Running two apps side by side is one of the most useful things a Chromebook does, and it takes seconds once the gesture is in your fingers. ChromeOS calls the feature window snapping, and it behaves the same whether you are on a budget model or a high-end Chromebook Plus. This guide walks through every way to trigger it: the keyboard shortcut, dragging to the edge, the maximize-button menu, Overview, tablet mode, and how the whole thing behaves once you plug in an external monitor.
The split screen shortcut
The fastest way to split the screen is the keyboard. With a window focused, press alt [ to snap it to the left half of the display and alt ] to snap it to the right half. The window jumps to exactly half the screen, and the empty side shows thumbnails of your other open windows so you can click one to fill the gap. This is muscle memory worth building, because it is quicker than reaching for the touchpad and the combination is identical on every Chromebook. If you like keeping your hands on the keys, it slots in nicely alongside the rest of the ChromeOS keyboard shortcuts worth learning.
Drag a window to the edge
If you would rather use the touchpad, click and hold the window's title bar (the empty strip along the very top of the window) and drag it toward the left or right edge of the screen. When a translucent outline appears showing where the window will land, let go and it snaps into that half. Dragging is the more discoverable method, and it feels natural when you are already shuffling windows around. The one annoyance is that a stray palm can nudge the cursor mid-drag, so if that happens often it can help to disable the built-in touchpad and drive the snap with an external mouse instead.
Use the maximize button menu
Every window has a maximize button in its top-right corner, the square sitting between the minimize and close buttons. Hover over it, or press and hold it, and a small menu appears with options to snap the window left or right along with the usual full-screen choice. This route is handy when you are not confident the drag will register, and it quietly reminds you the feature is there at all. Right-clicking surfaces similar context menus all over ChromeOS, and if the touchpad is still new to you it is worth learning how to right-click on a Chromebook first.
Split from Overview
Overview shows every open window at once, which makes it the surest way to build a specific two-app layout. Press the Overview key on the top row (the rectangle with two lines next to it) or swipe up with three fingers on the touchpad, and your windows fan out as thumbnails. From there, drag any thumbnail to the left or right edge to snap it, then click a second thumbnail to drop it into the other half. Because you can see everything you have open before committing, Overview saves you from cycling through windows one snap at a time.
Split screen in tablet mode
On a convertible folded into tablet mode there is no title bar to grab, so snapping happens through Overview instead. Swipe up from the bottom of the screen and hold to open Overview, then drag one app card to the left or right side; it snaps, and the remaining apps stay on screen so you can tap the one you want for the other half. A divider appears between the two apps, and you can drag it with your finger to give one app more room. It is the same idea as the desktop, just driven by touch.
Across an external monitor
Snapping is per-display, so each screen you connect becomes its own workspace. Plug in a monitor and you can run two apps side by side on the Chromebook's own panel and two more on the external display, which effectively hands you four working panes. The keyboard shortcut and the drag gesture both act on whichever display the window currently sits on, so move a window to the screen you want first and then snap it. This is where split screen earns its keep, whether you are keeping research open next to a document or watching a dashboard while you work.
Resizing the split
Two snapped windows do not have to sit at a rigid half-and-half. Once both sides are filled, a divider bar rests between them; grab it with the touchpad or mouse and drag left or right to resize both windows at the same time. Nudge it toward a reference page you only glance at now and then, and hand the larger share to whatever you are actively working in. The split holds that ratio until you unsnap or close one of the windows.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the shortcut to split screen on a Chromebook?
Press alt [ to snap the active window to the left half of the screen and alt ] to snap it to the right half. Then click any other open window to fill the empty side.
How do I split the screen on a Chromebook without the keyboard?
Drag the window's title bar to the left or right edge until a translucent outline appears and release, or hover the maximize button in the window's top-right corner and choose to snap it left or right.
Can I split the screen on a Chromebook in tablet mode?
Yes. Open Overview by swiping up from the bottom of the screen and holding, then drag one app card to the left or right side and tap a second app to fill the other half.
Does split screen work with an external monitor on a Chromebook?
Yes. Snapping is per-display, so you can run two apps side by side on the Chromebook screen and two more on the external monitor. Move a window to the display you want, then snap it.
