PulseTiles

Who It's For

PulseTiles is for Mac users who want drag-to-snap without every drag turning into a snap. Normal drags behave as usual; the snap grid only shows up when you hold ⌘. It also suits keyboard users who want the familiar ⌃⌥ halves/quarters/thirds layout plus a way to snap by typing a name, in a small, one-time-purchase menu bar app with no account and no tracking.

How It Works

PulseTiles uses fixed snap positions, not automatic tiling. Hold ⌘ while dragging a window and an 11-zone grid appears, with a live teal preview of where the window will land. Drags without ⌘ are left alone, and a window dragged back out of a zone returns to its previous size. On the keyboard, ⌃⌥ shortcuts cover halves, quarters, thirds, maximize and center (for example ⌃⌥← for the left half, ⌃⌥↩ to maximize, ⌃⌥⌫ to restore). Pressing the same shortcut again steps through ½, ⅓ and ⅔. A right ⌘ + / launcher lets you pick a snap action by name. In total there are 19 snap actions.

Beyond single-window snapping, you can set up several windows once and save them as an arrangement to restore later. You can also set gaps and padding, mark apps that should never snap, move windows between displays, and remap shortcuts, with conflicting bindings flagged. "Tile this display" (⌃⌥⌘T) is an opt-in beta that tiles every window on the current display. PulseTiles moves other apps' windows through the macOS Accessibility API, which is why it asks for Accessibility permission. It has no config file or scripting layer; everything is set in the app's GUI.

Compared to Alternatives

Compared to Magnet, PulseTiles is similarly priced ($4.99 once vs. Magnet's $5.99) and covers the same halves/quarters/thirds snapping. Unlike Magnet, it is sold as a direct download rather than through the Mac App Store, and it has a 7-day trial. Compared to Rectangle, a free, open-source snap manager, PulseTiles is closed-source and paid. Its main differences are that ⌘-drag opens an 11-zone grid while plain drags stay free, and that it adds a by-name launcher and saved multi-window arrangements.

Requirements

• macOS 14 Sonoma or later
• Universal app for Apple Silicon and Intel (per the developer)
• Accessibility permission (needed to move other apps' windows)
• $4.99 one-time purchase after a 7-day free trial (no card, no account); one licence covers 3 Macs
• Actively maintained; current version is 1.1.1

Getting Started

Download PulseTiles from felixweb.site. It's a direct download, not on the Mac App Store. On first launch, grant Accessibility access when macOS asks. Then hold ⌘ while dragging any window to see the 11 snap zones, or press ⌃⌥← to snap the frontmost window to the left half (press it again to cycle through ⅓ and ⅔). The trial unlocks every feature for 7 days. Licence keys are activated through Lemon Squeezy, and the app only goes online for that and to check for updates.