Mac · Reviewed

Hard to switch between multiple windows of the same app

Raised by 112 people over 18 years (2009–2026), in 17 of them.

What people report

2009-04
because the OS X dock deals with apps, not windows, it can be a pain switching between open windows
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2019-07
it's not possible to switch between multiple windows of the same application with Cmd+Tab
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2022-04
MacOS handles switching between those configuration of windows badly (and I gave it plenty of time to become intuitive).
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2025-02
I just want easy access to the windows that are open on my current workspace on my current monitor, and it seems ill-suited to that.
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2026-10
It provides no info about what windows are open, it does random things when you click on an icon
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Principle

Flexibility and efficiency of use

People report that the Dock and Cmd-Tab show apps rather than individual windows, so reaching one window of an app with several open takes extra steps, and clicking it raises all of that app's windows.

A fix

Let the Dock show each open window, as separate or stacked icons, so people can see every window of an app and switch to one in a single click. Raise only the clicked window, and keep Cmd-backtick as a shortcut for those who know it.

Grouping, principle and fix drafted with Claude and reviewed by Justusability. Counts are people whose comment Claude labelled a usability complaint about this issue; see Method for how, and its limits. Something wrong here?

All 123 source comments