Check the trigger
Flick uses ⌥Tab out of the box and leaves ⌘Tab to macOS. It takes ⌘Tab only after you choose Command mode.
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Make sure Flick is running
Look for Flick's icon in the menu bar. If Flick isn't running, macOS keeps ⌘Tab. To start it, open Flick from your Applications folder.
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Open Settings › Shortcuts
Click Flick's icon in the menu bar, choose Settings, then click Shortcuts in the sidebar.
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Select Command ⌘ + Tab
It's in the Default Mode group, with the note “Replaces the macOS app switcher while Flick is running.” The change is immediate: no restart needed.
If Command ⌘ + Tab is dimmed with “Already used by Search Mode.”, your search shortcut is set to ⌘Tab. Click Reset to Default under Search Mode to put it back to ⇧⌘Space, then select Command. More about the two modes in choosing between ⌥Tab and ⌘Tab.
Once Flick has ⌘Tab, these keys are Flick's:
| Keys | What it does in Command mode |
|---|---|
| ⌘Tab | Opens Flick with your previous window selected. While it's open, moves down. |
| ⇧⌘Tab | Opens Flick with the last window selected. While it's open, moves up. |
| ⌘` | Switches between the front app's windows on every Space, while Switch between the front app's windows is on (it is by default). |
Check Enable switcher shortcut
In Settings › Shortcuts, Enable switcher shortcut has to be on. While it's off, Flick leaves both ⌥Tab and ⌘Tab alone and opens only with its search shortcut, ⇧⌘Space. The Option and Command choices are hidden while it's off, so if you can't find them, this is why.
Check Accessibility
Flick doesn't take ⌘Tab until it has the Accessibility permission. Without it, Flick can't list or switch windows, so taking ⌘Tab would leave you with no working app switcher at all. Two signs that it's missing:
- Flick's menu bar menu starts with Accessibility permission needed.
- ⇧⌘Space opens a panel that says “Flick needs accessibility permissions to track your windows.” instead of your windows.
Click Accessibility permission needed in the menu, or Open Accessibility Settings in the panel, or open System Settings › Privacy & Security › Accessibility yourself, and turn on Flick. Flick checks every second while the permission is missing, so ⌘Tab switches over within moments, without a restart. How to allow Accessibility walks through it.
Flick is on, but it still asks?After Flick is replaced with a different copy, macOS can keep showing it as allowed while the permission no longer applies. Select Flick in the Accessibility list, click −, then click + and add Flick again.
While you record a shortcut
When you click the search shortcut field to record a new shortcut, in Settings or in the welcome window, Flick pauses all of its shortcuts so the keys you press reach the recorder. In Command mode, that means macOS has ⌘Tab back for that moment: press ⌘Tab while recording and you'll see the macOS app switcher. Finish recording, or press Esc to cancel, and Flick takes ⌘Tab back.
Another app has ⌘Tab
Flick warns you in two places when another app gets in the way: near the top of its menu bar menu, and in a Shortcut Conflicts group at the top of Settings › Shortcuts.
- “⌘Tab is in use by another app”. Another app registered ⌘Tab before Flick, so Flick can't have it, and ⌘Tab does whatever that app does with it. Quit that app and Flick takes ⌘Tab on its own, or click Use ⌥Tab Instead when the warning offers it.
- “App also uses ⌘Tab”. A window switcher Flick recognizes is running, and ⌘Tab is its default shortcut, so both may react. Change its shortcut, click Quit App, or, if you've already changed it, click Don't Warn About App.
Some window switchers turn the macOS app switcher off and on themselves, and one that quits can turn it back on for every app. Flick turns it off again when your Mac wakes, but it can miss another switcher quitting. If the macOS switcher shows up, select Option ⌥ + Tab and then Command ⌘ + Tab again, or quit and reopen Flick. Shortcut conflict warnings explains every warning and button.
One switcher per shortcutTwo switchers can't both have ⌘Tab. Give each its own keys, for example another switcher on ⌥Tab and Flick on ⌘Tab, or quit the one you don't use.
Questions
Does Flick need Input Monitoring or Screen Recording to use ⌘Tab?
No. Flick needs only the Accessibility permission, in both modes.
Can ⌥Tab and ⌘Tab both open Flick?
No, Flick uses one trigger at a time: whichever you select in Settings › Shortcuts. ⇧⌘Space opens it with search ready in either mode. If ⌥Tab isn't responding either, see nothing happens when I press ⌥Tab.
How do I give ⌘Tab back to macOS later?
Select Option ⌥ + Tab, or quit Flick. See get the macOS app switcher back.
Does Command mode work in the free version?
Yes. Both triggers work in the free version, which switches between your 5 most recent windows.
Still stuck?Email [email protected] with your macOS version, your Mac and what you've tried, or visit the Support page.
Sources
Checked on .
- Allow accessibility apps to access your Mac, Apple Support
