Mac window utilities do two different jobs that often get lumped together. Snapping arranges the window in your hand: halves, corners, grids. Restoring puts every window back where you had it after macOS scrambles them, usually when you dock, undock or plug in a monitor. Rectangle, Magnet and Moom are mainly snapping tools, though two of them sell a saved-layout feature on top. Stay, BetterStage, ScreenPlace and Putback are restorers. Here is how they actually differ, with every price and macOS requirement taken from each tool's own site or App Store listing and checked on 4 August 2026.
| Capability | Putback | Rectangle | Magnet | Stay | Moom |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restores windows automatically when displays changeRectangle Pro restores a saved workspace “on display connected”; free Rectangle does not. Stay and Moom re-apply a layout you saved earlier. Putback restores the layout you actually had. | ✓ | ~ | ✕ | ~ | ~ |
| Learns layouts while you work, nothing to save | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Separate memory per display setup (desk, home, laptop only)Rectangle Pro and Moom hold saved workspaces rather than a memory per setup. Stay documents a stored set of windows for every display combination you use. | ✓ | ~ | ✕ | ~ | ~ |
| Keyboard snapping and tiling (halves, corners, grids)Snapping is a different job. Putback pairs well with a snapping tool. | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Pinned layouts and per app rules | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ~ |
| One time purchase, no subscriptionPutback is $19 once for one Mac with a 7 day free trial. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
✓ built in · ~ partial or manual · ✕ not what the tool is for. Based on each tool's public documentation; tools evolve, check their sites for current details.
The four restorers, compared on what separates them
Capability ticks stop being useful once you are only looking at restorers, because all four of these put windows back. The questions that decide between them are how the layout got recorded in the first place, how old a Mac they run on, and what they cost.
| Tool | How the layout gets recorded | Needs macOS | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Putback | Learned continuously while you work. Nothing to save | 14 and later | $19 once for one Mac, 7 day trial |
| Stay | You save a stored set of windows, per display combination | 14.6 and later for 1.5.1 | No price stated on the pages we checked |
| BetterStage | You name and save stages. Pro keeps saved workspaces | 14 (Sonoma) and later | $19.99 once for one device. AI features are $4.99 a month |
| ScreenPlace | You save a layout per display setup | Tahoe (26) and later | Free tier with one workspace. Ultra $19 once |
The macOS column is the one worth reading twice. ScreenPlace requires macOS 26, so it will not install on a Mac a version or two behind, and Stay requires 14.6 for its current release.
Putback vs Rectangle
A much loved free, open source snapping tool. Press a shortcut and the active window jumps to a half, third or corner. The free version makes no attempt to remember an arrangement after you unplug a monitor. Rectangle Pro does more than most write-ups credit it with: its own comparison page lists saving entire workspaces and restoring them “using window throw, keyboard shortcut, or on display connected”. That is a real overlap with what Putback does, and the difference is what gets put back. Pro restores the workspace you saved, so it is only as current as your last save; Putback records where your windows actually were. If you like Rectangle, keep it either way, because the snapping and the restoring do not conflict.
Putback vs Magnet
The App Store classic for drag to edge and shortcut snapping. Like Rectangle it arranges the window you are touching right now, one window at a time, and macOS still scrambles everything when your display configuration changes.
Putback vs Stay
The long standing save and restore utility. You arrange your windows, tell Stay to store them, and it can put stored windows back later, including when displays change. The catch is the manual loop: the restore is only as fresh as your last save. Putback removes the loop by learning continuously while you work.
Putback vs Moom
A power tool that mixes snapping, saved layouts and custom commands. You can save a layout and have Moom apply it when a display arrangement appears. Like Stay, it restores what you saved, not what you had, and it rewards people who enjoy configuring. Putback aims at the opposite temperament: nothing to configure, nothing to save.
