# A window manager for ultrawide monitors on Mac

> On an ultrawide display, halves are too wide and the middle is the only comfortable spot. How a scrolling window manager uses the width on a Mac.

Source: https://www.ribbonmac.com/guides/ultrawide-monitor-window-manager-mac · Updated 2026-10-23

An **ultrawide monitor** gives you an enormous amount of width, and macOS doesn't do much with it. A maximised window is far too wide to read. Two halves are each still the size of a normal monitor. And anything at the far left or right edge means turning your head.

What works on an ultrawide is **columns**: three or four windows side by side, each a sensible reading width, with the one you're working in near the middle.

## Why halves and quarters don't fit

macOS's built-in tiling, and snapping apps like Rectangle, think in halves and quarters. On a 34-inch 21:9 display, half the screen is roughly as wide as a whole 24-inch monitor. That's too wide for a document or a code editor. Quarters fix the width but halve the height. Thirds help, but you still place every window by hand, and new windows still open on top.

## Columns on a strip

A [scrolling window manager](https://www.ribbonmac.com/guides/what-is-a-scrolling-window-manager) gives every window a full-height column on a strip, and the screen shows as many columns as fit. On an ultrawide, that's three or four at once:

- **⌃⌥R** cycles the focused column between ⅓, ½ and ⅔ of the screen. Three ⅓ columns fill an ultrawide perfectly.
- **⌃⌥C** centres the focused window, so whatever you're working on can sit right in front of you instead of at the edge.
- **⌃⌥F** fills the screen for a moment, and puts it back when you press it again.
- **New windows open beside the one you're in.** The others stay exactly as they are.

When you open a fifth window, the strip runs past the edge of the screen instead of squeezing everything. Swipe or press ⌃⌥ ← → to slide along.

## Ultrawide plus a laptop

Many people use an ultrawide with a MacBook open beside it. In [Ribbon](https://www.ribbonmac.com/), every display has its own strip, its own focus and its own scroll. Moving past the end of one strip carries on to the next display, ⌃⌥N sends a window to the other display, and you can switch Ribbon off for any display, for example to keep the laptop screen floating for chat and music.

## Getting set up

1. [Install Ribbon](https://www.ribbonmac.com/) and grant Accessibility access.
2. Open three apps on the ultrawide and press ⌃⌥R on each until they're ⅓ wide.
3. Use ⌃⌥C to bring the one you're working in to the centre.

Ribbon runs on macOS 14 Sonoma or later on Apple silicon, with a 7-day free trial, then $15 once.

## FAQ

### How do I split an ultrawide monitor on a Mac?

macOS's own tiling only does halves and quarters, which are too wide on an ultrawide. A window manager gives you columns instead: with Ribbon, each window is a column at ⅓, ½ or ⅔ of the screen, so three windows side by side is a ⌃⌥R away.

### Does Ribbon work with an ultrawide monitor and a laptop screen together?

Yes. Every display has its own strip, its own focus and its own scroll. Swiping or pressing ⌃⌥ → past the end carries on to the next display, and you can switch Ribbon off for any display.