Disclosure: Anchor is our app. Every fact about the other apps below comes from that app's own website or its Mac App Store listing, checked on 1 October 2026. Prices can change, so check before you buy.
At a glance
| App | Price | Restores on connect / disconnect | How layouts are saved | macOS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anchor (ours) | $6.99 launch price, one-time; 7-day trial | Yes, automatically | Learned automatically per setup; optional manual save and lock | 14 or later |
| Stay | Free | Yes, when configured to | You store windows, per display combination | 14.6 or later |
| Display Maid | $5.99 on the Mac App Store; demo available | Yes | You save positions; layouts belong to a display configuration | 10.13 or later |
| Layoutish | $9.99 one-time; 7-day trial | Yes, a couple of seconds after the change | You save named layouts; display profiles pick a default | 13.5 or later |
| Moom | $15; free trial | Yes, with "Apply automatically when switching to" | You save layouts | 10.13 or later |
| Rectangle Pro | See their site; 10-day trial | Yes, "Activate when displays are connected or disconnected" | You arrange a workspace and assign it | 13.5 or later |
Anchor (our app)
Anchor does one job: put windows back when your display setup changes. It recognizes each setup from the monitors' hardware IDs and arrangement, and learns your layout as you work, so there's no "save" step before you unplug. A layout can be locked if you want it fixed. It restores only on display changes or when you press the shortcut, so it never fights a window you moved by hand. One-time purchase, 3 Macs, 7-day free trial, macOS 14 or later. It doesn't put windows back on other Spaces yet, and leaves full-screen windows alone.
Stay
Stay's site describes the same idea: "Stay can store a set of windows for every combination of displays that you use with your computer", and it "can also be configured to automatically restore windows as displays are connected and disconnected." You move windows where you want them and have Stay store them. The Mac App Store lists it as free (freeware as of version 1.5.1), requiring macOS 14.6 or later. If you don't mind storing layouts yourself and want a free option, it's a natural first try.
Display Maid
Display Maid saves window positions you arrange and can "automatically restore window positions when a display is connected/disconnected", with layouts "owned by a specific display configuration". It can also restore positions when an app launches, and has a quick profile selector (Command Control Tab). Its site notes that full-screen and tiled apps aren't supported and Spaces support is limited. It's $5.99 on the Mac App Store, requiring macOS 10.13 or later, and runs natively on Intel and Apple silicon.
Layoutish
Layoutish saves named layouts and lets you set "display profiles", a named monitor setup with a default layout, that "auto-apply when monitors are connected or disconnected, a couple of seconds after the change". It also opens apps that were closed, has a global hotkey per layout and a ⌘⇧L switcher, and captures windows on every Space (restoring to the current Space). $9.99 one-time after a 7-day trial, macOS 13.5 or later, sold directly by Appish.
Moom
Moom is a full window manager (a pop-up palette, snap zones, keyboard control) that can also save layouts. Its help pages document an "Apply automatically when switching to" option that turns a saved layout into one "fired when you add or remove displays from your system", plus a "display configuration matches" trigger for arrangement changes. $15 with a free trial, macOS 10.13 or later, sold by Many Tricks (the Mac App Store has "Moom Classic").
Rectangle Pro
Rectangle Pro is the paid version of the free Rectangle snapping app. Its site says it can "Arrange an entire workspace of apps with just one shortcut" and "Activate when displays are connected or disconnected." 10-day free trial, macOS 13.5 or later, one license active on 3 devices at a time.
What about Rectangle and Magnet?
Both are popular for snapping windows into halves and quarters. Rectangle is free and open source (macOS 10.15 or later), and Magnet is $4.99 on the Mac App Store (macOS 13 or later) and supports up to six external displays. Neither app's own page mentions saving a layout per display setup or restoring windows when displays change, so they solve a different problem. Many people use a snapping app and a layout app together.
How to choose
- You want it to just happen, with no saving: Anchor learns layouts automatically.
- You want free: Stay.
- You also want a full window manager: Moom or Rectangle Pro.
- You want named layouts you switch between on purpose: Layoutish or Display Maid.
All the paid ones offer a trial or demo, so try the one that fits on your own desk.