Putback vs BetterStage
The closest thing to a direct competitor, and the one Google currently names for multi-display workspaces. It is built around stages: named arrangements you switch between on purpose, with a Pinned Displays feature and an Offline Display Shelf that, in its own words, keeps a disconnected display's workspace “safely preserved until it returns”. It recovers arrangements after a restart, a wake or a reconnect. Pro is $19.99 once for one device, with an optional AI subscription at $4.99 a month, and it needs macOS 14 or later, the same as Putback. Pick it if you want to choose a layout. Pick Putback if you want to stop losing one.
Putback vs ScreenPlace
The newest entrant and the one whose pitch reads almost exactly like ours: it “remembers exactly where every window should be on your Mac and automatically puts it back in its place”, and it saves a separate layout per display setup, applying the right one when that setup connects. There is a free tier with one workspace, and Ultra is $19 once. Two things to check before you choose it. It requires macOS Tahoe (26) or later, which rules out any Mac more than a version behind, where Putback runs on macOS 14 and later. And it applies a layout you saved, so what comes back is your last save rather than where your windows actually were.
Looking for a deeper guide? See which kind of Mac window manager you actually need, or if one tool specifically is what brought you here, read Rectangle alternatives for Mac and Magnet alternatives for Mac. If the snappers are what you are choosing between, that is its own comparison: Rectangle vs Magnet vs Moom. If you are weighing the restorers specifically, see Putback vs Stay or Putback vs Moom.
Questions, answered.
Which Mac app remembers window positions when displays change?
Four are built for it: Stay, BetterStage, ScreenPlace and Putback. Two snapping tools also reach into it if you pay: Rectangle Pro can restore a saved workspace when a display connects, and Moom saves layouts you recall yourself. Free Rectangle and Magnet do not, because snapping acts when you press a shortcut and keeps no record of a display setup. What separates all of them is how the layout gets recorded: everything above except Putback asks you to save a layout deliberately, so the restore is only as fresh as your last save, while Putback learns the layout while you work.
What is the difference between Putback and BetterStage?
BetterStage is built around stages, named arrangements you switch between deliberately, and its Pro tier keeps saved workspaces for different setups. Both apps require macOS 14 or later and both cost roughly the same once, though BetterStage also sells an AI subscription on top. The real difference is the trigger: BetterStage is a tool for choosing a layout, Putback is a tool for not losing one. If you want to flip between a writing stage and a meeting stage on purpose, BetterStage is aimed at you. If you just want the layout you already had after a monitor comes back, Putback is.
What is the difference between Putback and ScreenPlace?
The overlap is real: ScreenPlace also saves a layout per display setup and applies it when that setup connects. Two practical differences. ScreenPlace states macOS Tahoe (26) or later, so it will not run on a Mac that is a version or two behind, where Putback needs macOS 14. And ScreenPlace applies the layout you saved, where Putback records where your windows actually were, which matters if your arrangement drifts during the day. ScreenPlace has a free tier with one workspace; Putback has a 7 day trial instead.
Is Putback a replacement for Rectangle or Magnet?
No, they do different jobs. Rectangle and Magnet snap windows into halves, thirds and corners with keyboard shortcuts. Putback remembers where every window lives and puts it all back when your displays change. Many people run Putback alongside a snapping tool.
How is Putback different from Stay?
Stay asks you to save stored windows yourself and to keep those snapshots up to date. Putback learns your layout silently while you work, so the restore always matches the way your desk looked a moment ago, with nothing to save or maintain.
Does Putback handle a docked MacBook with external monitors?
Yes, that is the whole point. Each display setup (laptop only, desk with a monitor, office with two) is remembered separately, and windows return to the right spot for that exact setup in about 0.4 seconds.
What does Putback cost?
One payment, starting at $19 for one Mac, with a 7 day free trial and no subscription. Family and Team keys unlock 5 and 20 Macs.
Stop rearranging windows by hand
Putback is available now for macOS 14 and later.
Free for 7 days · then $19, once · macOS 14+