Open source · macOS
threefinger
Swipe with three fingers on the Mac trackpad to change tabs.
Swipe with three fingers on the Mac trackpad to change tabs.
That’s the job. Left and right move to the previous or next tab in Safari, Chrome, Firefox, and most tabbed apps.
Optional: map any other shortcut in the config, or keep Mission Control and App Exposé on three-finger up/down so up shows all windows and down shows this app’s windows.
A tiny open-source Swift utility - one file on MultitouchSupport, Karabiner-style config in ~/.config/threefinger.json.
Install
Install, allow threefinger when Settings asks, free the left/right swipe - tabs start changing. The rest is optional.
Homebrew
brew install firedev/tap/threefinger
brew services start threefingerInstaller script
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/firedev/threefinger/master/install.sh | bash- Run
threefinger --check --open. If Accessibility or Input Monitoring is missing, Settings opens those panes - turn them on for threefinger (not Terminal), then run the command again. - When permissions are ok,
--check --openopens Trackpad → More Gestures. Set Swipe between full-screen applications to Swipe Left or Right with Four Fingers. Swipe between pages → Off is optional but nicer. Then left/right changes tabs. - Optional: keep Mission Control and App Exposé on three fingers - up all windows, down this app’s windows.
| Three fingers | Does |
|---|---|
| ← / → | Previous / next tab |
| ↑ | All windows (Mission Control) — optional |
| ↓ | Windows for this app (App Exposé) — optional |
If something's stuck
| Permission | Without it |
|---|---|
| Accessibility | Swipes work, but tabs never change |
| Input Monitoring | Trackpad gestures never arrive |
After an upgrade, remove threefinger from Accessibility (−) and add it again - toggling is not enough. Homebrew path: /opt/homebrew/opt/threefinger/bin/threefinger. curl installer: ~/.local/bin/threefinger.
