Inspiring

Answered

InDesign window hides behind other apps - macOS 26.3.1

Forum|Forum|2 months ago
March 23, 2026
9 replies
185 views

Mac, OS Tahoe 26.3.1 (a)

In the past I have had this problem with Illustrator and Photoshop. Now it sometimes appears with InDesign as well. If I try to drag the active window to another place on my screen, by dragging from the top of the window, it disappears behind all other apps currently open. Oddly, any free floating palettes stay on top. If I can still see a part of the window, I can click on it to bring it back to the front. If not, I have to go to the dock to bring it forward.

Nothing is lost so this is an annoyance rather than a real problem, but why does it happen and why is it now happening with ID as well as the others?

Correct answer Abhishek Rao

Hi everyone,

Thanks for sharing the details, and sorry for the trouble this is causing. I’m checking this with the product team and will update you as soon as I hear back.

I also tested this on InDesign 21.3 with macOS 26.4.1, including on an external display and with the Application Frame both enabled and disabled, but I wasn’t able to reproduce the behavior on my end.

To help take this further, could you please confirm the exact macOS version you’re seeing this on? If you’re not already on the latest, I’d recommend updating to InDesign 21.3 and macOS 26.4.1 and then testing again. You can also try adjusting the resolution and scaling settings of your external monitor and see if that makes any difference.

Additionally, it would really help if you could share a short screen recording demonstrating the issue in action so I can investigate this further with the team.

Please keep me posted on what you observe, and I’ll share any updates from the product team.

Abhishek

N

NeteKoch

Inspiring

Screen recording

Skærmoptagelse 2026-05-17 kl. 21.14.40.mov

Abhishek Rao

Community Manager

Hi @NeteKoch,

Thanks a lot for sharing the screen recording. I was able to clearly observe the behavior from the capture. Please allow me some time to get this investigated further with the product team along with the recordings and observations shared in the thread.

I’ll reach back here as soon as I have more information or updates from the team.

Thanks again for taking the time to document and share the issue so clearly.

Abhishek

N

NeteKoch

Inspiring

Here is a screen capture of the behavior

meh67

Inspiring

Ill share my specs attached - but keep in mind - this is happening to a LOT of people as per the two threads I added earlier, and it appears our specs can vary.

For those of us who are affected,

-Yes, I am running the latest versions of all Adobe Software

-Yes, I have tried resetting all preferences

-Yes, I have tried running in Safe Mode

-Yes, I have tried it on my laptop screen and my extended display - happens on both

-Yes, I have removed and completely reinstalled the programs from Adobe Cloud

This has been happening since 2023. Every week or so it seems I get an email alert about someone on the community thread saying “Its been X years and still no fix!, Adobe!” I dont need some new AI feature, I dont need any new bells and whistles. I need to be able to use my programs in an efficient, productive manner. That’s it.

This week I will be working on 56 digital social media ads with PSD tween animation - for 6 different languages. Thats 336 ads that I build part way in Indesign (its just so much faster), then bring it into PSD, where I then have Smart Layers for type that I can then do versioning in Illustrator. To work effienctly I have all three programs open at once and typically would just layer the three windows so I can go back and forth by just clicking the header bars of each. But that doesnt work anymore and hasnt for three years. It is a frustrating pain in the @ss.

Note: There seems to be no rhyme or reason to it for me. Sometimes Illustrator always goes to the back, other times its Indesign that wants to recede. Sometimes it depends on the position on my screen the program windows start out at that seems to determine which one goes back. Its random as far as I can tell. With the latest software update, even the “Auto Collapse Iconic Panels” no longer helps.

Abhishek Rao

Correct answer

Community Manager

Hi everyone,

Thanks for sharing the details, and sorry for the trouble this is causing. I’m checking this with the product team and will update you as soon as I hear back.

I also tested this on InDesign 21.3 with macOS 26.4.1, including on an external display and with the Application Frame both enabled and disabled, but I wasn’t able to reproduce the behavior on my end.

To help take this further, could you please confirm the exact macOS version you’re seeing this on? If you’re not already on the latest, I’d recommend updating to InDesign 21.3 and macOS 26.4.1 and then testing again. You can also try adjusting the resolution and scaling settings of your external monitor and see if that makes any difference.

Additionally, it would really help if you could share a short screen recording demonstrating the issue in action so I can investigate this further with the team.

