Sway (window manager)

Sway is a tiling window manager and Wayland compositor, inspired by i3, and written in C.^[3] Sway is designed as a drop-in replacement for i3 using the Wayland display server protocol and wlroots compositor library.^[4] Sway works with existing i3 configuration files and supports most of i3's features while providing several new features of its own.^[5]

Sway
Original author	Drew DeVault (SirCmpwn)
Initial release	March 24, 2016; 9 years ago (2016-03-24)[1]
Stable release	1.11 / June 8, 2025; 4 months ago (2025-06-08)[2]
Repository	github.com/swaywm/sway.git
Written in	C
Operating system	Unix-like
Size	5.33 MiB
Type	Window manager
License	MIT License
Website	swaywm.org

Like i3, Sway can be extended and manipulated using its Unix domain socket and JSON-based IPC interface from many programming languages.^[6]

Sway's first stable release was on March 11, 2019, after 3.6 years of development.^[7]

Features

Sway replicates several of i3's features:

• Configuration is performed via a plain text file.^[6]
• Window tiling is handled manually, rather than dynamically.
• Controls are the same as i3, with a $mod modifier key (Super or Alt by default) pressed with an arrow key to change focus to a window. Window movement is performed with the same combination of $mod and an arrow key, but with the Shift key pressed as well.
• Supports vi controls for window manipulation with the h, j, k, and l keys.^[8]
• Windows can be split horizontally or vertically.
• Windows can be arranged in a tabbed (horizontal) or stacked (vertical) list layout.
• Windows can be floated similar to a floating window manager.
• Tiled and floated windows can be resized or moved using both the mouse and keyboard.^[9]
• Sway can be completely driven from the keyboard.^[10]

Sway also provides several unique features:

• Supports multiple non-modifier keys when assigning key bindings.^[11]
• Windows on the same workspace can be split into multiple containers, such that one set of windows might be arranged in a tabbed layout while the other windows on the workspace might be tiled normally, floating, or arranged in a stacked layout.
• Handles input, output, and wallpaper configurations instead of relying on separate programs.
• Has its own ecosystem of utilities such as swaybg, swaybar, and swayidle.
• Gestures.