Tabs for Mac is the same Tabs you use in a browser, in a window of its own. It opens from the Dock, and it keeps itself up to date.
It works on any Mac with macOS 11 Big Sur or later, with Apple silicon or Intel. There is one download for both.
Installing takes about a minute. You download one file, drag Tabs into your Applications folder, and open it from there.
Download it
Go to usetabs.app/download and press Download for Mac.
Your browser saves a file called Tabs-macos-universal.dmg in your Downloads folder. A .dmg file is a disk image: a file that opens like a small disk, with the app inside it.
Install it
- Open the file. Double-click Tabs-macos-universal.dmg in Downloads, or press it in your browser's downloads list. A Finder window opens with the Tabs icon and a shortcut to your Applications folder.
- Drag Tabs onto Applications. Hold the Tabs icon and drop it on the Applications folder in the same window. Your Mac copies it across.
- Eject the disk image. In the Finder sidebar, press the eject button next to Tabs. You can then move the .dmg file from Downloads to the Bin. You won't need it again.
Don't open Tabs from inside the disk image window. It runs from there, but it can't update itself, and it stops working when the disk image is ejected.
Open it for the first time
Open your Applications folder and double-click Tabs. You can also press Command and Space, type Tabs and press Return, or find it in Launchpad.
The first time, macOS stops Tabs from opening. This version of Tabs isn't notarised by Apple yet, so your Mac can't check where it came from, and it asks you to confirm. You only do this once.
On macOS 15 Sequoia or later:
- macOS says "Tabs" Not Opened. Press Done, not Move to Bin.
- Open System Settings, then Privacy & Security, and scroll down to Security.
- Next to "Tabs" was blocked to protect your Mac, press Open Anyway, and enter your Mac's password if it asks.
- macOS asks once more. Press Open Anyway.
On macOS 11 to 14:
- In your Applications folder, hold Control and click Tabs, then choose Open.
- macOS asks if you're sure. Press Open.
After that, Tabs opens like any other app. Only do this for a copy you downloaded from usetabs.app/download.
To keep Tabs in the Dock, right-click its icon in the Dock while it's open, then choose Options and Keep in Dock.
Sign in
Tabs opens on the sign-in page. Use the same account you use at platform.usetabs.app:
- Email and password. Enter them as you would in the browser. If you've turned on two-factor sign-in, Tabs asks for your code next.
- Continue with Google. Your browser opens so you can choose your Google account. When the browser says You're signed in, close that tab and go back to Tabs.
No account yet? Start your free trial first. Every plan has one, and you don't need a card to begin. See getting started for setting up your business.
Everything you do in the app is saved to your account, not to the Mac. What you change on the desktop shows on the web, and the other way round.
Updates
Tabs checks for a new version shortly after it opens, then every few hours while it's open. When one is ready, it asks:
- Restart now closes Tabs and opens the new version. If you're halfway through a form, Tabs asks before it throws your changes away.
- Later installs the new version the next time you quit Tabs.
To check yourself, open the Tabs menu at the top of the screen and choose Check for Updates….
Tabs can only update itself from the Applications folder. If it was opened from the disk image or from Downloads, it says so: Tabs can only update itself once it's in your Applications folder. Quit Tabs, drag it into Applications, and open it from there.
If something goes wrong
"An item named Tabs already exists." You've installed Tabs before. Choose Replace. You stay signed in to your account.
Your Mac says this version of Tabs can't be used with this version of macOS. Tabs needs macOS 11 Big Sur or later. To see your version, open the Apple menu and choose About This Mac. On an older Mac, use Tabs in your browser at platform.usetabs.app.
macOS says Tabs can't be opened. That's the first-open check: follow the steps under Open it for the first time, above.
macOS says Tabs is damaged. The download may not have finished, or the file didn't come from us. Move it to the Bin, download it again from usetabs.app/download and install it again.
Google sign-in doesn't come back to Tabs. Keep Tabs open while you choose your account in the browser. If the browser says This sign-in link isn't for this app, or Tabs still isn't signed in, close the browser tab and press Continue with Google in Tabs again.
Still stuck? Email hello@usetabs.app and tell us your macOS version and what you see.
Remove Tabs
Quit Tabs, open your Applications folder and drag Tabs to the Bin.
Removing the app doesn't touch your business. Your products, orders and team are in your account, and you can still use them at platform.usetabs.app. To close the account itself, see account and billing.