Automate window layout with Stage Manager & Shortcuts?

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Automate window layout with Stage Manager & Shortcuts?

Hi!

Stage Manager combined with Shortcuts does not allow users to automate real desktop workflows?

This post describes a practical limitation encountered when trying to automate window-based workflows on macOS using Stage Manager and Shortcuts.

Use case

The goal is a common desktop scenario:

- Stage Manager enabled

- One workspace / scene

- Two applications (for example: browser and editor)

- One display

- Windows arranged side by side (left and right)

- The setup triggered manually or via Shortcuts / Automation

This kind of workflow is typical for development, media work, and research.

Current capabilities

What is currently possible with Apple-provided tools:

- Enable or disable Stage Manager

- Group multiple windows into the same Stage

- Bring windows to the front

- Move windows between displays

What is not currently available:

- Setting window position (left/right or coordinates)

- Setting window size or proportions

- Defining layout rules within a Stage

- Automating Split View via Shortcuts or AppleScript

- Creating reusable, scriptable workspace layouts

Stage Manager does not expose window geometry. It focuses on grouping and context, not layout.

Workarounds

Several alternatives exist, each with trade-offs:

1. Stage Manager with manual window arrangement

- Stable and supported

- Requires manual interaction each time

- Not suitable for automation

2. Shortcuts combined with AppleScript (System Events)

- Can simulate keyboard shortcuts

- Requires Accessibility permissions

- Sensitive to timing, system language, and updates

3. Third-party window managers (e.g. Rectangle, Magnet)

- Provide reliable window tiling

- Operate outside Stage Manager

- Reduce the value of Apple’s built-in solution

Observations

Stage Manager and Shortcuts are presented as tools for improving focus and automation, but they operate at different abstraction levels:

- Stage Manager manages window grouping

- Shortcuts automate app-level actions

- Window layout itself remains largely manual

As a result, users can automate application state, but not workspace structure.

Questions for discussion

- Is there any plan to expose window geometry or layout controls to Shortcuts?

- Why is Split View not accessible through automation APIs?

- Is Stage Manager intentionally limited to grouping only?

- How should professional desktop workflows handle reusable layouts using Apple-native tools?

This post is intended to clarify current behavior and limitations, and to invite discussion or guidance from others who may have explored similar workflows.

---

If anyone has found an Apple-native, supported solution to automate window layout — without GUI hacks or third-party window managers — I’d genuinely like to hear it.

MacBook Pro 14″, macOS 26.2

Posted on Feb 4, 2026 5:07 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

mariusz222 Author

Level 1

9 points

Feb 4, 2026 8:50 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

Thank you, Lusi, for taking the time to reply — I appreciate it.

After multiple practical tests with Shortcuts, AppleScript, and Stage Manager, here is a concise technical conclusion that may save others a lot of time.

What was tested

Goal:

Automate a very simple UI workflow on macOS:

create a new Stage Manager group
open Shortcuts and keep it on the left
open a web page in a new browser window and keep it on the right

All actions triggered by a single Shortcut.

What actually happens

Stage Manager has no public API.
Shortcuts cannot control window placement, grouping, or Stage Manager state.
AppleScript can open apps and windows, but:
each activate of a different app is interpreted by Stage Manager as a new context
windows end up in separate Stage Manager groups

There is no supported way to:

create a Stage Manager group
add windows to an existing group
merge groups
deterministically keep multiple apps in one group

This behavior is consistent and reproducible.

It is not a scripting bug or timing issue.

What does NOT solve it

changing activation order
adding delays
UI scripting with keyboard shortcuts
fullscreen / Split View toggles

All of these are unreliable and break across macOS updates.

The only working workaround

Using third-party window managers (Rectangle Pro, BetterTouchTool, Moom), which operate below Stage Manager and can apply layouts deterministically.

Without them, automation stops at “apps opened”, not “workspace configured”.

Conclusion

At its current state, Stage Manager + Shortcuts is not a serious automation system.

It looks impressive in marketing demos and screenshots, but for real-world workflows:

no API
no determinism
no composability
no reliable automation

Instead of being a genuine modernization of time and workspace management on macOS, it feels more like a visual gimmick—good for presentations, not for building repeatable, productive UI workflows.

For users expecting automation-grade behavior:

Stage Manager is unfinished.

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Answer 2

mariusz222 Author

Level 1

9 points

Feb 4, 2026 9:17 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

Thanks Luis for the time and effort trying to help — genuinely appreciated.

