Amethyst vs Rectangle

Amethyst

• Mac users who want windows arranged automatically as they open
• People coming from xmonad who want similar key bindings
• Those who want tiling with a settings window rather than only a config file

Rectangle

• Mac users who want window snapping by shortcut or drag at no cost
• Former Spectacle users who want to keep the same shortcuts
• People who prefer open-source utilities

Amethyst

• macOS only; the site says it is supported on macOS 10.15 or later.
• It needs Accessibility permission, granted under Privacy & Security in System Settings.
• The site advises turning off the macOS setting that rearranges Spaces by recent use, or keyboard navigation between Spaces becomes unpredictable.
• Custom JavaScript layouts are labeled beta, and not every layout responds to the resize commands.

Rectangle

• macOS only. The website lists macOS 10.15 or later, while the GitHub README says the newest release needs macOS 14.
• Window throwing, custom sizes and positions, saved workspaces, window stashing and iCloud sync are only in Rectangle Pro, a separate paid app.
• Rectangle Pro's price is not shown as readable text on the site. It has a 10-day free trial, and one license can be active on 3 devices.

Amethyst

Automatic tiling layouts

Windows are placed by the active layout: Tall, Wide, Two Pane, three-column variants, Column, Row, Fullscreen, Widescreen-Tall and binary space partitioning. Layouts can be removed from the cycle.

xmonad-style shortcuts

Two modifier combinations, Option-Shift and Control-Option-Shift by default, cycle layouts, resize the main pane, move focus and swap windows.

Spaces and screens

Shortcuts throw the focused window to a numbered Space or to another screen, and move focus between screens.

Floating windows

Toggle floating for the focused window, list apps that should always float or always tile, and let windows under a size threshold float by default.

Mouse options

Optional settings make focus follow the mouse, move the pointer to the focused window, swap windows by dragging one onto another, and update the layout after a mouse resize.

YAML config and custom layouts

A file at ~/.amethyst.yml sets layouts, margins, padding and shortcuts, and overrides the app's settings window. Custom layouts written in JavaScript are in beta.

Rectangle

Keyboard shortcuts

Move and resize the active window with a shortcut. Repeating a shortcut cycles through window sizes.

Snap areas

Drag a window to a screen edge or corner to snap it, and choose which window action each snap area triggers.

Preset sizes and positions

Commands for halves, quarters, thirds, fourths and sixths, plus maximize, almost maximize, maximize height, smaller, larger, center and restore.

Multiple displays

Next and previous display commands send a window to another screen, and layouts for displays in portrait orientation are supported.

Todo Mode

Keeps one app that you specify visible while you snap and resize other windows. The equivalent in Rectangle Pro is called Pin Mode.

Spectacle-compatible shortcuts

Rectangle is described as nearly a complete drop-in replacement for the Spectacle app, and Spectacle's default shortcuts can be chosen on first run.

Amethyst

• Amethyst$0

  Every layout, keyboard shortcut and configuration option, as a direct download or through Homebrew. MIT licensed.

Rectangle

• Rectangle$0

  Keyboard shortcuts, drag-to-snap areas, menu bar commands, halves to sixths, display switching and Todo Mode. Free and open source.