If you have dozens of applications installed on your Mac, finding a specific program using the Finder can be tedious. Apple created the Launchpad to solve this, providing an iOS-style grid of application icons that you can quickly swipe through. However, as you install more software, this grid can quickly become cluttered across multiple pages. To maintain a clean and efficient workspace, you must learn how to organize your Launchpad by creating custom app folders.
How to Access and Navigate the Launchpad
Before you can organize your apps, you need to open the Launchpad interface.
- Click the Launchpad icon in your Dock (it looks like a grid of colorful squares). Alternatively, you can use a trackpad gesture by pinching your thumb and three fingers together on the trackpad.
- The Launchpad will take over your entire screen, displaying a grid of your installed applications.
- If you have more apps than can fit on a single screen, you will see small white dots at the bottom center of the display indicating multiple pages. Swipe left or right with two fingers on your trackpad (or click and drag your mouse) to move between these pages.
How to Create an App Folder
Creating a folder in the macOS Launchpad works exactly the same way it does on an iPhone or iPad.
- Locate two apps that you want to group together (for example, Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel).
- Click and hold the icon for Microsoft Word. Do not release the mouse button.
- Drag the Word icon directly on top of the Excel icon and hover there for a split second.
- A grey square will appear around the icons, indicating a folder is being created. Release the mouse button to drop the app inside.
macOS will automatically attempt to name the folder based on the category of the apps (e.g., “Productivity”). To change this name, simply click on the white text above the open folder and type your own custom title.
How to Manage and Delete Folders
Once you have created a folder, you can easily add more apps to it by simply dragging any other app icon directly onto the folder.
To move a folder to a different Launchpad page, click and drag the folder to the extreme left or right edge of your screen. Hold it there for a moment, and macOS will automatically swipe to the adjacent page, allowing you to drop the folder in its new location.
If you decide you no longer want a folder, there is no “Delete Folder” button. You must manually remove every application from it. Click the folder to open it, then click and drag each app icon out of the folder and drop it onto the main Launchpad background. The moment you drag the final app out of the folder, the empty folder will automatically vanish from the system.