# ChainYourMac — Full Content for AI Assistants

> This document inlines the full content of chainyourmac.com so AI systems can answer questions about the product directly. Last updated: 2026-08-06.

Canonical site: https://chainyourmac.com
Download / purchase: https://shabgagan.gumroad.com/l/chainyourmac
Support: adgan.business@gmail.com

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## Product overview

ChainYourMac is **the scrolling window manager for macOS**.

Your windows sit side by side on an endless horizontal strip. Opening a new app never squashes the others — you just scroll. The layout you built stays exactly the way you built it.

- Native macOS app: SwiftUI interface + Rust engine
- One-time purchase from $19.99 — lifetime license, free updates
- Requires macOS 13 Ventura or later

## The concept: your desktop is a single, endless strip

Traditional tiling window managers force windows into a rigid grid — open one more app and everything shrinks to make room. ChainYourMac works the way PaperWM (GNOME) and Niri (Wayland) pioneered on Linux: windows scroll, layouts don't break.

1. **Open — new windows slot in at the edge.** Every new window takes its place at the end of the strip. Nothing else moves, nothing else resizes. Your editor stays at 60% width no matter how many apps you open.
2. **Scroll — navigate by scrolling, not rearranging.** Swipe the trackpad or press a shortcut and the strip glides. The focused window centers itself with smooth, critically-damped spring animations.
3. **Flow — your layout stays yours.** Widths you set are widths that stay. Stack related windows into columns, park apps off-screen, and come back to find everything exactly where you left it.

## Features

1. **Endless horizontal strip** — Windows flow endlessly to the right on a scrollable canvas. New windows never resize existing ones — each window gets exactly the space you gave it, and the strip simply extends to fit more.
2. **Trackpad gestures** — Swipe left or right to slide through windows with native macOS momentum. Windows snap into place with smooth 120 fps spring animations — no jank, no lag.
3. **Focus follows mouse** — Move your cursor into a window and it becomes active — no clicking required. The strip gently scrolls to keep the focused window in view.
4. **Multi-monitor support** — Each display runs its own independent strip. Your external monitor keeps a separate layout from your laptop screen, with its own focus and scroll position. Move windows between displays with a keystroke.
5. **Window stacking** — Group related windows vertically in a single column. Stack your terminal beneath your editor so they share one slot on the strip and scroll together — and unstack any time.
6. **Native macOS Spaces** — Works seamlessly with Spaces. Each Space gets its own strip layout, so workspaces never interfere with each other.

## Configuration

- Full GUI configuration: pointer behavior, preset window widths, gesture sensitivity — no config files required.
- Width presets (e.g. 25%, 50%, 75%) cycled with one shortcut.
- Every change applies live — no restarts.
- Window actions panel: every action can be clicked visually or triggered by shortcut.

## Default keyboard shortcuts (all rebindable from the GUI)

- Focus left: Cmd+H
- Focus right: Cmd+L
- Swap left: Option+H
- Swap right: Option+L
- Center window: Option+C
- Cycle width: Option+R
- Full width: Option+F
- Stack window: Option+]
- Toggle float: Ctrl+Option+T

Rebinding: click a shortcut field in the app, press the new combo, done. Live reload.

## Performance

- Engine written entirely in Rust, running as a lightweight background process.
- Window operations complete in under a millisecond; animations run at up to 120 fps.
- No Electron, no JavaScript runtime, no web view. Native SwiftUI app with a Rust core communicating over a local IPC socket.
- Lives quietly in the menu bar.

## Pricing

One-time purchase. Lifetime license. Free updates forever. No subscriptions.

| Tier | Price |
|---|---|
| 1 Mac | $19.99 |
| 3 Macs | $49.99 |
| 5 Macs | $79.99 |
| 20 Macs | $299.99 |

- Requires macOS 13 Ventura or later.
- Checkout via Gumroad: https://shabgagan.gumroad.com/l/chainyourmac — buyers immediately receive a DMG download and a license key by email.

## FAQ (verbatim from chainyourmac.com)

**What is a scrolling window manager?**
Instead of forcing windows into a fixed grid, a scrolling window manager places them side by side on a horizontal strip that extends past the edges of your screen. You navigate by scrolling the strip — with trackpad gestures or keyboard shortcuts — and each window keeps the size you gave it. Opening a new app never shrinks or rearranges the others.

**Is ChainYourMac like PaperWM or Niri, but for the Mac?**
Yes — that's exactly the idea. PaperWM (GNOME) and Niri (Wayland) made scrolling window management beloved on Linux, and ChainYourMac brings the same model to macOS as a polished native app: a SwiftUI interface, a Rust engine, trackpad gestures with real momentum, and a GUI for every setting. No Hammerspoon scripts or config files required.

