Version 1.2.0 - What's New → AppTela app icon

AppTela

Organize your apps, your way.

A powerful, beautiful way to organize and access your apps. Arrange them across Screens, Categories, Groups, and Stacks. Make it yours.

The customizable macOS app launcher and Launchpad alternative

Download on the Mac App Store Watch the demo
macOS 15+ · Sequoia & Tahoe $4.99 One-Time No Subscription 10 Languages
Foundation · Build Your Way

Organize your apps, your way.

Screens, Categories, Groups and Stacks. Four levels of organisation to build the layout that fits how you work, not how an OS thinks you should.

01 · Screens

Screens & Categories

Create multiple Screens for different contexts - Work, Creative, Utilities. Add Categories to organise apps into sections, or keep it simple.

02 · Groups

Groups, nested 5 levels deep

Bundle related apps into Groups. Nest Groups within Groups up to 5 levels deep. Each level opens as its own styled window. Rename, clone, and rearrange any time.

03 · Stacks

Stacks & Launch Stacks

Stack apps visually and expand with a peel-away transition. Launch Stacks open every app at once - ideal for project setups and morning routines.

04 · Drag & Drop

Rearrange anywhere

Rearrange apps by dragging within and across Screens, Categories, Groups and Stacks. Or use right-click context menus to move and copy.

05 · Safe & Private

Your apps stay untouched

AppTela never modifies, moves, or deletes any apps on your Mac. It stores lightweight references, not copies. Zero data collection, zero analytics, zero network calls. Everything stays on your Mac.

06 · Lock Layout

Lock it down

Perfect your setup, then lock it. No accidental changes. Unlock any time to edit.

Adaptive · Any Workspace

Adapts to any size.

Compact, wide, single-column, or fullscreen. AppTela reshapes to fit your workspace.

AppTela compact window Compact
AppTela compact window with glass transparency Glass
AppTela single icon column width Single Width
AppTela wide window with glass Wide with Glass
AppTela fullscreen mode Fullscreen
01 · Flexible

Resize freely

Drag the window to any size. Icons rearrange automatically to fit, down to a single column.

02 · Fullscreen

Take over the display

Fullscreen with its own background and settings. Dramatic for focus mode, effortless to exit.

03 · Memory

Remembers your setup

Window size, position and fullscreen state are restored every launch. Pick up exactly where you left off.

04 · On Top

Always on top

Optionally keep AppTela above other windows in windowed mode so it's always within reach.

Themes & Backgrounds

A theme system built in.

Coordinated colour schemes, hand-crafted wallpapers, gradients, and animated backgrounds. One click and AppTela transforms.

26 Display Themes
29 Colour Schemes
7 Animated Backgrounds

Make your launcher feel yours.

Choose from a curated library of display themes - static wallpapers, gradient fills, frosted glass, and animated video backgrounds. Each theme pairs with its own colour scheme, so one click restyles the whole app.

Or bring your own. Use any wallpaper you like. Drop in your own MP4 video. Tune the speed. Switch between styles for windowed and fullscreen independently.

AppTela showing the default Ember animated theme with colour scheme applied
01 · Library

Curated display themes

26 display themes out of the box: hand-crafted wallpapers, gradient fills, frosted glass, and animated backgrounds. Browse, preview, apply.

02 · Motion

Animated backgrounds

Animated video backgrounds that loop seamlessly. GPU-accelerated and designed to stay in the background without distraction.

03 · Custom

Your own MP4 wallpaper New

Use your own wallpaper, static image, or MP4 video as your background. Loop, play once, or replay on each screen change. Adjustable speed. Separate settings for windowed and fullscreen.

04 · Glass

Frosted glass & opacity

Switch on Glass mode for a modern translucent feel. Tune the opacity until it's just right over your desktop.

AppTela preferences panel with live preview of theme and colour changes
05 · Live Preview

See every change before you commit.

The redesigned preferences panel slides in alongside your layout. Every change is previewed in place - themes, colours, sizing, shadows - before you apply. Cancel anytime.

Customization · Every Detail

Make it exactly yours.

Icon sizes, labels, colours, shadows and screen navigation. Every visual element in AppTela is tunable in real time, with live preview.

AppTela preferences panel showing customisation options

Main - Theme, appearance and behaviour

Choose a colour theme, set light/dark/system appearance, configure launch at startup, always on top, after-launch action, and startup screen.

Apps - Icons, tiles and interactions

Icon size and spacing, tile borders and colours, haptic feedback on hover, single or double-click to launch, and app click animation.

