Love window snapping on Linux? You should try a tiling window manager – here’s why
Love window snapping on Linux? You should try a tiling window manager – here’s why
https://www.zdnet.com/article/what-is-a-tiling-window-manager/
Publish Date: 2026-04-07 12:31:00
Source Domain: www.zdnet.com
Jack Wallen / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET
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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Tiling window managers maximize screen space automatically.
- They boost productivity but rely heavily on keyboard shortcuts.
- Linux offers several popular tiling window managers to try.
For those who’ve never experienced a tiling window manager, you’re in for a treat.
Tiling window managers depend on keyboard shortcuts to interact with the interface. Instead of using the mouse, you use the keyboard to open apps, move windows around, cycle through windows, and just about everything you do on the desktop.
This reliance on the keyboard can prevent new Linux users from adopting a tiling window manager. That’s a shame, because although these window managers have a steeper learning curve, they are amazingly efficient.
What is a tiling window manager?
If you’ve ever used window snapping on your desktop, imagine it happening automatically. That’s what a tiling windows manager does.
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Window snapping is when you move an application to either the right or left edge of the screen, and the desktop interface automatically “snaps” the window such that it takes up half of your display. Snap another window to the other edge of the display, and it will automatically take up the other half of the screen. If you want a full-screen app, drag the window to the top of your display.
Snapping windows makes it easier to focus all of your efforts on two windows simultaneously. I use snapping a lot when working between two Firefox tabs, so I don’t have to click between them.
And that’s the same driving force behind tiling window managers, but they take the idea further. Instead of just snapping windows left, right, or full-screen, a tiling window manager uses your screen real estate more efficiently.
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