A full app grid
The visual, scannable grid macOS 26 took away — open it, see everything, click to launch.
How to get Launchpad back on macOS 26.
Apple removed Launchpad in macOS 26 (Tahoe). There’s no setting to turn it back on, and the old Terminal trick no longer works. The reliable way to get a real app grid back — with folders, pages, and your imported layout — is a dedicated launcher. Here’s how to do it with Facet in about five minutes.
Why the usual fixes don’t work.
There is no built-in setting. Apple removed Launchpad from macOS 26 entirely. Its support pages for Tahoe don’t mention Launchpad, and there’s no toggle in System Settings to restore it.
The Terminal trick is dead. During the early betas a sudo command could temporarily re-enable Launchpad. Apple closed that loophole — in the final release, the same steps disable Spotlight and the new Apps view instead. Don’t use it.
The Apps view isn’t a replacement. The new Spotlight Applications view is a search-first floating list with auto categories. No custom folders, no pages, no saved layout — so it doesn’t bring back the Launchpad browsing experience.
Get the grid back in 4 steps.
Download Facet
Grab the notarized Facet DMG. It’s Developer ID signed and Apple-notarized, so it opens cleanly on macOS 26.
Install & launch
Open the DMG, drag Facet into your Applications folder, then launch it. Paste your license key to unlock the full version.
Import your Launchpad layout
Let Facet import your existing Launchpad layout so your apps and folders carry over — you don’t start from an empty grid.
Set a hotkey or hot corner
Assign a global hotkey or hot corner so the grid opens instantly, exactly the way Launchpad used to. Now you’re back to browsing apps visually.
What you get back.
Folders & pages
Real custom folders and pages, with your imported Launchpad layout intact.
Keyboard search
Type to find an app when you already know it — without losing the grid for everything else.
Facet is $14.99 once — no subscription, no telemetry-based growth loops. One license activates up to three Macs. macOS 14.0 and later, including macOS 26 (Tahoe).
Other options (and why Facet).
You can drag the Applications folder to your Dock for a basic grid stack, or try free open-source launchers. Those work, but they’re either limited (no folders, no saved layout, no import) or rough around the edges. Facet is the focused, paid-once option that just restores Launchpad properly — see the full comparison of launchers for macOS.
Related guides.
What changed in Tahoe
Where is Launchpad?
Launchpad replacement
Sources: Apple Newsroom (macOS Tahoe 26, June 2025); Apple Support — Browse Modes in Spotlight; Macworld and MacObserver on the closed Terminal workaround (Sept 2025); 9to5Mac on Tahoe app-launching alternatives (Sept 2025).