macOS 27 Mission Control: Spaces bar shows window/tab titles instead of generic App names

Hi everyone,

Since upgrading from macOS 26 to macOS 27 (Golden Gate), the behavior of the top Spaces bar in Mission Control has changed for full-screen apps, and it is severely impacting my workflow.

In macOS 26, the Spaces bar consistently displayed the generic application name (e.g., "Safari", "WhatsApp").

In macOS 27, it now displays the specific active window title or tab name (e.g., "Personal - YouTube" or specific git repository names).

When managing multiple full-screen applications, this change introduces unnecessary visual noise. The granular detail makes it much harder to quickly scan the bar and identify the right app at a glance.

I have already checked `System Settings > Desktop & Dock > Mission Control`, but there is no toggle to revert to the old UI behavior.

Has anyone else noticed this? Does anyone know a `defaults write` terminal command or another workaround to force Mission Control to display just the generic app names again, like it did in macOS 26?

Thanks for any help.

Posted on Oct 15, 2026 2:30 AM

1 reply

neuroanatomist

Level 9 (72,871 points)

Oct 15, 2026 6:41 AM in response to wopyidru

This is likely an intentional change in the IU on Apple's part – what applies on Tahoe with more than one app window open now applies on Golden Gate with one or more app windows open. There is no setting to control this behavior, and there does not seem to be a Terminal or other approach to modify it. Mission Control is a core system function.

More info from Apple: View open windows and spaces in Mission Control on Mac - Apple Support

There have been many issues reported with Mission Control and Spaces on macOS 27 Golden Gate, especially regarding the way Full Screen apps and app switching are handled. Some have been resolved by identifying and removing incompatible 3rd party extensions, others are bona fide bugs. The minor point update, macOS 27.0.1, did not appear to address the more significant issues. However, this does not appear to be a bug but rather a extension of a previous behavior.

I can replicate the behavior you describe, to a point. On my personal Mac (16" M4 Pro MBP) running macOS 27.0.1 Golden Gate, with a window in full screen the title of the window is shown in the top bar of Mission Control, initially and when that section is expanded:

On my work Mac (16" M1 Pro MBP) running macOS 26.7.1 Tahoe, Mission Control shows just the app name (that Mac is currently in clamshell mode connected to a 5K:2K display, thus the wide windows below).

However, on that Tahoe Mac the behavior you describe occurs only if a single window for a given app is open. For example, if I have two Safari windows open, the window titles are shown like the behavior in Golden Gate.

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