Windows 11 makes it easy to put two, three or four windows side by side. Here are all the methods, from keyboard shortcuts to Snap Layouts.
In this article
Method 1: Keyboard shortcuts (fastest)
- Click the first window and press Win + Left arrow. It fills the left half of the screen.
- Windows shows your other open windows on the right side (Snap Assist). Click one to fill the right half.
- Win + Right arrow: snap to the right half
- Win + Up / Down (after snapping left or right): snap to a corner quarter, for four windows
- Win + Up: maximise; Win + Down: restore or minimise
- Win + Shift + Left/Right: move a window to another monitor
Method 2: Snap Layouts
- Hover your mouse over a window’s maximise button (the square at top right), or press Win + Z.
- A grid of layouts appears: two halves, a two-thirds/one-third split, three columns, four quarters and more.
- Click the zone where you want the current window, then pick windows for the remaining zones.
Windows 11 also shows layouts if you drag a window to the top centre of the screen.
Method 3: Drag to the edges
Drag a window by its title bar to the left or right edge for half the screen, or into a corner for a quarter.
Resize split windows together
When two windows are snapped side by side, drag the divider between them to resize both at once.
Snap Groups
Windows remembers snapped arrangements. Hover over an app in the taskbar and you’ll see the whole group, so you can restore all the windows together in one click.
Snapping not working?
Go to Settings → System → Multitasking and make sure Snap windows is on. Expand it to choose options such as showing layouts when hovering over the maximise button or dragging to the top of the screen.
Want even more control? FancyZones
Microsoft’s free PowerToys includes FancyZones, which lets you design custom layouts. It’s great for ultrawide monitors. Hold Shift while dragging a window to snap it into your zones.
On a Mac
macOS Sequoia and later have built-in tiling: drag a window to a screen edge, or hover over the green button at the top-left of a window and choose a tiling arrangement. Shortcut: Fn + Control + Left/Right arrow.
Using a bigger screen makes split-screen far more useful. See how to connect an external monitor.