Please keep me posted on what you observe, and I’ll share any updates from the product team.

Abhishek

simonr21091620

Participant

I can confirm it still occurs on InDesign 21.3 and MacOS, It doesn't happen for me on InDesign 20.5.3.97. I am running a MacBook Pro with an external monitor. Ive included the screen recording,

Screen Recording 2026-04-21 at 11.16.30 AM.mov

meh67

Inspiring

This has been going on with Adobe Illustrator as well… SINCE 2023. Now it's happening with Indesign as well. This is a major issue, not just an annoyance. It vastly slows down productivity. None of the suggestions work. The only thing that others have pointed out is to check Auto-Collapse Iconic Panels in Illustrator and that seems to make it NOT go to the back, but then your color or gradient panels all close automatically - another productivity killer. This is a serious problem and has been so for FAR too long for a subscription service. To see all the irrate Adobe customers out there, see this bug report thread that started in 2023. It's for Illustrator, but I see Indesign is now doing the same thing.

https://illustrator.uservoice.com/forums/601447-illustrator-desktop-bugs/suggestions/46772908-illustrator-window-moves-behind-all-other-windows

And here is the Adobe Illustrator Forum where its being “discussed” (cough cough, complained about, rightfully so)

L

leon12345ss

Participating Frequently

I have the same issue for more than a year. It started with Illustrator but now it does the same thing with Photoshop and InDesign. I have Mac Studio and I am running the latest updates in OS and Adobe apps. As I mentioned it is more than a year, and my older posted in older thredas did not give answers.

simonr21091620

Participant

I have the exact same problem, trying to drag the window results in clicking through to applications below it.

Abhishek Rao

Community Manager

Hi @simonr21091620,

Sorry to hear you’re running into this issue, I understand how disruptive it can be. I tested this on Windows 11 and macOS Tahoe 26.3.1 with InDesign 21.3 and wasn’t able to reproduce the behavior on my end.

Could you please confirm if this happens only when using an external monitor and whether things work fine on the primary display. Also, as Anubhav suggested earlier, it would be helpful to try this in Safe Mode on macOS to rule out any interference from desktop or window management utilities.

If the issue still persists, please share the exact InDesign version, your macOS details, and a short screen recording demonstrating the issue so I can check this further with the team.

Looking forward to your update.

Abhishek

simonr21091620

Participant

This describes my problem, It didn't do it under indesign 2025. This is what AI has to say.

InDesign (particularly on macOS) often behaves as if only the extreme left or right edges of the application bar can drag the window, especially when the Application Frame is enabled or when using multiple monitors. This is a known, long-standing issue often referred to as the application frame getting stuck behind the menu bar.

Here are the solutions and workarounds for this behavior:

Immediate Fixes to Drag the Window

Drag from the Far Left: Click and drag in the small, empty area to the left of the "Home" icon in the Application Bar.
Drag from the Far Right: Click and drag on the far-right side of the bar, near the minimize/maximize buttons.
Use Mission Control (Mac): Trigger Mission Control to see all windows, then drag the InDesign window from its title bar to a new position.
Temporary Display Change (Mac): Go to System Settings > Displays and change the resolution to something smaller, then back to default. This often forces the window back into view.

Long-Term Solutions

Disable Application Frame (Mac): Go to Window > Application Frame and uncheck it. This turns InDesign into floating windows, allowing you to drag them by their individual panel title bars.
Reset Workspace: Go to Window > Workspace > Reset [Workspace Name] to restore default docking, which may fix the drag area behavior.
Trash Preferences: Immediately upon launching InDesign, hold down Ctrl+Alt+Shift (Windows) or Cmd+Ctrl+Opt+Shift (Mac) to reset user preferences, which can solve erratic window behavior.

If the issue persists, ensure you are using the latest update, as Adobe sometimes fixes these display behaviors in minor updates.

leo.r

Community Expert

I wonder if some of the new window management options of macOS can cause this. They’re in System Settings > Desktop & Dock.

Anubhav M

Community Manager

Hello @SilbStu

I’m sorry to hear about your experience. Would you mind sharing more details, such as the version of InDesign installed, whether this started happening after a recent update or when specific apps were open, and a brief screen recording of the problem, so we can better assist you?

Also, try running InDesign under a different administrator account (macOS) and after rebooting your computer in Safe Mode (macOS), and share your observations.

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Anubhav

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