Cmd+Tab Reinvented

Cmd+Tab. Finally just works.
Apps. Windows. Tabs.
Pure. Magical. Flow.

WOS replaces macOS's Cmd+Tab switcher with true LRS (Last Recently Seen) order across windows, apps, and browser tabs.

Same shortcut. Better context. Uninterrupted flow.

  • True LRS switching
  • 6+ browsers supported
  • Cmd+Tab+S command bar
  • Zero config required

macOS 15+ · No account required · DMG installer · App Store version planned

20+ years of unsolved frustration
6+ browsers supported
150M+ power users affected globally
0 config files needed

One gesture. Infinite flow.

Classic Cmd+Tab breaks in tab-heavy workflows.

Operating systems switch apps. Not context. The moment you open a second browser, the mental model shatters - and it has for decades.

App-first, not context-first

macOS switches apps and windows, not what you actually saw last on screen. Every tab inside Safari, Chrome, or Brave is invisible to Cmd+Tab.

Too many tabs, too little flow

Safari, Chrome, Brave, Arc, Orion, Opera, Opera GX, Firefox and more create fragmented context you cannot cycle through with a single shortcut.

Multi-display inconsistency

The more screens you add, the more context gets lost between app-level and window-level switching. Focus evaporates across displays.

One shortcut. Everything in reach.

WOS slots into your existing muscle memory and upgrades what Cmd+Tab actually does.

01

Watches what you see

WOS runs silently in the background, tracking every app, window, and browser tab you actually look at - in the exact order you saw them.

02

Cmd+Tab cycles LRS order

Each key press jumps to the most recently seen target - whether that's a Safari tab, a Chrome tab, a Figma window, or an iTerm session.

03

Cmd+Tab+S to search everything

A fast command bar surfaces every open tab and app instantly. Type to filter, press Enter to jump. Spotlight-speed, zero context switch.

"Flow" refers to productive, uninterrupted workflow - the smooth, intuitive switching using genuine Last-Recently-Seen order.

WOS was designed to enhance your mental flow state: no jarring jumps to the wrong window, no losing track of what you were just looking at - everything feels natural and frictionless, helping you stay "in the zone."

🚨 Supply Chain Security Brief

The recent LiteLLM breach exposed millions. Learn why our "Zero-Exfiltration" architecture keeps WOS immune to these exact vectors.

Read Security Analysis →

What WOS adds beyond native macOS.

Every feature is designed around one principle: keep your hands on the keyboard and your mind on the work.

True Last Recently Seen order

Targets are ordered by when you last had your eyes on them - not app launch order, not alphabetically. Always the most relevant context next.

Browser tabs as first-class targets

Every open tab from every supported browser appears in the switching list. Jump to that Figma spec in Arc without losing your iTerm session.

Claude Desktop conversations

Pinned, Recents, per-project - four places to look for one chat. WOS puts your Claude conversations straight into Cmd+Tab, each tagged with its project, ordered by what you actually worked on last.

Cmd+Tab+S universal search

100 tabs open? Cmd+Tab+S, type a word, and land exactly there. Search across all browsers, apps, and terminal sessions simultaneously.

Restore hidden & minimized windows

Minimized or hidden windows are surfaced in the switcher so you never lose them behind a stack of open apps. Nothing falls through the cracks.

Cross-Space Switching

Effortlessly switch to any tab or window, even if it’s currently in a different macOS Space or Desktop. WOS bridges your entire environment into a single flow.

Low-latency, no visual clutter

WOS is built for speed. Sub-50ms response, keyboard-first interaction, and a clean UI that gets out of the way the instant you've made your choice.

Chrome profile-aware switching

WOS recognises your Chrome profiles and surfaces their tabs individually. Switch directly to the right tab in the right profile - work, personal, or client - without ever touching the mouse.

Fuzzy search that forgives typos

Mistype a word mid-search? WOS finds what you meant anyway. Fuzzy matching keeps you moving without breaking stride - because a typo should never cost you your flow.

