Yabai: Turning macOS into a Tiling Window Manager
Date: 2025-11-24 Tags: macOS, Productivity, Tiling, Yabai Author: Wissam Ztaoui
Introduction
macOS’s window management is… lacking. Yabai brings the power of Linux tiling window managers (like i3 or bspwm) to the Mac. It automatically arranges your windows, allowing for a mouse-free workflow.
1. The SIP Dilemma (System Integrity Protection)
To fully unleash Yabai (instant space switching, removing window shadows), you must disable parts of SIP.
- Safe Route: Keep SIP on. Yabai works, but some advanced features (scripting addition) are disabled.
- Power User Route: Disable SIP (
csrutil disable), install the scripting addition, then re-enable SIP with debug restrictions (csrutil enable --without fs --without debug).
Warning: Disabling SIP lowers system security. Only do this if you understand the risks.
2. Installation & Configuration
Install via Homebrew:
brew install koekeishiya/formulae/yabai
brew install koekeishiya/formulae/skhd.yabairc
Configuration lives in ~/.yabairc.
# Layout
yabai -m config layout bsp
yabai -m config window_gap 10
# Borders (Aesthetics)
yabai -m config window_border on
yabai -m config window_border_width 2
yabai -m config active_window_border_color 0xff3b82f6 # Blue
yabai -m config normal_window_border_color 0xff5555553. Hotkeys with skhd
Yabai doesn’t handle keys. You need skhd.
Config: ~/.skhdrc.
# Focus window
alt - h : yabai -m window --focus west
alt - j : yabai -m window --focus south
alt - k : yabai -m window --focus north
alt - l : yabai -m window --focus east
# Move window
shift + alt - h : yabai -m window --warp west
shift + alt - j : yabai -m window --warp south
# Float / Unfloat
alt - t : yabai -m window --toggle float4. Workflow Integration
Spaces (Virtual Desktops)
Assign apps to specific spaces.
- Space 1: Terminal (iTerm2 / Alacritty)
- Space 2: Browser (Arc / Firefox)
- Space 3: Communication (Discord / Slack)
Scripting
Yabai allows querying window state via JSON.
yabai -m query --windows --space | jq '.[].app'You can build custom status bars (like SketchyBar) using this data.
Conclusion
Once you go tiling, you never go back. Yabai makes macOS feel like a true hacker’s workstation.