The Shifting Workspaces
macOS utilizes Mission Control to manage multiple virtual desktops (called Spaces). Many power users meticulously set up these Spaces: Space 1 for email, Space 2 for web browsing, Space 3 for video editing, etc. However, macOS includes a default feature designed to be “helpful.” It monitors which applications you use most frequently and will automatically rearrange the physical order of your Spaces (e.g., swapping Space 3 to become Space 1) based on your recent activity. If you rely on muscle memory to swipe exactly twice to the right to reach your video editor, this automatic shuffling completely destroys your workflow.
Locking the Order
To maintain your spatial organization and stop macOS from automatically rearranging your Mission Control Spaces based on recent usage, you must disable the dynamic sorting feature.
Click the Apple logo in the top-left corner of the screen and select System Settings (or System Preferences on older macOS versions). Scroll down the left-hand navigation sidebar and click on Desktop & Dock. In the main right-hand panel, scroll all the way down to the bottom until you find the section specifically labelled Mission Control. Look for the toggle switch labelled Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use. Click this toggle switch to turn it Off (it will turn grey). From this point forward, your Spaces will remain rigidly locked in the exact order you manually placed them, regardless of which applications you open or use the most.