--- title: "Komorebi for Mac: The Real Version and Your Options" description: "Unlike most Linux tools, komorebi has a real Mac version. See how its licence works, what to check before you move, and other options for Windows users." canonical: https://findowmac.com/komorebi-for-mac.html --- # Komorebi for Mac: the real version and your options By Sheik Ahamed, who makes Findow. Checked on 31 October 2026. [All guides](https://findowmac.com/guides.html) **Short answer:** yes, there's a real komorebi for Mac, from the same author as the Windows version. It's the obvious first try if you know komorebi. Using it at work needs a paid licence, so yabai, AeroSpace, Amethyst and Findow are worth a look too. ## This one is the real thing Most searches for a Linux or Windows tool "for Mac" end in bad news, as our [niri guide](https://findowmac.com/niri-for-mac.html) explains. Komorebi is the exception. The komorebi README links to a separate komorebi for Mac repository, the author's docs describe komorebi as a tiling window manager for Windows and macOS, and you can install it with Homebrew: brew install lgug2z/tap/komorebi-for-mac It keeps the parts you know. It has the komorebic CLI, a komorebi.json config and a socket that other programs can subscribe to. The docs describe the same model of monitors, workspaces and containers, with each monitor holding its own workspaces and windows able to stack in one container. ## What to check before you move ### The licence Komorebi uses its own Komorebi licence, which is based on PolyForm Strict. Personal use is allowed. It isn't open source in the usual sense, because you can't redistribute it or ship new works based on it. Using it at work needs an Individual Commercial Use Licence, and the Mac version is sold separately from the Windows one. | Commercial licence | Monthly | Yearly | | --- | --- | --- | | komorebi for Mac only | $10 | $110 | | Windows and macOS | $15 | $180 | Those prices are from the author's site, so check them before you buy. If you've already paid for a Windows licence, it doesn't cover your Mac on its own. ### Your config The author's stated aim is one config file shared across Windows and macOS, with a nearly identical workflow on both. We didn't confirm how far that goes today, so try your own file rather than assuming it works. Windows and Mac apps have different names too, so any application rules will need a second look. ### Your hotkeys On Windows you likely use whkd or AutoHotKey. The Mac project's README doesn't mention either, and the docs talk about any hotkey software. AutoHotKey is a Windows program, so plan on setting up hotkeys again. ### How development works Versioned releases appear in the public repository, while day-to-day work happens in a private repository open to some GitHub Sponsors tiers, which also get nightly builds. The project accepts only small bug fixes from outside. The Mac README doesn't list a minimum macOS version. ### The Mac itself The author's plan was to build on public macOS APIs with no need to disable SIP, the same way the Windows version uses public Win32 APIs. That plan is from an article, and the Mac README doesn't state it, so check the current docs. Public APIs also mean the usual limits. Spaces are Apple's, and you can't control them freely. ## Other routes from Windows | Tool | Price | Config | Good if | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | komorebi for Mac | Personal use allowed. $10 a month or $110 a year at work | komorebi.json | You want your Windows workflow | | yabai | Free, MIT | CLI, usually with skhd | You want BSP tiling and a CLI | | AeroSpace | Free, MIT | TOML file | You want free use at work and its own fast workspaces | | Amethyst | Free, MIT | App settings | You want automatic layouts with less setup | | Findow | $19.99 once, 1 Mac | Settings window | You're done maintaining a config | "Not listed" means the app's website doesn't mention the feature, not that the app can't do it. All names belong to their owners, and none of them is connected with Findow. If you're using a Mac at work, the free tools above may make more sense than a subscription. Our [i3 guide](https://findowmac.com/i3-for-mac.html) has more detail on AeroSpace and yabai. ![Four small diagrams showing snapping, saved layouts, tiling and a scrolling strip](https://findowmac.com/img/guide-window-manager-types.svg) The four main kinds of Mac window manager. ## The Windows habits that catch you out A new tiling tool won't fix the rest of the move from Windows, and these are the things that trip people up first: - **Alt-Tab:** ⌘Tab switches apps, not windows. Our guide to [switching windows on a Mac](https://findowmac.com/switch-windows-mac.html) covers the fixes. AltTab is free, and Findow uses ⌥Tab. - **Win and arrow keys:** recent versions of macOS have built-in tiling through Fn-Control and the arrow keys. - **Minimized windows:** they're harder to reach than on Windows, and ⌘Tab won't bring them back. See [how to restore them](https://findowmac.com/minimized-windows-mac.html). - **Virtual desktops:** macOS calls them Spaces. You add them in Mission Control and move between them with ⌃ and the arrow keys. ## Where Findow fits Findow is not a port of komorebi, and nothing in your komorebi.json will carry over. It's a one-time-payment app for someone who wants tidy windows without a config file. These habits have a real match: - Automatic tiling with Auto arrange, in Grid, Columns, Rows or Focus layouts. - Your own grid, drawn in a settings window and kept for each display. - Stacks with tabs in Auto arrange, which do a similar job to komorebi's stacked containers. - Floating a window with ⌃⌥⇧F, leaving an app alone, or fixing an app in a position. - Focus follows mouse and Mouse follows focus, both off by default. These don't carry over. Findow has no JSON config and no equivalent of komorebic. It has no socket or event stream to subscribe to, and no status bar. It accepts links such as findow://run/tidy, but that only triggers actions. It has no virtual workspaces of its own either. Workflows on ⌃⌥1 to ⌃⌥9 reopen and place a saved set of apps, which is a different idea. ![Findow's overview filtered by a typed search](https://findowmac.com/img/overview-search.jpg) Findow is $19.99 once for one Mac, with a 14-day free trial and a 14-day refund. It needs macOS 14 or later, and so far it's only been built and run on Apple silicon with macOS 27. ## Questions ### Is there a komorebi for Mac? Yes. The same author publishes komorebi for Mac in its own repository, and you can install it with Homebrew using brew install lgug2z/tap/komorebi-for-mac. ### Is komorebi for Mac free? Personal use is allowed under its licence. Using it at work needs a paid Individual Commercial Use Licence, listed at $10 a month or $110 a year for macOS. ### Does my Windows komorebi licence cover my Mac? No. The author's site says separate purchases are needed for Windows and macOS, and it sells a combined licence for both. ### Can I use my komorebi.json on a Mac? That's the author's stated aim, but we didn't confirm how well it works today. Try it, and expect to change any app-specific rules. ### Is Findow a port of komorebi? No. Findow is a separate Mac app with no config file or CLI like komorebic. It has automatic tiling, but your komorebi setup won't carry over. ## Try Findow free for 14 days Every feature, with no account and no card. Then $19.99 once, with a 14-day refund. For macOS 14 or later. [Download Findow](https://findowmac.com/index.html#pricing) ## Keep reading - [i3 for Mac: the closest options on macOS](https://findowmac.com/i3-for-mac.html) - [How to switch between windows on a Mac](https://findowmac.com/switch-windows-mac.html) - [The best window managers for Mac in 2026](https://findowmac.com/best-window-manager-mac.html)