How do I restore the old Launchpad in macOS Tahoe

JivingJohnson wrote:

Launchpad was super efficient. I had mine in a Hot Corner. Slide the mouse to the corner, click on app, 99% of which were on the first screen, because I'd arranged them deliberately for this purpose. It was a 5 x 7 grid....who needs more than 35 apps on a daily basis? And if you do, it's a simple 2-finger slide on the Trackpad.

As you can no longer do that, you'll have to find another option.

You can put a folder of curated and arranged aliases in your Dock. You can use one of the third-party options. You put Apps in the hot corner try to get used to that. You can learn to use Spotlight. Those are a few of your options.

Launchpad is not available in macOS 26 Tahoe. Instead, Apple has replaced it with a Spotlight-based application library similar to that on iOS. macOS organizes the apps, you cannot manually sort them. To have Apple consider your feedback on this issue, submit it here:

Feedback - macOS - Apple

A possible workaround might be a 3rd party app, such as AppGridLauncher app (Mac App Store link) or https://www.launchie.app/.

Anthony Sbarro wrote:

It's entirely illogical

And completely irrelevant. Nobody here can bring it back.

There needs to be a way to curate the apps to efficiently launch them with muscle memory.

There has been a way since OS X was released in 2001. Just create folders with aliases to the apps you want to have available. Use Shortcuts to crest a shortcut to open that folder of aliases.

We already had Spotlight search to launch apps. Why remove LaunchPad without replacing it with something just as efficient?

LaunchPad was horribly inefficient. I had to open a window, move my mouse around, click on something, maybe more than once if it was in a folder. With Spotlight Ieave my hands on the keyboard, cmd-space, type two or three letters and hit return. Way more efficient.

This is truly mind boggling. I don't understand how people who work at Apple could make such drastic changes, unless they don't actually use the products they're engineering.

Perhaps they were just like those of us who couldn’t stand using LaunchPad.

It is possible to open a folder that has your Apps in it sorted alphabetically.

It is not possible to organize this folder the same way as on your iPhone, iPad, and previous Mac operating systems allow(ed).

Searching for applications, as if the Macintosh had never existed and we're still using a command line interface, is not as efficient as using graphic icons that provide some hint to the software's function and which allow you to place them in specific places for you to access them using muscle memory in an instant.

What is illogical is that this function has been entirely removed forcing all MacOS users to adopt a command line-like method of launching applications. This function (Spotlight) already existed for people like you who find this method most efficient for them. How would you feel if Spotlight was removed and the only way to launch apps was with LaunchPad?

Apple changed MacOS's setting app to look more familiar to iOS users. For what logical reason would they remove what iOS users are familiar with to access applications?

Read this conversation first.

I agree with dialabrain's comments in that in all the systems I had with Launchpad I never used it. The new Apps application will or should do what you want instead of Launchpad.

When Tahoe was still in beta Macrumors had some tips on modifying the Liquid Glass look in this article. I used some of these suggestions to experiment with the look of the new system. They might work for you too.

It's entirely illogical to remove the most efficient method of launching an application (while hiding others). Now, when I go to open the LaunchPad replacement, I'm seeing literally every app installed on the computer. There needs to be a way to curate the apps to efficiently launch them with muscle memory.

We already had Spotlight search to launch apps. Why remove LaunchPad without replacing it with something just as efficient? This is truly mind boggling. I don't understand how people who work at Apple could make such drastic changes, unless they don't actually use the products they're engineering.

Anthony Sbarro wrote:

It's entirely illogical to remove the most efficient method of launching an application (while hiding others).

I always find it amusing when people say that something they don't like is "illogical." It almost makes me think they believe that everyone shares their needs and preferences. But of course, thinking that really would be illogical.

Tell Apple what you want to see:

Product Feedback - Apple

Anthony Sbarro wrote:

It's entirely illogical to remove the most efficient method of launching an application (while hiding others). Now, when I go to open the LaunchPad replacement, I'm seeing literally every app installed on the computer. There needs to be a way to curate the apps to efficiently launch them with muscle memory.

Respectfully

What is more logical that organizing Applications by Categories

Picking up on an earlier posting

It would be illogical to believe that Apple would not make changes to a new version of macOS like Tahoe

Apple is often know to do what Apple believes is best for Apple

It has functioned that ways for decades and do not see this changing anytime soon

Apple's categories are often inaccurate and grossly reduce efficiency. This adds additional mental requirements (and time) to understand what category Apple has chosen to place an application.

Example: I should get to decide if an app is either Productivity or Finance.