Text & Colors - Every label, every colour

Independent text size and colour for app labels, category headings, screen names, group titles, and stack titles. Applied automatically by themes or set manually via colour picker.

Screens - Add, rename, reorder

Manage your screens and choose the navigation style: thumbnail dropdown, menu bar strip, pill indicator, or hidden.

Background - Windowed and fullscreen, separately

Choose from built-in themes, gradients, your own wallpaper, or MP4 video. Glass mode with adjustable opacity. Independent settings per mode.

Group - Group window styling

Glass or solid background, opacity, border colour and thickness, close button visibility. Each group window is independently styled.

Stack - Stack behaviour and appearance

Vertical or horizontal layout, 3D or flat icon style, hover/click/double-click to open, expand transition speed, and launch gesture.

Shadow - Directional shadows

Clock-based Shadow Time or fixed angle. Adjustable depth and colour. Raise and rotate effects on screen change or timed intervals.

Advanced - Language, lock, export and reset

10 languages, lock layout, export your setup to back up or move between Macs, import to restore, erase - including reset to defaults.

Behaviour · Fine Control

Tuned to your workflow.

Nine settings that adapt AppTela to how you actually work.
01 · Startup

Launch at login

Optionally launch AppTela when your Mac starts. Ready the moment you log in.

02 · Screen

Startup screen

Choose which Screen opens on launch. Return to your last-used Screen or always start on a specific one.

03 · Click

Click to launch

Single-click or double-click to launch apps. Same flexibility for Launch Stacks.

04 · After

After launch

Set AppTela to automatically hide, close, or stay visible after opening an app.

05 · Search

Search & add

Type to instantly filter apps. Any app on your Mac that isn't in AppTela can be added from the search results.

06 · Language

10 languages

English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Portuguese (BR & PT), Simplified Chinese, Korean and Japanese.

07 · Backup

Export & import

Export your entire layout as a single file. Import on another Mac to restore everything - Screens, Categories, Groups, Stacks and settings.

08 · Haptic

Haptic feedback

A subtle trackpad tap as you hover over icons. Off by default, a tactile layer when you want it.

09 · First Run

Auto-setup on first launch

On first launch (or after a reset), AppTela scans your Mac and builds a demo layout - apps organised into categories with pre-built stacks to get you started.

AppTela Add Apps view showing installed applications available to add AppTela right-click context menu showing move, copy, rename actions
Management · Add, Edit & Organise

Add apps from anywhere.

Add and edit apps using the built-in app selector. Browse every app on your Mac - not just /Applications. Apps in Downloads, Desktop, Homebrew, and custom folders are all available to add.

Right-click any app, group, stack or category for quick actions. Move, copy, clone, rename. Drag and drop works everywhere too - drop one app onto another to create a Group, Stack, or Launch Stack.

01 · Add

Add from any folder

Browse apps from /Applications, Downloads, Desktop, Homebrew, and any custom location. Add to any Screen, Category, Group or Stack.

02 · Edit

Edit apps view

Open the app selector for any Category, Group or Stack to add or remove apps from a full list of what's installed on your Mac.

03 · Right-Click

Context menus

Right-click any app, group or stack to move, copy, clone, rename or remove. Right-click empty space to create new Categories, Groups or Stacks.

04 · Drag & Drop

Direct manipulation

Drag apps between Screens, Categories, Groups and Stacks. Drop one app onto another to combine them into a Group, Stack, or Launch Stack.

Stacks · Quick Access, Zero Clutter

Stack apps. Launch workflows.

Stack related apps together and expand them with a peel-away transition, or open every app in a Launch Stack with a single click.

AppTela stack peel-away expand animation
01 · Hover Stacks

Stack, hover, expand.

Click a stack icon and its apps expand with a peel-away transition. Configure the layout vertical or horizontal, and choose between click, double-click or hover to open.

AppTela Launch Stack icon with red badge
02 · Launch Stacks

One click. Every app.

Group a set of apps into a Launch Stack and open them all with a single click. Apps launch in sequence so nothing gets lost. Perfect for morning routines, project setups, and switching between work modes.

Create stacks by dragging one app onto another.

03 · Trigger

Your trigger, your choice

Configure hover or click to open Hover Stacks. Single or double-click to fire Launch Stacks.

04 · Styling

Fully styled

Stack windows have their own text size, colours and title settings. Consistent with your theme, or uniquely styled.

Take Control of Your Apps

AppTela gives you the flexibility macOS doesn't.

Built with Swift and SwiftUI for macOS Sequoia and Tahoe.

Download on the Mac App Store

© 2026 Escape Code Limited. All rights reserved.

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