Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Rectangle VS Contexts

Compare Rectangle VS Contexts and see what are their differences

Rectangle logo Rectangle

Window management app based on Spectacle, written in Swift.

Contexts logo Contexts

Switch between application windows effortlessly — with Fast Search, a better Command-Tab, a Sidebar or even a quick gesture. Free trial available.
  • Rectangle Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-20
  • Contexts Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-21

Rectangle videos

SKYWALKER RECTANGLE TRAMPOLINE REVIEW!!!

More videos:

  • Review - Skywalker Rectangle Trampoline Review #1
  • Review - Marvin Malton 160 Rectangle Flying Hour Watch Review

Contexts videos

The Art of Discovering Bounded Contexts by Nick Tune

More videos:

  • Review - A Fresh Take on Contexts
  • Review - Contexts and Methods: Literature Review - Intro and Assessment Criteria

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Rectangle and Contexts)
Mac Tools
100 100%
0% 0
Mac
0 0%
100% 100
Window Manager
80 80%
20% 20
OSX Tools
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using Rectangle and Contexts. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Rectangle and Contexts

Rectangle Reviews

Best 6 Mac Window Managers
Rectangle shows that you don’t need to dip into your bank account to get window resizer tools. This free Mac window manager lets you manage multiple windows using keyboard shortcuts, menu options, or by dragging and dropping. Just like Magnet, you can split your screen up into quarters, thirds, or halves.
Source: mackeeper.com
Top 6 Window Manager Apps for Mac
Most window manager apps for Mac support multiple monitors. They can help you move windows between screens and create custom layouts for each monitor. Many window manager apps – such as BetterSnapTool, Magnet, and Rectangle – offer this functionality.
The 6 Best Mac Window Management Tools
However, it might take some time for you to get used to the shortcuts in the Rectangle app since there are many. Furthermore, you can also add some of your apps to exceptions if you want to keep them away from Rectangle's shortcuts.

Contexts Reviews

We have no reviews of Contexts yet.
Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Rectangle should be more popular than Contexts. It has been mentiond 451 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Rectangle mentions (451)

  • Ask HN: What macOS apps/programs do you use daily and recommend?
    - Rectangle: window management [https://rectangleapp.com/]. - Source: Hacker News / 5 days ago
  • Ask HN: What macOS apps/programs do you use daily and recommend?
    MicDrop - Add a global "mute microphone" button in the status bar (https://getmicdrop.com/) AltTab - Give the same (sane) behaviour to cmd+tab as alt+tab on Windows (https://alt-tab-macos.netlify.app/) Rectangle - Window snapping (https://rectangleapp.com/) Maccy - A clipboard history manager (https://maccy.app/) DropZone - Add a "shelf" zone in the same way as Dropover. It's less good than Dropover, but it's... - Source: Hacker News / 5 days ago
  • AeroSpace is an i3-like tiling window manager for macOS
    Https://rectangleapp.com is the spiritual successor. - Source: Hacker News / 9 days ago
  • AeroSpace is an i3-like tiling window manager for macOS
    Not to drop this kind hacker’s competitor, but I’ve been a happy user of https://rectangleapp.com/. Will definitely be checking this out instead tho, even though I’ve paid for rectangle — any demo that has SublimeText windows in it is a demo I trust! - Source: Hacker News / 9 days ago
  • Updating My Mac Window Shortcuts Strategy for Optimal Workflow
    Rectangle’s installation is incredibly straightforward. Its immediate out-of-the-box functionality was a pleasant surprise. For anyone seeking to reduce the friction of window management on their Mac, Rectangle is a solution I wholeheartedly recommend. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
View more

Contexts mentions (60)

  • New MacBook Setup
    A fellow HN member recommended this https://contexts.co/. It is amazing feature-wise, but it has some annoying bugs and it seems abandonware. - Source: Hacker News / 22 days ago
  • Show HN: I3wm Alt+Tab Workspace Switcher
    I like using Contexts on the Mac as replacement: https://contexts.co. - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago
  • My MacBook setup (the 2024 version)
    I use the Contexts [1] app, couldn't live without it (not affiliated...) It shows me all open Windows and in which Desktop, in its Sidebar (I've disabled the macOS dock.) Also the Cmd-Tab functionalities are nice, and I can use "Fn + [a single key] " shortcut to focus an app. Would recommend. [1] https://contexts.co/. - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • Arc 1.0 – a freeware web browser developed by The Browser Company
    Thanks for your feedback, I'll have to give TST in the Firefox sidebar another try... > "I make use of ctrl-uparrow to switch between browser and VSCode" I use the Contexts app (Fast Search) for that - https://contexts.co/. - Source: Hacker News / 11 months ago
  • Is there a program that can show my open apps as tabs across a bar like open tabs in a web browser?
    Https://contexts.co has a sidebar option. In their landing page its there under the sidebar heading. Source: about 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Rectangle and Contexts, you can also consider the following products

Magnet Window Manager - Magnet Developers

Witch - Welcome to the world of W. i. t. c. h.

yabai - A tiling window manager for macOS based on binary space partitioning

Compiz - Project information. Maintainer: PS Project Management Team. Driver: Compiz Maintainers. Licence: GNU GPL v2, GNU LGPL v2. 1, MIT / X / Expat Licence.

Moom - Move your mouse over the green zoom button in any window, and Moom's mouse control overlay will appear (as seen in the above animation).

rcmd - rcmd makes app switching instantaneous!When you have a lot of apps open, finding and switching to them might feel too slow using Command-Tab or the Dock.Hold down the right side |⌘ command| and press the first letter of the app name to focus it.