How to Use Split Screen on Mac

September 11, 2026

Put two apps side by side in full screen with Split View using the green window button, resize the divider, and exit when you are done.

Split View fills the screen with two windows side by side, with no menu bar or Dock in the way. It works in any app whose windows can go full screen.

Hover over the green button

Move the pointer over the green button in the top-left corner of the first window and hold it there for a moment. A menu appears. Clicking the button instead sends the window to full screen on its own, so hover rather than click.

Choose Tile Window to Left of Screen

Click Tile Window to Left of Screen or Tile Window to Right of Screen. The window fills that half of the screen, and the other half shows thumbnails of your other open windows.

Click the second window

Click one of the thumbnails on the empty side. That window fills the other half, and both now live in a single full-screen Space. Swipe left or right with three fingers on the trackpad to move between this Space and your desktop.

Adjust the split

Drag the black divider between the windows to give one side more room. Some apps have a minimum width and will not shrink past it. To swap sides, drag one window by its title area across to the other side.

Exit Split View

Move the pointer to the top of the screen so the window controls appear, then click the green button in either window. That window leaves full screen and returns to the desktop; the other stays in its own full-screen Space until you do the same there. Pressing Ctrl + Cmd + F in a window also takes it out of full screen.

If Tile Window options are missing. Split View needs Displays have separate Spaces turned on in System Settings, Desktop & Dock. Some apps also do not support full screen, in which case the green button offers no tile options for them.

If you want side by side without full screen. On macOS Sequoia and later, drag a window to the left or right edge of the screen and release when the outline appears; it tiles to that half while the menu bar and Dock stay visible. The same layouts are under Window, Move & Resize in the menu bar, and the green button menu adds halves and quarters as well.