ShrtcutTo switch between full-screen apps on a Mac, press ⌃→ or ⌃← to move between Spaces, or swipe left and right with three or four fingers. Each full-screen app occupies its own Space, so every switch plays a sliding animation — which you can shorten but not fully remove.
Going full screen on macOS is not just a bigger window. The app is moved onto a Space of its own, and Spaces are arranged in a horizontal strip you scroll between. That design is why full-screen mode feels calm to work in and slow to move around.
Here is how to switch quickly, how to cut the animation down, and where the approach hits a wall.
The shortcuts that move between Spaces
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| ⌃→ / ⌃← | Move one Space right or left |
| ⌃1…⌃9 | Jump straight to a numbered Space (needs enabling) |
| Three or four-finger swipe | Move between Spaces on the trackpad |
| ⌃↑ | Mission Control — see every Space along the top |
| ⌘Tab | Switch app, moving Spaces automatically if needed |
| ⌃⌘F | Enter or leave full screen for the current window |
Turn on the numbered Space shortcuts
Stepping one Space at a time is the slow way round. macOS can jump directly to a Space, but the shortcuts ship disabled. Open System Settings › Keyboard › Keyboard Shortcuts › Mission Control, expand Mission Control, and tick Switch to Desktop 1, 2, and so on.
One caveat worth knowing before you rely on it: these slots are tied to Space position, not to a particular app. Reorder your Spaces in Mission Control, or quit a full-screen app, and everything after it shifts down a number.
Making the animation faster
The slide between Spaces is the part people actually object to — it is roughly a second, every switch, and it moves your whole field of view.
Turning on Reduce Motion in System Settings › Accessibility › Display replaces the slide with a crossfade. The switch becomes noticeably quicker, and the screen stops travelling sideways, which helps a lot if the movement bothers you. The trade-off is that it applies system-wide, so other animations change too.
Also worth turning off: Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use, in System Settings › Desktop & Dock. Left on, your Spaces reorder themselves as you work, so the Space that was two to the right is somewhere else an hour later. Off, the strip stays put and muscle memory starts working.
Where this approach runs out
Spaces work well up to about four. Past that, position-based switching stops being memorable — you end up stepping through Spaces to find the one you want, which is the scenic route to a window you could name.
The deeper issue is that Spaces are a geographic model: things are somewhere, and you travel there. Switching by name — “go to the Xcode window” — has no built-in path when that window is full screen. ⌘Tab gets you to the app, but only by dragging you through the animation anyway, and it still cannot pick between two full-screen windows of the same app.
That is the same gap described in Cmd-Tab not showing all windows — applications, windows and Spaces are three separate layers, and no built-in shortcut spans all three.
Common mistakes
- Leaving automatic rearranging on. It quietly breaks every numbered shortcut and every bit of muscle memory you build.
- Using full screen for apps you switch constantly. A maximised window on your main desktop switches instantly; a full-screen one costs an animation each way. Reserve full screen for deep work.
- Expecting ⌃1 to follow an app. Numbered shortcuts address positions, not apps.
- Assuming Reduce Motion only affects Spaces. It is a system-wide accessibility setting and changes animations elsewhere too.
- Forgetting Mission Control shows full-screen apps. ⌃↑ lists them along the top; you can click one directly instead of stepping sideways.
Frequently asked questions
What is the keyboard shortcut to switch between full-screen apps on Mac?
⌃→ and ⌃← move one Space at a time. Enabling the numbered shortcuts in System Settings › Keyboard › Keyboard Shortcuts › Mission Control lets you jump straight to a Space with ⌃1 through ⌃9.
Can I turn off the Spaces switching animation completely?
Not entirely. Reduce Motion, in System Settings › Accessibility › Display, replaces the slide with a much faster crossfade, which is as close as macOS gets to removing it.
Why do my Space numbers keep changing?
Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use is on. Turn it off in System Settings › Desktop & Dock and your Spaces will keep a fixed order.
Does Cmd-Tab work with full-screen apps?
Yes. Selecting a full-screen app moves you to its Space automatically. You still get the transition, and it cannot distinguish between two full-screen windows of the same app.
Is full screen or a maximised window better for switching?
A maximised window on your main desktop is faster to switch to, because there is no Space transition. Full screen suits apps you stay inside for long stretches.
The short version
Enable the numbered Space shortcuts, turn off automatic rearranging so those numbers stay meaningful, and switch on Reduce Motion if the slide bothers you. That covers a handful of Spaces comfortably. Beyond that, position-based switching stops scaling, and you want to address windows by name instead.