TileOrg vs Rectangle: When Snap-to-Grid Isn't Enough

Rectangle does one thing really well

Rectangle is the most popular free window manager on macOS, and for good reason. It gives you keyboard shortcuts to snap windows into halves, thirds, quarters, and custom sizes. It's fast, lightweight, and requires zero configuration.

If your workflow is "put this window on the left, that window on the right," Rectangle is perfect. It solves the window positioning problem cleanly.

The problem Rectangle doesn't solve

Rectangle manages individual windows. It doesn't know that your VS Code, terminal, and three browser tabs all belong to the same project. It can't swap an entire workspace context with one shortcut. It doesn't remember which windows go together.

If you work on one thing at a time, this isn't a problem. But if you juggle multiple projects — client work, side projects, internal tools — you're constantly repositioning the same windows every time you switch context. Rectangle makes each snap fast, but you're still doing 5-10 snaps every time you change projects.

How they compare

Feature	Rectangle	TileOrg
Price	Free (Pro $9.99)	$29 one-time
Window positioning	Snap to grid zones	Project pane layouts
Project grouping	No	Yes — named projects
Context switching	Manual per window	One shortcut swaps all
Session persistence	No	Survives restarts
Keyboard shortcuts	Per-window snapping	Per-project switching
Setup	None	None

Different tools for different problems

Rectangle answers: "Where should this window go?"

TileOrg answers: "Which windows belong together, and how do I switch between sets instantly?"

These aren't competing questions. You might use Rectangle's shortcuts to quickly position a window within a TileOrg project. They complement each other.

When to stick with Rectangle

If you mostly work on one project at a time and just need fast window snapping, Rectangle (or Rectangle Pro for gaps and app-specific layouts) is all you need. It's free, reliable, and does its job.

When to add TileOrg

If you find yourself rearranging the same windows every time you switch between projects, or wishing you could save and restore workspace layouts, that's the gap TileOrg fills. The $29 pays for itself the first week you stop spending 10 minutes every morning rebuilding your window layout.

See how TileOrg compares to other tools in our best macOS window managers roundup, or read about the differences between TileOrg and Stage Manager.