On a Mac, the dock is the area at the bottom (with default settings) of the screen displaying app shortcuts pinned to the dock and apps that are currently running on your Mac.
When you open an app, the app shortcut shows up in the dock. And when you close the app, the app shortcut disappears from the dock if the app shortcut is not pinned to the dock. For quick and convenient access, you might want to add new apps to the dock or make them always stay in the dock. Or perhaps you might want to remove the default app shortcuts and add your favorite app shortcuts.
In this guide, we will see all the four ways offered by macOS to pin or add apps to the dock.
4 methods to pin applications to macOS dock
Method 1 of 4
Pin an app to dock via dock options
Step 1: Launch the app that you want to pin to the dock if it is not already running.
Step 2: Perform a right-click on it, click Options, and then click Keep in Dock option to pin it to the dock.
Method 2 of 4
Add apps to dock from the Applications folder
Step 1: Open the Applications folder either using the Command + Shift + A keyboard shortcut or clicking the Go menu on the menu bar and then clicking the Applications option.
Step 2: Drag and drop the app icon to the pinned area of the dock to add it to the dock. Note that it’s important to drop the app icon to the area on the dock where pinned apps show up. Do not drop to the minimized or open apps area.
Method 3 of 4
Add app shortcuts on the desktop to dock
Step 1: Drag and drop the app shortcut on the desktop to the dock area to add the shortcut to the dock.
Method 4 of 4
Add apps to dock using spotlight search
Step 1: Search for the app using the spotlight search.
Step 2: Once the app shows up in the spotlight search, drag and drop it to the dock area to pin it.
Remove an app from the macOS dock
Step 1: Right-click on the app shortcut that you want to remove from the dock, click Options, and then click Remove from dock option.
If the app is running, you might get Keep in dock option instead of the Remove from Dock option. In that case, deselect the Keep in dock option. Once the app is closed, it will be removed from the dock. That is it!
Rearrange apps on the dock
If you want to arrange your favorite apps on the dock in a particular order, you can do so by moving the apps within the dock area. To move an app, left-click on it and then hold, move it to your desired position and then release the click.