On my computer, Apple has decided to put Firefox in Productivity & Finance and Safari in Utilities and Edge and Brave in Other. I would put them in a folder called Browsers.

This interface also seems to sort categories and applications randomly and dynamically. You have Utilities first while I have Productivity & Finance. This interrupts the ability to quickly access something because you need to scan the UI to find where the category and application has moved to. It's also not a wide enough interface to see all the categories so you need to swipe over to see more.

LaunchPad is user customizable. I can place an application where I want it based on my priorities and usage so it's easier (or harder) to access using muscle memory - this is apparently good enough for a mobile operating system but no longer for the desktop. I don't have to think about launching apps. I have the bottom left corner as a hot spot to launch LaunchPad - I have primary apps in the root of this UI and I have category folders to organize things like Music, Games, Utilities, etc. And these 'bins' are organized in a method that makes sense to me so I can literally open any app on my computer with a single finger using (at most) a couple swipes and clicks without even having to remember the name of the app. I genuinely don't know the names of a lot of apps but I know that the one I want to use to change the name of a music track is in my Music folder and it's on the bottom.

What is illogical is that they have - for no apparent logical reason - removed a method of launching applications that is nearly identical to how you launch apps on billions of mobile devices while forcing users to use an existing command-line like method that (I'd argue) most people find inefficient.

They have changed things in the past. Not many. If the voices are loud enough, perhaps they'll simply reenable a small and important thing that worked perfectly fine without any drawbacks for a decade.

What's illogical, had you taken the time to think or ask what I meant by that rather than post your trolly comment, is that they've removed a familiar method of launching applications that billions of people are used to using on their mobile devices, something powerful and light weight that's core to the UX that's existed in the periphery without issue for over ten years, and they've forced all users to use a command line-like method to open applications that only some people found more efficient.

I can not think of a better way to describe this than illogical.

Perhaps you could let me know what you think is logical about this removal.

As much as some may agree with the very well written explanation and description of once was, we are in what is now in Tahoe

My usual boilerplate response goes like this

We Own the computer that Apple has designed and had built to your specifications and functionalities

The Operationg System that runs on the Apple Computer was designed and built by Apple

We, the End User, Lease the Operating System from Apple and agree to take it as is, full stop

Anthony Sbarro wrote:

What's illogical .... is that they've removed a familiar method of launching applications that billions of people are used to using on their mobile devices, something powerful and light weight that's core to the UX that's existed in the periphery without issue for over ten years, and they've forced all users to use a command line-like method to open applications that only some people found more efficient.

I can not think of a better way to describe this than illogical.

Perhaps you could let me know what you think is logical about this removal.

As it's the way I've been launching apps for years, the new Spotlight system suits me just fine. It added features to what I already use. I never used LaunchPad. I didn't like it. But I'm not about to make judgments that it was "illogical". If it worked for you and you liked it, I'm sorry that you're unhappy (that's genuine). I don't assume that what I like or what works for me is what everyone else will like. Based on the number of comments here, more people used LaunchPad than I expected but I suspect it's either not "billions" or lots of people who did use it because it was there don't really care that it's gone (most likely scenario).

I have no interest in trying to justify either LaunchPad or Apps or anything else Apple decides to do.

You've now posted three more comments that are completely irrelevant. Nobody here can change macOS. The people who do are not here. Contact Apple directly using Apple Support and register your frustration.

How you feel about the change will have zero effect on future versions of macOS.

You seem determined to change our minds about what we thought of the iPhone switcher security blanket. Since we cannot change macOS, I don't quite understand the pile driving insistence that we come over to the dark side.

Not quite. This is a discussion forum. We're have a discussion.

I'm determined to convince people that my opinion is valid because a science based reality exists and that we shouldn't accept whatever Apple tells us as the only reality. If you believe that user satisfaction is entirely irrelevant for Apple and they have zero interest in any feedback at all, (1) I feel very sad for you and (2) why would they have the feedback form? But also, (3) you may very well be correct and I need someplace to express my growing dissatisfaction with this company. Tell me to bend over and say thank you serves only to antagonize me.

I've yet to hear anyone suggest any reason why LaunchPad should have been wholly removed. Perhaps someone will come across this post who does have some insight as to why Apple removed a core element of the operating system and has made a decision to make it harder for users to do a simple task such as launching an application.

I concede that it takes a lot of effort to make Apple change things but they have. Although, in one case, I've had to get rid of my Apple Watch because they refused to return the face switcher which was another primary element of the operating system.

If enough people are heard, and Apple refuses to simply turn LaunchPad back on, perhaps others will continue to build a proper replacement such as Launchie (though it's missing too many features to use yet - I'll be watching).