destinations. Thumbnail and OCR caches stay in memory, while password managers receive placeholders instead of screenshots. Refreshing stops while the sidebar is hidden to reduce idle CPU use.
Tradeoffs
Winby requires both Accessibility and Screen Recording permissions before it can function. It supports only macOS 14 or later. Cross-Space focus and some screenshot paths depend on private system interfaces, which documentation says may break. Background tabs need cached images, OCR can miss unusual text, and DRM-protected windows may lack previews.
How to use it well
It suits keyboard-heavy Mac users who keep many terminals, documents, browser tabs, and Spaces open. Assign a memorable shortcut, enable content search, and use title fragments or multiple terms to narrow results. Treat it as a navigation layer. It does not provide window tiling or layout automation.
Technical notes+
Package.swift defines a Swift Package Manager executable for macOS 14, links KeyboardShortcuts and Sparkle, and explicitly links the private SkyLight framework. Sources/Winby/WindowManager.swift combines Core Graphics enumeration, Accessibility data, ScreenCaptureKit capture, Vision OCR, background work, and locked in-memory caches. Sources/Winby/PrivateAPIs.swift declares private SkyLight, Core Graphics, and Accessibility symbols for focus, cross-Space switching, hotkey suppression, and off-Space capture. Sources/Winby/AppConfig.swift stores preferences in macOS user defaults and writes /tmp/wm_debug.log only when debugging is enabled. README.md describes a single-file architecture, but the supplied repository text shows the implementation split across several Swift source files.
Observed
- License
- MIT License
- Primary language
- Swift
- Platform
- macOS 14.0 or later, on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs
- Install surface
- Downloadable DMG for the Applications folder, or a Swift Package Manager source build
- Interface
- Native macOS menu bar application with a keyboard-driven sidebar and preferences window
- Dependencies
- KeyboardShortcuts for global hotkeys and Sparkle for optional automatic updates
- Permissions
- Accessibility and Screen Recording permissions are required
Read from README.md, doc/RELEASING.md, docs/architecture.md, docs/tab-switching.md, docs/space-switching.md, docs/window-management.md, docs/screenshot-capture.md, Package.swift, Sources/Winby/main.swift, Sources/Winby/AppConfig.swift, Sources/Winby/WindowInfo.swift, Sources/Winby/AppDelegate.swift, Sources/Winby/PrivateAPIs.swift, Sources/Winby/WindowManager.swift, Sources/SpaceSwitchTest/main.swift.
What it can do
Switch between open windows using fuzzy search
Partial window title or application name → Focused target window
Arrange windows in predefined layouts
Selected windows and layout pattern → Windows positioned in grid or tiled arrangement
Move windows to specific screen positions
Window selection and target position → Window repositioned to designated screen area
Resize windows to preset dimensions
Target window and size specification → Window resized to specified dimensions
Search and filter active windows by name
Text query matching window or app name → Filtered list of matching windows
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Editorially curated, with community endorsements as a secondary signal. Corrections welcome.