One could say we just paid another small “bonus” in our own time for Apple marketing and leadership, while real UI workflow automation remains unavailable. Shortcuts can plan a surfing trip and start music in demos, but basic, deterministic workspace layouts are still out of reach.

After spending about 4 extra hours taking Apple’s automation promises seriously (AppleScript, Shortcuts, activation order, delays, even briefly toggling Stage Manager on and off), the conclusion is simple:

there is no supported way to automatically place multiple app windows into one Stage Manager group. This is not a bug or misuse — it’s simply not part of the design.

Sharing this as calm feedback, hopefully useful for others.

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Answer 3

Feb 4, 2026 8:03 AM in response to mariusz222

I think that the advice to use Applescript is a good one.

Applescript can open windows, and tell Safari to access a given url.

For example, this short snippet creates a new window and sets it to Apple homepage:

It can also set the window boundaries.

Here is a small example:

Note that I am not an expert in Applescript, but the syntax is pretty self explanatory, and by following plenty of examples online one can do a lot of things (though I admit it takes a bit of trial and error).

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Answer 4

Feb 4, 2026 9:00 AM in response to mariusz222

None of us knows about Apple's plans. Stage Manager is not new, as it was introduced with macOS Ventura.

It seems that the only action available in Shortcuts is to turn Stage Manager on or off, so yes, trying to handle it using Shortcuts or Applescript now seems like a no go.

I think that you may be well served by one of the third party window management tools that you mentioned.

I hope you achieve your goals.

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Answer 5

mariusz222 Author

Level 1

9 points

Feb 4, 2026 6:09 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

Study case:

My workflow involves multiple local apps and web apps in Safari. I want a **Shortcut that opens specific URLs in new Safari windows (not just tabs) that stay in place next to my other app windows in Stage Manager. Ideally this should not switch to another Space or disturb current window focus.

What I observe with Shortcuts:

The Open URLs action simply opens the link in a tab of the existing Safari window, or switches focus to another Space where Safari is already open.

There’s no built-in option in Shortcuts to open a URL in a separate window.

This leads to disruption in Stage Manager — the system may jump to a different Space or group just to open the URL.

Are there ways to achieve this cleanly?

Specific questions:

Does anyone know how to force Open URL in a new Safari window using Shortcuts on macOS instead of opening a tab or switching Spaces?
Is there a native Shortcuts action (or workaround) that lets you control Safari window creation / placement when opening a URL?
If not in Shortcuts alone, what are typical community solutions — AppleScript, Automator, Keyboard Maestro etc — to open a URL in a new window and keep it in the current desktop/Stage Manager context?

Notes from research so far:

macOS Shortcuts currently has no dedicated “open URL in new window” control. Setting Safari preferences to “Never open pages in tabs instead of windows” can force new windows, but this is a global change rather than per-Shortcut behaviour.

Automator/shortcuts without scripting can open sites but will open them in tabs or existing windows.

Using Run AppleScript inside a shortcut has been suggested to open URLs in dedicated windows and position them.

I’m especially interested in approaches that minimize manual window juggling and keep the intended Stage Manager layout intact.

TIA for insights and any examples.

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Answer 6

Feb 4, 2026 5:13 AM in response to mariusz222

Sorry to interject, but… why do you want Stage Manager on, when it basically defeats your purpose of setting windows the way you want? And, as I am about it, why use Stage Manager, at all? For a power user, it brings no benefit. It’s geared for people who only use one application at a time.

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Answer 7

Feb 4, 2026 5:15 AM in response to mariusz222

Sorry if my previous post comes out as not constructive, but I do think that Stage Manager is detrimental to your stated objectives of positioning windows. Now, there are keyboard shortcuts for positioning windows, which implies that at the least one should be able to script them. I am away from my mac now, will look at this later today.

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Answer 8

mariusz222 Author

Level 1

9 points

Feb 4, 2026 5:31 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

Thank you, Lusi, for taking the time to reply — I appreciate it.

Stage Manager does create convenient groups of windows and is a valid way of working for many users.

However, my goal is a bit different. What I’m looking for is a way to quickly open predefined desktop layouts with specific window arrangements and views that I regularly use in my work. These layouts follow strict, repeatable patterns.

Ideally, I want this to be fully automated — for example, a single action that opens an entire workspace setup at once, rather than manually recreating it each time.

If you want, I can also:

make it shorter
make it more technical
adjust the tone to be more exploratory or more definitive

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