Mac Spaces templates

Each template is a plan for your desktops: how many, what each one is for, its name, color and icon, and which apps open on it. Download one, import it in Spacepal (Settings, Profiles, Templates, Import Template…) and click Apply. You can change every desktop afterwards.

• Developer Spaces: six desktops for code, terminal, browser, chat, mail and music.
• Freelancer Spaces: one desktop per client, plus Admin and Personal.
• Designer Spaces: the design tool alone, references, a clean review desktop and chat.
• Student Spaces: class, research, writing, planner and downtime.
• Streamer Spaces: stream control, game, chat, browser sources and tools.

None of these fit? Build your own in the Spaces setup planner. It starts from the same presets and downloads the same kind of file.

What's in a template file?

A small JSON file with a name, a one-line summary and a list of desktops. Each desktop has a name, an SF Symbol icon, a color, a note, and lists of apps and links:

{
  "name": "Developer Spaces",
  "summary": "Code, browser, terminal, chat, mail and music.",
  "slots": [
    { "name": "Code", "symbol": "chevron.left.forwardslash.chevron.right",
      "colorHex": "#9B6BF4", "note": "Editor, full screen width",
      "apps": ["com.microsoft.VSCode"], "urls": [] }
  ]
}

Apps can be bundle identifiers or app names from the Applications folder. Apps you don't have are skipped. Spacepal applies the desktops in order to the display with the menu bar. If you have fewer desktops than the template, it tells you how many to add in Mission Control.

Spacepal also ships with five built-in templates (Developer, Designer, Freelancer, Student and Streamer), so you can try one without downloading anything. See use cases for how people work with these setups.

Written by Dan Bayer, developer of Spacepal. Last updated 2026-10-28.