What Flick does with Finder
- One row per window. Each Finder window is a row, on every Space, minimized ones included.
- Titled by its folder. Finder titles a window with the name of the folder it shows, such as “Invoices 2026”, and that's what Flick searches, along with the app's name (window search).
- The folder's own name, not its path. Finder doesn't report a window's folder the way Preview or Xcode report their files, so the folders above it don't count: type the open folder's own name.
When Finder has no windows
Finder keeps running when its windows are closed. With no Finder windows open, Flick lists it as one row with “No windows” under its name. Pick that row and Finder opens a new window, showing the folder chosen in Finder › Settings › General › New Finder windows show (Apple).
The row comes from Show apps without windows in Flick's Settings › General, on by default; turning it off removes such rows for every app (list settings).
Finder tabs
Finder tabs are macOS window tabs, and only the one in front is on screen. So a Finder window with three tabs is one row, under the folder in front, and a folder in a background tab is found once its tab is in front (why tabs show as one row).
Switch to the window with Flick, then press ⌃Tab or ⌃⇧Tab, or choose View › Show All Tabs. To make a tab a row of its own, choose Window › Move Tab to New Window. If you'd rather have every folder as its own row, deselect Open folders in tabs instead of new windows in Finder › Settings › General, so ⌘-double-clicking a folder opens a window, and set Prefer tabs when opening documents to Never in System Settings › Desktop & Dock (Apple). More tab keys are in switching tabs on Mac.
Close all Finder windows
- In Finder: press ⌥⌘W, or hold ⌥ and choose File › Close All. It closes every Finder window, tabs and all.
- From Flick: select any Finder row, press ⌥⇧K or right-click it, and choose Close All Windows of Finder. It closes every Finder window, on every Space and minimized ones included, even ones the list doesn't show, such as windows beyond the free version's 5 most recent. Flick stays open. In a window with tabs, it closes the tab in front and leaves the others, so for tabbed windows, ⌥⌘W in Finder is the one to use.
The same menu lists Quit Finder (⌥⇧Q on a Finder row). Finder has no Quit command of its own, and this one really quits it: in our test on macOS 26, Finder and the icons on the desktop stayed gone until we clicked Finder in the Dock to open it again. More in window actions and closing all windows on Mac.
The desktop isn't a window
Finder draws the desktop and its icons, but the desktop isn't a window, so Flick never lists it. To reach what's on it with Flick, press ⇧⌘D in Finder to open the Desktop folder: the window showing it is listed as “Desktop”. To clear the screen and see the desktop itself, see how to show the desktop on Mac.
Keys
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| ⌥Tab, then type | Finds a Finder window by its folder's name. Let go to switch. |
| ⌥⇧W | In Flick's list, closes the selected window (in a window with tabs, the tab in front). |
| ⌥⇧K | In Flick's list, opens the actions menu, where A is Close All Windows of Finder. |
| ⌘` | In Finder, the next Finder window; add ⇧ for the previous one. With Flick's ⌘Tab trigger, ⌘` belongs to Flick and opens its list of the front app's windows instead (on by default). |
| ⌥⌘W | In Finder, closes all its windows. |
| ⌃Tab | In Finder, the next tab. Add ⇧ for the previous one. |
Flick's own keys work the same in every app: see keyboard shortcuts.
Questions
Why are there two Finder rows with the same name?
Two windows show folders with the same name, such as two called “src”, and Finder's titles hold only the name. Turn on the window locator and, while the list is open, Flick outlines the selected window on screen, so you can see which one it is before you switch.
Can Flick find files inside a folder?
No. Flick finds windows and apps, not files. To find a file, use Spotlight or Finder's own search.
Does the free version work with Finder?
Yes. It switches between your 5 most recent windows, Finder's included. A license lists every Finder window you have open.
Sources
Checked on . The macOS 14, 26 and 27 versions of these guides match. Window titles, menus and the closing and quitting behavior were also checked in Finder on macOS 26.2 with Flick 1.1.
- Change Finder settings on Mac (New Finder windows show, Open folders in tabs instead of new windows), Mac User Guide, Apple Support
- Change how folders open in the Finder on Mac (Prefer tabs when opening documents), Mac User Guide, Apple Support
- Use tabs in windows on Mac (⌃Tab, Show All Tabs, Move Tab to New Window), Mac User Guide, Apple Support
- Mac keyboard shortcuts (⌘`, ⌥⌘W, ⇧⌘D), Apple Support