Kernel-Level Privacy & Isolation

WOS is isolated from the internet via a strict App Sandbox with zero network entitlements. That's a bold claim - see our Security Architecture for the technical breakdown without the "mathematically isolated" or "physically impossible" marketing hyperbole.

Tab Therapy

Overwhelmed by tabs? Tab Therapy scans your open browser windows, identifies those you haven't looked at in over 24 hours (Stale Tabs), and helps you safely export them to TXT, HTML, or Bookmarks before closing them. Reclaim your focus and your system's performance.

Privacy-First Clipboard History

Infinite productivity that protects you. WOS intelligently filters passwords, API keys, and tokens from your history - keeping your secrets out of sight and off the screen.

Memory Bank NEW

A searchable Markdown wiki for everything you ever want to remember. Select any text anywhere on macOS, hit ⌥⌘M to save it; press ⇧⌘M to open a Spotlight-style HUD, type to filter, hit Return to paste the snippet back into the app you came from. Stored as plain Markdown at ~/Library/Application Support/WOS/memory_bank.md — edit it in any editor, keep it under version control, do whatever you want with it. It's just a file.

System-Wide Recent Files

Your most recent work, always one tap away. WOS tracks file access across all apps. Use Shift+R to "Note" a file, instantly moving it to the top of your Finder Recents for lightning-fast retrieval.

Intelligent Jump to File

See a path in text? `Cmd+Shift+G` instantly reveals it in Finder. Works on selection or clipboard, automatically expanding `~/` tildes and handling punctuation in conversational text. Pure speed.

A loading screen that gives back

Got hundreds of tabs? Cmd+Tab+S takes a few seconds to index them. Instead of a dead "Loading…" line, WOS shows you a useful card while you wait — a WOS shortcut you might not know, a real fact about your own tab graveyard, a macOS power tip, or a small bit of computing trivia. Cards rotate every six seconds. Toggle off in Settings → Quick Search if you'd rather have the minimal pill.

Catch a tip you missed

The loading card auto-rotates and disappears the moment your tabs finish loading — but if you caught a glimpse of something interesting, hit ⌥⌘T (remappable) to pop it back up. Arrow keys scrub through the last 20 tips you've seen. No telemetry, all in-memory.

Shape WOS to fit your workflow

Have an idea that would make WOS work better for you? Send us a feature request. Every suggestion is read. And the best ones ship.

Works with today's most popular browsers.

WOS treats tabs from any supported browser as equal switching targets. Multi-browser workflows finally work the way you think.

Safari
Google Chrome
Brave
Opera
Opera GX
Arc
Orion
ChatGPT Atlas planned
Firefox planned
Comet planned

The same shortcut. A completely different result.

Default macOS Cmd+Tab
  • Shows only top-level apps - browser tabs are invisible
  • Order is app-launch order, not what you saw last
  • No way to jump directly to a specific tab
  • Minimized windows often stay buried
  • Multi-monitor makes things worse, not better
  • No search - you must visually scan the row
  • No built-in clipboard manager or recent file history
  • Full network access - privacy is a matter of trust
WOS Cmd+Tab
  • All browser tabs as first-class switch targets
  • True LRS order - always the most recent context first
  • Cmd+Tab+S to search & jump to any open tab instantly
  • Minimized & hidden windows surfaced automatically
  • Multi-display context preserved correctly
  • Keyboard-first, zero mouse required
  • Built-in Clipboard & Recent Files with secret filtering
  • Zero network access - kernel-enforced privacy
  • Cross-space switching - switch across all macOS Desktops

20 years of developers saying the same thing.

The evidence is consistent across platforms, decades, and thousands of individual complaints. WOS finally closes the ticket on macOS.

"

When I see people using the default, crappy Windows ALT+TAB task switching behavior, I experience physical pain.

Jeff Atwood · Coding Horror, 2006

"

We've all tried unlearning a keyboard shortcut - it feels like forgetting how to breathe. Muscle memory doesn't mess around.

