A new GNOME Shell extension rethinks the app grid (aka the app picker, app drawer, launcher screen – what do you call it?) by making it scroll vertically instead of horizontally.
Y’know, the way it used to, pre-GNOME 40.
GNOME 40’s switch to horizontal app grid scrolling in 2021 irked a few of the desktop’s mice-favouring aficionados. Their main gripe? Mouse scroll wheel to move horizontally feels off.
Not that they need to use their mouse scroll wheel as the app grid has clickable pagers on the sides, works with keyboard arrow keys, and supports swipe touchpad and touchscreen gestures too.
Thankfully for those put out, GNOME Shell is malleable; the way it is works of the box isn’t the way it has to work. A number of extensions that redress, revert or rejig changes to suit those who prefer vertical UX elements (workspaces, app grid, dock, etc).
The latest such extension is Vertical App Grid. It does what it says: you move up/down between different pages of app shortcuts (assuming you’ve enough apps installed, or rearranged the ones you have across separate pages) rather than left/right
You can also change size of app icons and the spacing between icons from the extension’s Preferences dialog.
Of course, this is not a “you MUST install this extension” extension. For most, it’s a spatial change that will jar with other parts of the GNOME Shell experience, like virtual desktops/workspaces, and what you are not accustomed to.
But if you run a portrait monitor, or a multi-monitor setup which stacks vertically, or you prefer vertical scrolling as a concept, then this extension will appeal.
The developer of Vertical App Grid says the “the implementation is very basic”, and that drag-and-drop reordering and app folders are “currently not supported”. This means you will should organise shortcuts the way you want, before you enable this extension.
If you fancy giving it a go, you can — provided that you run Ubuntu 25.10 or another Linux distribution running GNOME 49 — even if it’s just as a sometimes-tweak than an always-on one.