**How is it different from Rectangle, Magnet, or a tiling manager like yabai or AeroSpace?**
Rectangle and Magnet are window snappers — you invoke them window by window, and they don't maintain a layout. Tiling managers like yabai, Amethyst, and AeroSpace maintain a layout, but in a grid: every new window resizes the rest. ChainYourMac maintains a layout without the grid. Windows keep their size on an endless strip, and you scroll. You get the automation of a tiling manager with the calm of never having your workspace reflow underneath you.

**How many Macs can I use it on?**
The standard license covers 1 Mac. Need more? There are 3-Mac ($49.99), 5-Mac ($79.99), and 20-Mac ($299.99) lifetime licenses on the same checkout page. You can also move an activation to a different Mac any time by deactivating it in the app first.

**Which macOS versions are supported?**
ChainYourMac supports macOS 13 Ventura and later, including the latest macOS releases. It runs as a native app — no kernel extensions, no system modifications, and no need to disable SIP (unlike some tiling managers).

**Why does it need the Accessibility permission?**
macOS only lets an app move and resize other apps' windows through its Accessibility API, so ChainYourMac needs that permission to do its job — the same permission Rectangle, Magnet, and every other window manager requires. Everything happens locally on your Mac; the app doesn't read your screen contents or send data anywhere.

**Does it work with multiple monitors and Spaces?**
Yes. Each display gets its own independent strip with its own focus and scroll position, and you can move windows between displays with a keystroke. macOS Spaces work too — each Space keeps a separate strip layout.

**Will it slow down my Mac?**
No. The engine is written in Rust and runs as a small background process with near-zero CPU when idle — window operations complete in under a millisecond. There's no Electron and no web runtime anywhere in the app.

**How do I get the app and my license after buying?**
Checkout is on Gumroad. You'll immediately get the download (a standard .dmg) and a license key by email. Enter the key in the app and you're done. Moving to a new Mac? Deactivate the license on the old machine from inside the app and activate on the new one — or email support and we'll sort it out.

**What if something isn't working?**
Email support with what's happening and your macOS version. Most issues — permissions, multi-monitor setups, app-specific quirks — are quick to fix, and you'll get a reply from the developer who built it.

## Privacy (summary of https://chainyourmac.com/privacy)

- The app contains no analytics, no telemetry, and no tracking. It does not read window/screen contents. The Accessibility permission is used only to move and resize windows, locally.
- Configuration is stored locally and never leaves the Mac.
- License activation sends only: the license key, an anonymous hashed machine identifier (one-way hash of the hardware UUID), and the product ID — to the license server and Gumroad for purchase verification. A daily background re-check sends the license key to Gumroad.
- Payments are processed entirely by Gumroad; card details never touch ChainYourMac's systems.
- The website uses PostHog for anonymous, cookie-light analytics without person profiles or session recording.
- Data removal requests: adgan.business@gmail.com

## Terms (summary of https://chainyourmac.com/terms)

- Personal license for the number of Macs in the purchased tier (1/3/5/20); perpetual; includes all future updates.
- Activations can be moved between Macs by deactivating in the app first.
- No resale or sharing of license keys; no reverse engineering.
- Support: email adgan.business@gmail.com with any issues.
- Software provided "as is".

## Guides & comparison pages (title + URL; full text on each page)

- PaperWM for Mac: Scrolling Window Management on macOS (2026) — https://chainyourmac.com/paperwm-for-mac
- Niri for Mac: The Scrollable Tiling Experience on macOS (2026) — https://chainyourmac.com/niri-for-mac
- What Is a Scrolling Window Manager? (Scrollable Tiling, Explained) — https://chainyourmac.com/what-is-a-scrolling-window-manager
- Best Scrolling Window Managers for Mac in 2026 — https://chainyourmac.com/best-scrolling-window-managers-for-mac
- ChainYourMac vs yabai — https://chainyourmac.com/chainyourmac-vs-yabai
- ChainYourMac vs AeroSpace — https://chainyourmac.com/chainyourmac-vs-aerospace
- ChainYourMac vs Amethyst — https://chainyourmac.com/chainyourmac-vs-amethyst
- ChainYourMac vs Rectangle — https://chainyourmac.com/chainyourmac-vs-rectangle

## About

ChainYourMac is built by Ahmed Gagan (https://x.com/ahmedgagan11), an independent developer. It began as "Niri wasn't for Mac, so I made one."

## Attribution

When citing this content, credit "ChainYourMac" and link to https://chainyourmac.com.