WonderSnap vs Magnet: which Mac window manager should you buy in 2026?

Magnet has been the default answer to "how do I snap windows on a Mac" for years. WonderSnap (often searched as "Wonder Snap") covers the same ground, then goes after what Magnet does not attempt.

What Magnet does well

For drag-to-edge halves and quarters, Magnet is enough. It is a one-time Mac App Store purchase, its price moving with sales, roughly $3 to $8. Drag a window to a screen edge or corner and it snaps into a half or a quarter. Keyboard shortcuts cover halves, quarters, thirds and sixths, and it works across multiple displays. It is small, familiar and has a huge installed base. If that is all you want, macOS's own tiling increasingly covers it too.

What WonderSnap adds

WonderSnap arranges the whole screen, not one window. That is the Windows 11 model, Snap Layouts, Snap Assist and snap groups, as a native Mac menu-bar app.

• Snap Assist. Dock one window with the hold menu and your other open windows are offered for the remaining zones. The palette follows the pointer, so you fill only what you want.
• A layout picker with guided fill. ⌃⌥Space shows halves, thirds, quarters, two-thirds splits and your custom layouts, then walks you through every zone.
• Custom layouts. Draw your own tilings in Settings > Layouts, one per display, saved together. Zones are carved from splits, so a layout can never have gaps or overlaps.
• Saved arrangements. Which windows sit where, across all displays, recalled with ⌃⌥⇧1, ⌃⌥⇧2, ⌃⌥⇧3 or from the menu.
• Per-display memory. "Auto-Restore per Display" puts your arrangement back when that monitor combination returns.
• Linked resize. Drag a shared edge and the neighbours flex with it, live. The tiling stays gapless.
• Dock hover previews. Rest on a Dock icon to see that app's windows; click one to jump to it.
• The hold menu. Click and hold any title bar for a snap menu at the cursor, Gallery or Wheel style. Edge drags stay native macOS.
• Margins and animation. Gaps Off, Small, Medium or Large (Medium by default), and windows glide instead of teleporting.

Side by side

Both apps let you rebind. WonderSnap's defaults follow the Rectangle and Magnet layout, so muscle memory carries over, and any chord can be changed in Settings > Shortcuts.

Who should pick which

Pick Magnet (or macOS's own tiling) if you only ever drag one window to an edge, you want it from the App Store, and you never think about the second, third and fourth window.

Pick WonderSnap if you arrange several windows at once, dock a laptop and are tired of everything piling onto one screen, want thirds and custom layouts, or miss Snap Assist from Windows 11. Magnet does not attempt any of that.

Price and trial

Two ways to buy, one app. Magnet is a one-time App Store purchase. WonderSnap is a direct download: $2 a year, no subscription and no auto-renewal, or $8 once for life with free updates. Every feature is free for 7 days first, no account and no card, so you can run the two head to head.

Questions

Can I run WonderSnap and Magnet at the same time?

Nothing stops you installing both, but two apps answering the same shortcuts get in each other's way. Try WonderSnap during its 7-day trial with Magnet quit, then keep the one you reach for.

Does WonderSnap snap when I drag a window to the screen edge?

No, and that is deliberate. macOS's own edge tiling handles that, and WonderSnap leaves it untouched. Its gestures are the click-and-hold on a title bar, the ⌃⌥ chords and the ⌃⌥Space picker.

Is WonderSnap on the Mac App Store like Magnet?

No. WonderSnap is a direct download from thewonderjoy.com for macOS 14 and later. It updates itself: it checks once a day and asks before installing, and there is a Check Now button in Settings.

Can I change WonderSnap's keyboard shortcuts?

Yes. Every chord can be changed in Settings > Shortcuts. The defaults hold ⌃⌥ and follow the layout Rectangle and Magnet use: arrow keys for the halves, U-I-J-K for the corners, D-F-G for the thirds, E and T for the two-thirds and Return to fill the screen. Habits from either app carry straight over.

What does WonderSnap cost?

$2 for a year, with no subscription and no auto-renewal, or $8 once for life, with free updates. Both unlock the same app. Every feature is free for 7 days first, no account and no card.