Stop your Mac from shuffling the order of Desktops (Spaces) — by Tetsujin on Ask Different

beginnerforumCC BY-SA (Stack Exchange; version depends on post date)

macOS reorders Spaces based on which you used most recently, which confuses keyboard switching. Turn off 'Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use'. It's in System Settings → Desktop & Dock → Mission Control on Ventura and later, or System Preferences → Mission Control on older versions.

Quick steps

System Settings → Desktop & Dock → Mission Control
Uncheck 'Automatically rearrange Spaces based on most recent use'

Paraphrased from the source. Menus can differ by version, so check the original for full details.

Read the full thread on apple.stackexchange.com

Source: Stop your Mac from shuffling the order of Desktops (Spaces) by Tetsujin on Ask Different. Licence: CC BY-SA (Stack Exchange; version depends on post date).

Source reviewed: 2026-11-02
Link checked: Not yet
Tested hands-on: Not by Oddbyte.Me

spacesmission controldesktops

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