Can't resize a snapped window on Mac?

When you tile a window with macOS window tiling, or snap it with a third-party tool, it can seem stuck at the tile size. Usually the window is still resizable; it just needs to leave the tile first, or two tools are fighting over it. Once the windows are where you want, you can save that layout so you never have to fix it again.

How do you untile a window on Mac?

• Drag it out. Drag the window by its title bar away from the tile. It usually returns to its earlier size and can then be resized from its edges.
• Use the Window menu. On macOS versions with built-in tiling, the app's Window menu has a Move & Resize submenu. Return to Previous Size, where available, undoes the tile.
• Leave full screen or Split View. If the window is in full screen or Split View, it cannot be freely resized. Exit full screen first.
• Menu names vary between macOS versions and apps, so look for the closest match.

Why does a snapped window resist resizing?

Some apps set a minimum or fixed size, so the window stops at that size. Running two snapping systems at once, macOS tiling plus an app such as Rectangle or Magnet, can also make a window jump back to a tile as soon as you move it. Turn off one of them: macOS tiling options are in System Settings, Desktop & Dock, and third-party tools have their own settings. See Rectangle, Magnet and Raycast vs SnapState.

How do you save the layout you actually want?

SnapState is a Mac menu bar app that saves a named workspace: every window with its display, position and size, the apps to relaunch, the Space each app was on, full screen windows, and all open tabs in Safari, Chrome, Edge, Brave, Arc and Chromium. You restore it from the menu bar, with a Control-Command-1 to 6 shortcut, or automatically on wake, when a monitor connects or disconnects, or when a matching display layout appears.

Once each window is the size you want, save the desk as a SnapState workspace. Next time apps reopen in odd sizes, restore it and every window goes back to its saved size and position. See how to save a window layout on Mac and Mac apps reopen smaller or in the wrong spot.

Save the final layout, restore it any time. The 40 second demo shows a workspace saved from the SnapState menu bar and restored with one click: apps relaunch and windows go back to their saved displays, positions and sizes.

What are the practical details?

SnapState 2.7.2 costs $9.99 once, with a license for up to three Macs and a 14-day refund. It needs macOS 15.7 or later and runs natively on Apple Silicon and Intel. It needs Accessibility permission to move windows, and Automation permission if you want browser tabs reopened. Workspace data stays on your Mac. Workspaces saved in older versions need one re-save to pick up Spaces and full screen. See SnapState.

What are the honest limits?

SnapState is not a tiling or snapping tool. It does not save browser tab groups, history or form data, Firefox is not supported, and it does not change the display arrangement, main display, menu bar or Dock. It restores app windows.

Frequently asked questions