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Move through your Mac with a letter.

Letter Switcher is a menu-bar utility that keeps the apps and windows you use most within one keyboard choice. This guide explains the everyday workflow and every setting in the app.

Quick start

The default global shortcut is Command+Tab. The shortcut is intercepted only after Accessibility access is granted, so macOS's own app switcher remains available until Letter Switcher is ready.

Open the switcher

Press your global shortcut. The panel appears in the center of the active screen and lists eligible apps in recent activation order.

Press a key

Press the letter or number shown on an app tile. Letter Switcher activates that app and closes the panel.

Choose a window

Hold Option while pressing an app key, or choose Choose Window in Settings. Apps with fewer than two windows activate directly.

Cancel

Press Escape or dismiss the panel to return to the app you were using.

Settings reference

Open Settings from the menu-bar icon or with letterswitcher://settings. Changes are saved immediately.

Display

Choose how the switcher is arranged and how much space each app takes.

Layout: Single Row keeps apps on one line and scales icons down when space is tight. Multiple Rows arranges them in a grid.
Maximum apps per row: Choose 2–36 apps for each row in Multiple Rows mode. The panel supports up to 36 key targets.
Icon Size: Set icon size from 48 to 150 pt. Single Row can reduce the size automatically to fit the screen.
Badge Appearance: Auto follows the macOS appearance. Light uses a dark translucent badge; Dark uses a light translucent badge.
Include non-Dock apps with open windows: Add menu-bar and accessory apps when they have a visible window. Accessibility also lets Letter Switcher find minimized windows.
Key priority: Choose Letters First or Numbers First to control which labels the first candidates receive.
When pressing an app key: Activate App brings the app forward. Choose Window opens its window chooser; holding Option does the same. Apps with fewer than two available windows activate directly.

Language

Choose the language used by the macOS app. System Default follows the language selected for Letter Switcher in macOS Settings.

Supported choices: English, 简体中文, 繁體中文, 日本語, 한국어, Français, Español, हिन्दी, Português (Brasil), Русский, Bahasa Indonesia, Deutsch, Tiếng Việt, Türkçe, ไทย, Italiano, and Polski.

Fixed App Keys

Reserve a letter or number for an app while it is running. Other apps fill the remaining labels by recent-use order.

Add an application: Choose Add Application…, select an app, and assign an unused key. You can change or remove the assignment later.
When the app is not running: A fixed key does not launch it. Another candidate can use that key until the app becomes available again.

Excluded Apps

Remove an app from the switcher candidate list.

Add an application: Choose Add Application… and select an .app bundle. Choose Remove when you want the app to appear again.

Shortcut

Set the global shortcut that opens the switcher panel.

Click the shortcut control and press a combination with at least one modifier. Reset restores Command+Tab.
Command+Tab needs Accessibility because Letter Switcher must intercept the system shortcut. Other combinations use macOS's global hot-key service.

Startup & Permissions

Control launch at login and review the permissions used for window features.

Launch at login: Add or remove Letter Switcher as a macOS login item.
Accessibility: Find windows, detect minimized or windowless apps, focus windows across Spaces, reopen apps, and intercept Command+Tab.
Screen Recording: Show live thumbnails in the window chooser. Letter Switcher asks for this permission only when you use its control.

License

Activate the full app with the purchase email and license key.

Trial: The app includes a 14-day full-feature trial. Choose Purchase License to open the product page, or paste a key into License Key and choose Activate.
Activation: The license service validates each key and ties it to one active Mac. Release a key from another Mac before activating it here.

About

View the app version and update status. Check Update looks for a newer release; Download Update opens its download page.

Permissions

Letter Switcher runs locally and does not require an account. Grant only the permission you need for the feature you want to use.

Accessibility

Finds application windows, detects minimized or windowless apps, focuses a selected window across Spaces, and enables Command+Tab interception.

Screen Recording

Captures a selected application window so the window chooser can show a thumbnail. App switching works without it.

URL

Open these URLs from Terminal, Shortcuts, or any app that can open a URL. Each command runs locally and changes app state only when the command says it should.

letterswitcher://showShow the app switcher.

letterswitcher://hideHide the app switcher.

letterswitcher://toggleShow or hide the app switcher.

letterswitcher://settingsOpen the Settings window.

letterswitcher://activate?bundle-id=com.apple.SafariActivate a currently eligible running app by Bundle ID.

letterswitcher://windows?bundle-id=com.apple.SafariOpen the window chooser for a currently eligible app. If it has fewer than two windows, it activates the app instead.

License and updates

Your 14-day trial includes every feature. A lifetime license keeps the app unlocked after the trial ends. The key arrives by email and appears on the purchase confirmation page. Use About to check for updates.

Troubleshooting

Start with the symptom that matches what you see. Most issues come from permissions, shortcut conflicts, or an app being filtered from the candidate list.

The shortcut does nothing

Open Settings → Startup & Permissions and allow Accessibility. Then return to Settings → Shortcut and try again. If another utility owns the shortcut, record a different combination.

I can switch apps but not windows

Allow Accessibility for window discovery and Screen Recording for thumbnails. Apps with only one available window activate directly by design.

An app is missing

Check Excluded Apps, and enable Include non-Dock apps with open windows if it is a menu-bar or accessory app. Only running, eligible apps are candidates.

The panel has too many or too few columns

Choose Display → Single Row or Multiple Rows and adjust Maximum apps per row and Icon Size. The available key set limits the panel to 36 targets.