Visual Studio Blog, 2026

"

This bites me every day for 25 years… I do cmd-tab and get a different app instead of the last tab I was on.

Hacker News, 2019 - 25 years of waiting

"

A stack of the most-recently-in-focus windows is more practical than a stack of the most-recently-in-focus apps.

Hacker News, 2022 - AltTab discussion

"

If I Cmd+Tab to VS Code, all VS Code windows pop to foreground… it's very tedious on macOS.

Hacker News, 2024 - window-switcher pain

"

It's easier to think in terms of context switches than consciously evaluate switch-window vs switch-app every single time.

Hacker News, 2022 - cognitive tax thread

Read more developer testimonials →

WOS in one table.

Everything you need to decide, without scrolling back up.

What it is
A free macOS menu bar utility that replaces the built-in Cmd+Tab switcher with a Last Recently Seen (LRS) switcher covering apps, windows and individual browser tabs.
Price
Free. No account required. Optional donations fund development.
Requirements
macOS 15 or later, Apple Silicon or Intel. Distributed as a DMG; Mac App Store version planned.
Main shortcut
Cmd+Tab to cycle in LRS order, Shift to reverse, Cmd+Tab+S to search every open target. Both shortcuts are configurable.
Browsers
Safari, Google Chrome, Brave, Opera, Opera GX, Arc and Orion today. Firefox, ChatGPT Atlas and Comet planned.
Permissions
Accessibility and Input Monitoring for the global shortcut; per-browser Automation for tab-level switching (optional).
Privacy
The switching engine runs under a published kernel sandbox profile with no network entitlement. No analytics, telemetry or advertising SDKs. See Privacy and Security.
Version
0.1.1046 — download page, changelog.

Questions people actually ask.

Short answers, no hedging. Machine-readable copies live at /api/faq.json and /llms.txt.

What is WOS?

WOS is a free macOS menu bar utility that replaces the built-in Cmd+Tab application switcher with a Last Recently Seen (LRS) switcher. Instead of cycling only top-level applications, it cycles every target you actually looked at — applications, individual windows, and individual browser tabs — in the order you last saw them. The shortcut stays the same, so existing muscle memory is preserved.

What does Last Recently Seen (LRS) mean?

Last Recently Seen orders switch targets by when you last had them visible on screen, rather than by application launch order. The key difference from a conventional most-recently-used list is the unit: LRS ranks the thing you saw — a specific tab or window — not the application that happens to own it. One Cmd+Tab press therefore returns you to the exact context you left, even if it was a browser tab buried among fifty others.

How is WOS different from the built-in macOS Cmd+Tab?

The native macOS switcher is application-first and tab-blind: it lists only top-level apps, orders them by app launch order, cannot jump to a specific browser tab, often leaves minimized windows buried, and offers no search. WOS makes browser tabs and individual windows first-class switch targets, orders everything by true Last Recently Seen order, surfaces hidden and minimized windows, switches across macOS Spaces, and adds a Cmd+Tab+S command bar for searching every open target.

Does WOS replace the Cmd+Tab shortcut or add a new one?

By default WOS intercepts Cmd+Tab itself, including Shift for reverse cycling, so you keep using the shortcut you already know. The shortcut is configurable, and a fallback shortcut (Opt+Tab by default) is available for cases where macOS interferes with Cmd+Tab interception.

Which browsers does WOS support?

WOS currently supports Safari, Google Chrome, Brave, Opera, Opera GX, Arc and Orion, treating tabs from any of them as equal switching targets. Firefox, ChatGPT Atlas and Comet are planned. WOS is also Chrome profile-aware, so tabs belonging to different Chrome profiles are listed and reachable separately.

How do I search across all open browser tabs on macOS?

Press Cmd+Tab+S in WOS to open a command bar that searches every open browser tab, application, window and terminal session at once. Type to filter and press Return to jump straight there. Matching is fuzzy, so a typo still finds the right target, and results are grouped into LRS targets, open apps and all open browser tabs.

