GitHub - gechr/WhichSpace: 🖥 Menu bar utility for viewing and switching Spaces (macOS 14.0+)

GitHub

8 min read Original article ↗

Have you ever forgotten which space is currently active on macOS and wanted a quick way to tell? Didn't think so... but I did!

Overview

  • Multiple Spaces - Show current Space only, or all Spaces at once
  • Multiple Displays - Include Spaces from every display in the menu bar icon
  • Click-to-Switch - Jump to any Space directly from the menu bar
  • Move Windows - Send the front window to another Space
  • Scroll-to-Switch - Cycle through Spaces by scrolling over the menu bar icon
  • Colors - Set foreground and background colors per Space
  • Icons - Choose from multiple icon styles (square, circle, triangle, and more)
  • Labels - Replace Space numbers with custom text labels
  • Symbols - Use native macOS symbols instead of numbers
  • Emojis - Use emojis to get even more creative
  • Badges - Add a small character of your choice next to the Space number
  • Size - Scale icons to your preference
  • Fonts - Choose a custom font per Space
  • Keybinds - Global keyboard shortcuts to switch to any Space
  • Sound - Play a sound when switching Spaces
  • Shortcuts - Native actions for the Shortcuts app
  • AppleScript - Automate with scripting support
  • URL Scheme - Control via whichspace:// links
  • Launch at Login - Start automatically with macOS
  • Auto-Updates - Stay up-to-date with automatic updates
  • Localization - Translated into multiple languages

Installation

Homebrew (recommended)

brew install --cask whichspace

GitHub

  • Download WhichSpace.zip
  • Extract WhichSpace.zip and run WhichSpace.app
  • Future updates will be handled automatically

Features

Spaces

Show only the active Space, or every Space

Click on a Space to switch to it

Note

Inactive Spaces are dimmed by default.

Empty Spaces can be hidden entirely.

Displays

Include Spaces from your other Displays, or just the current one

Note

macOS allows an app only one menu bar item, mirrored on every display, so WhichSpace cannot show a different number on each monitor. This setting draws every display's Spaces into that one item.

A vertical separator is shown between Displays.

Full-screen apps are shown as their app icon (or F) and can be hidden entirely.

Colors

Choose foreground and background colors for each Space, or apply one color to all Spaces

Icons

Choose from a variety of icons for each Space, or apply one icon to all Spaces

Symbols

Use custom symbols instead of numbers for a more personalised look

Or pick an emoji instead

Badges

Add a small character next to the Space number

Note

Use # as the badge character to insert the current Space number.

Labels

Replace Space numbers with custom text labels

Note

Use {#} in a label to insert the current Space number, e.g. {#} - Work → 3 - Work.

Size

Adjust the scale and padding of the icons in the menu bar

Fonts

Choose a custom font for each Space, or apply one font to all Spaces

Keybinds

Switch Spaces or move windows with global keyboard shortcuts

Note

The Window shortcuts move the front window between Spaces.

Send leaves you on the current Space, while Move follows the window there.

Sounds

Play a sound when switching Spaces

Choose from built-in macOS system sounds, or add your own custom sounds.

To add a custom sound:

  1. Create the ~/Library/Sounds directory (if it doesn't already exist)
  2. Copy your sound file into the directory
  3. The sound will appear under the User section in the Sound menu

Shortcuts

Automate WhichSpace with Shortcuts

WhichSpace provides native actions in the Shortcuts app - open Shortcuts, create a shortcut, and search for "WhichSpace":

  • Switch Space - switch to a Space by number, optionally applying a label and badge in one step
  • Switch Left / Switch Right - switch one Space in either direction
  • Switch to Previous Space - switch back to the last visited Space
  • Move Window to Space - move the front window to a Space by number, optionally following it there
  • Move Window Left / Move Window Right - move the front window one Space in either direction
  • Get Current Space Number / Label / Badge - read the current Space state into a shortcut
  • Set Current Space Label / Badge - apply a custom label or badge
  • Reset Current Space Label / Badge - revert the current Space to its default
  • Reset All Space Labels / Badges - revert every Space at once

"Switch Space" and "Get Current Space Number" are also available directly from Spotlight and Siri.

AppleScript exposes the same state through space and display objects. Setting a label or badge to "" resets a single Space, and the reset all space labels / reset all space badges commands mirror the Reset All actions.

Scripting

Automate WhichSpace with AppleScript

Switching

# Switch to a specific Space by number
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to switch to space number 3'

# Switch to a Space and apply a label in one step
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to switch to space number 3 label "Work"'

# Switch to a Space and apply a badge in one step
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to switch to space number 3 badge "A"'

# Switch one Space to the left or right
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to switch left'
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to switch right'

# Switch back to the last visited Space
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to switch to previous space'

Moving windows

send does not switch Space. move follows the window.

# Send the front window to a Space, without switching Space
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to send front window to space number 3'

# Move the front window to a Space and switch to it
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to move front window to space number 3'

# Send or move the front window one Space to the left or right
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to send front window left'
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to move front window right'

Note

Requires macOS Sonoma, or Tahoe 26.4 and later. Unsupported on Sequoia.

Spaces

Spaces are objects: space N addresses the current display, space N of display M addresses another display, and current space is the Space you are on. Positions are fixed per display, unaffected by the numbering preference.

# Get the current Space number (1-based numeric index)
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to get current space number'

# Count the Spaces on the current display, or on another display
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to count spaces'
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to count spaces of display 2'

# Get the current Space as an object, e.g. `space 3 of application "WhichSpace"`
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to get current space'

# Get the labels of all Spaces on the current display, in order
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to get label of every space'

# Get the badges of all Spaces on the current display, in the same order
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to get badge of every space'

Labels

# Get the current Space label (as shown in the menu bar, e.g. "1", "2", "F" for fullscreen)
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to get label of current space'

# Set a custom label for the current Space
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to set label of current space to "Work"'

# Set a custom label for any Space, without switching to it
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to set label of space 3 to "Mail"'

# Reset a Space label to its default (e.g. the Space number)
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to set label of space 3 to ""'

# Reset the labels of all Spaces on every display to their defaults
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to reset all space labels'

Badges

# Get the current Space badge character
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to get badge of current space'

# Set a single-character badge for any Space ("#" shows the Space number)
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to set badge of current space to "A"'
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to set badge of space 2 to "#"'

# Reset a Space badge to its default
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to set badge of space 2 to ""'

# Reset the badges of all Spaces on every display to their defaults
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to reset all space badges'

Displays

Displays are numbered in the same order as the display picker in WhichSpace settings.

# Get the system names of all displays, e.g. "Built-in Retina Display"
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to get name of every display'

# Address a Space on a specific display
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to set label of space 2 of display 2 to "Mail"'

# Read every Space label on a specific display
osascript -e 'tell application "WhichSpace" to get label of every space of display 2'

URL Scheme

Automate WhichSpace from anywhere

# Switch to a specific Space by number
open "whichspace://switch/3"

# Switch to a Space and apply a label and badge in one step
open "whichspace://switch/3?label=Work&badge=A"

# Switch one Space to the left or right
open "whichspace://switch/left"
open "whichspace://switch/right"

# Switch back to the last visited Space
open "whichspace://switch/previous"

# Send the front window to a Space, without switching Space
open "whichspace://send/3"

# Move the front window to a Space and switch to it
open "whichspace://move/3"

# Send or move the front window one Space to the left or right
open "whichspace://send/left"
open "whichspace://move/right"