The Stacks feature of macOS Ventura organizes messy desktops by automatically stacking files into neat groups.
It collects the files on your desktop and groups them into neat little stacks along the right edge of your Mac’s screen. Let’s look at how to use the feature in macOS Tahoe.
How to Enable Stacks
- Click anywhere on an empty space on your desktop to make sure it is the active window.
- Turn them on using one of these three methods:
- Keyboard Shortcut: Press Control + Command + 0.
- Menu Bar: Click View at the top of your screen and select Use Stacks.
- Right-Click: Right-click (or two-finger tap) on the desktop and choose Use Stacks.
How to Use Stacks
- Browse files without opening: Hover your cursor over a stack and swipe left or right using two fingers on your trackpad (or one finger on a Magic Mouse) to “scrub” through the files.
- Expand a stack: Click the stack to expand it. Double-click any item to open it.
- Collapse a stack: Click the Down Arrow icon that appears above the stack.
How to Group & Customize Stacks
By default, your Mac organizes files by “Kind” (e.g., Images, PDFs, Screenshots). You can change how your files are organized:
- Right-click or Control-click the desktop.
- Choose Group Stacks By.
- Select an option like Date Last Opened, Date Added, Date Modified, Date Created, or Tags.