Is WOS free?

Yes. WOS is free to download and use, and no account is required. Development is funded by optional donations via Patreon or cryptocurrency.

What are the system requirements for WOS?

WOS requires macOS 15 or later and runs natively on both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs. It is distributed as a direct DMG download; a Mac App Store version is planned.

How do I install WOS?

Download the DMG from wosapp.io/downloads, open it and drag WOS to your Applications folder. On first launch, grant Accessibility and Input Monitoring permission so WOS can intercept the global shortcut, then approve Automation access for each browser whose tabs you want to switch to. A built-in self-check panel shows which permissions are still missing.

Does WOS send my data anywhere?

The switching engine runs under a custom kernel-level App Sandbox profile with no network entitlement, so it cannot send data off your machine. The app contains no analytics SDKs, telemetry frameworks, advertising libraries or attribution services. Two scoped network interactions are documented: a periodic update check that transmits only your WOS version and macOS version, and feedback submission, which happens only when you explicitly write and send a message. The full detail is in the privacy policy.

What permissions does WOS need, and why?

WOS needs Accessibility and Input Monitoring to intercept a global keyboard shortcut reliably, and per-browser Automation permission to read tab titles and activate a specific tab. Automation is optional and granted per browser — without it, WOS still switches applications and windows, just not individual tabs. The security page documents the CGEventTap requirement and publishes the complete sandbox profile.

Can WOS switch to a window or tab on a different macOS Space?

Yes. WOS switches across macOS Spaces and Desktops, so a target on another Space is reachable from the same switcher without manually navigating there first. Multi-display setups keep their context as well, which is where the native app-level switcher tends to break down.

Does WOS restore minimized and hidden windows?

Yes. Minimized and hidden windows appear as normal targets in the switcher and are restored when you select them, instead of staying buried behind a stack of open applications.

What is Tab Therapy?

Tab Therapy is a WOS feature that scans your open browser windows and identifies stale tabs — ones you have not looked at in more than 24 hours. It lets you export them to TXT, HTML or bookmarks before closing them, so you can reclaim focus and system memory without losing anything.

What is the WOS Memory Bank?

Memory Bank is a searchable Markdown wiki built into WOS. Select text anywhere on macOS and press Option+Cmd+M (⌥⌘M) to save it; press Shift+Cmd+M (⇧⌘M) to open a Spotlight-style HUD, filter as you type, and press Return to paste the snippet back into the app you came from. Everything is stored as plain Markdown at ~/Library/Application Support/WOS/memory_bank.md, so you can edit it in any editor or keep it under version control.

Does WOS include a clipboard manager?

Yes, and it filters secrets. WOS keeps a clipboard history while detecting and excluding passwords, API keys and tokens, so credentials do not end up sitting in a searchable history or appearing on screen.

Is WOS available on the Mac App Store?

Not yet. WOS is currently distributed as a direct DMG download from wosapp.io, and a Mac App Store version is planned. The direct build uses a custom kernel sandbox profile because standard App Store sandboxing blocks the inter-process communication required for browser tab switching.

What are the alternatives to WOS for macOS window switching?

Other macOS switchers focus on window-level switching or application launching. WOS is distinguished by three things: browser tabs are first-class switch targets rather than being invisible, ordering is true Last Recently Seen rather than most-recently-used application order, and the switching engine runs with no network entitlement under a published kernel sandbox profile.

It always should have been simple.

But it never quite felt right.

Until now.

No interruption. No thought.

Just instinct.

Your hands move - and everything follows.

Tabs, apps, windows.

All where you left them.

Because real flow doesn't ask for effort.

It just happens.

Instantly. Naturally. Seamlessly.

Finally, you're not switching anymore.

You're flowing.

The way it always should have been.

The switching model macOS power users have waited for.

WOS turns app switching into true context switching. Same shortcut. Every browser. Pure flow.

macOS 15+ · Apple Silicon & Intel · No account required · App Store version planned