Best at
Free snapping by shortcut or edge
Rectangle makes common window positions quick and keeps its core workflow focused.
Tangrid vs Rectangle
Rectangle vs Tangrid
Rectangle is an excellent free, open-source choice when shortcuts and snap areas solve the problem. Tangrid is built for the next layer: keep manual snapping, add BSP-style automatic tiling, then switch, search, and preview windows without assembling a stack of utilities.
Visit the official Rectangle website
Prefer Rectangle
You only need placement
A free, open-source snapping utility is enough and you are happy to use macOS for switching.
Prefer Tangrid
The desktop needs to stay organized
Tangrid can start with manual snapping, then use Auto Flow when you want windows to arrange themselves.
Biggest gap
Tangrid continues after the snap
Built-in switching, vertical search, tabbed layouts, and Dock previews help you find and regroup windows later.
Feature comparison
| Workflow | Rectangle | Tangrid |
|---|---|---|
| Main job |
Focused
Move and resize windows with keyboard shortcuts or snap areas. |
Broader
Snap, automatically tile, switch, search, preview, and group windows. |
| Manual snapping |
Core
Shortcuts and edge or corner snap areas are the center of the free app. |
Core
Snap Assist adds halves, thirds, grid positions, fill, swap, and split behavior. |
| Automatic tiling |
Not the free app's focus
The core Rectangle workflow moves a window when you invoke an action. |
Auto Flow
BSP-style layouts can keep managed windows organized as the desktop changes. |
| Window switching and search |
Separate
Window discovery is normally left to macOS or another utility. |
Built-in
Horizontal previews and vertical search help find a specific window. |
| Tabbed layouts |
Out of scope
Rectangle focuses on window size and position rather than grouping windows into tabs. |
Built-in
Related windows can share one tiled area and stay grouped together. |
| Dock previews |
Out of scope
Dock-based window thumbnails are a separate workflow. |
Built-in
Hover an app in the Dock to preview its windows across displays. |
Prefer Rectangle
keyboard_command_key
- 01 You want a free, open-source app for moving and resizing windows.
- 02 Keyboard shortcuts and snap areas already cover the whole problem.
- 03 You prefer to keep switching, previews, and automatic tiling separate.
Prefer Tangrid
dashboard_customize
- 01 You want both manual snapping and automatic BSP-style tiling in one app.
- 02 You lose time finding the right window after the desktop fills up.
- 03 You want switching, search, tabbed layouts, and Dock previews built in.
Start with the same snapping problem, then compare what comes next
-
01
Check whether shortcuts and snap areas solve the entire workflow or only the first placement step.
-
02
Open a busy workspace and compare manual re-snapping with an automatic layout that reacts to change.
-
03
Compare how many separate tools you need for switching, exact-window search, grouping, and Dock previews.
Common questions
Is Tangrid a free Rectangle replacement?
No. Rectangle's core app is free and open source, while Tangrid is a paid product with a trial. Tangrid is aimed at users who want snapping plus automatic tiling, switching, search, tabbed layouts, and Dock previews in one app.
Can Tangrid snap windows like Rectangle?
Yes. Tangrid's Snap Assist supports visual placement with halves, thirds, grid positions, fill behavior, swap, and split controls. It can also switch to Auto Flow when you want automatic tiling.
When should I stay with Rectangle?
Stay with Rectangle when free, focused window movement and resizing already solves the problem. Tangrid makes more sense when placement, ongoing layout cleanup, and window discovery need to work together.
Compare another tool
Open the comparison page for the other utility in your setup.
Magnet
Drag-to-edge snapping
Best when a mouse-friendly snapping utility is enough.
- Best for
- Tidy placement with dragging or shortcuts.
- Tangrid adds
- Adds search, previews, switching, and Auto Flow.
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yabai
Scriptable BSP tiling
Best when commands, rules, signals, and custom automation are the point.
- Best for
- Power users building a keyboard- and script-driven environment.
- Tangrid adds
- Adds visual setup, Snap Assist, tabbed layouts, switching, search, and Dock previews.
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