# Fences Reviews **Vendor:** Stardock **Category:** [Other Collaboration Software](https://www.g2.com/categories/other-collaboration) **Average Rating:** 4.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 14 ## About Fences Fences helps users to organize desktop shortcuts and icons. ## Fences Reviews ### 1. The most elegant organizing tool available for Windows **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Non-Profit Organization Management | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** August 24, 2022 **What do you like best about Fences?** Fences has completely changed the way I interface with Windows. The ability to arrange my desktop according to groups, colourized sections and workflow clusters is a gamer changer. **What do you dislike about Fences?** There is really not much that I would change. There are certainly moments where it seems the program becomes a system-hog in terms of resources, but that is nitpicking. **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** I am a stickler for neat desktops that keep workflows logical but also help one to focus by grouping icons, folders, and files in a systematized manner. Fences does this effortlessly! ### 2. Somehow Still Best In Its Class **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Kit G. | Marketing Manager, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** November 15, 2023 **What do you like best about Fences?** Easy to install Smart Folders make accessing commonly-used files deeper in directory structure from the desktop a breeze. Desktop Pages let me switch between work modes quickly Snapshot system makes switching between one and multiple screens convenient My daily driver for DWM **What do you dislike about Fences?** Snapshot system can be buggy Bug recently introduced that blocks mouse clicks intermittently Rules system not flexible enough & sometimes acts counterintuitively **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** As a marketer, I deal with large numbers of files, folders and programs. Keeping all of these organised is a job in itself, and being able to surface frequently-used folders quickly while keeping my desktop organised is a challenge. Fences helps me stay focused on my work by giving me the tools to ensure I have what I need when I need it, and can sort incoming files into panes for me either for folderising later, or simply leaving on desktop. ### 3. Using Fences allows me to work from my Win 11 Desktop Privately and Efficiently **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Tom L. | Owner-Principal Marketing Consultant, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 17, 2023 **What do you like best about Fences?** I started with Fences on Win 10 and now they have an even better product on win 11. There are four main reasons why I love it: 1. I create Desktop Categories that change as my needs dictate. When working on a project where there are just a lot of icons (Apps and/or Files) together I create a Fence Folder on my Desktop. 2. It removes all the clutter from the desktop in a much more visually appealing look than a win folder. (Remember when there was a crazy amount of icons on the desktop, dumb folder after dub folder... now they are gone.) This capability also allows me to unplug my large screen from my Laptop, resulting in aggregating my work down to my smaller Laptop Screen without any desktop mess. 3. With screen sharing from Teams and Zoom I'm always screen sharing. Now no matter what personal or work I keep on my desktop it is on my desktop privately (there is a view on every Fence I set that allows it to Roll-Up), and no one knows what is inside. 4. The value is great or I say it is inexpensive so that no one can not afford a more organized desktop. **What do you dislike about Fences?** It's not that I dislike anything about it. Before I used Fences I would take a win folder and change the .ico so that I had a relevant visual that matched my work folder. I'm a longtime software marketing guy just trying to get more features :-) I never notice any bugs and it just works great! **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** Keep my work organized. ### 4. A simple but incredibly useful program **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Primary/Secondary Education | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 17, 2023 **What do you like best about Fences?** Fences is a pretty simple app that helps to keep my desktop organized. I have some icons grouped by the task they relate to (work/home) and some documents that I frequently access. I can quickly roll up the fences that I don't need at the moment to keep the desktop uncluttered. It's also great to be able to hide all of my desktop icons when presenting or sharing my desktop on Zoom. **What do you dislike about Fences?** I wish that there was a Mac version of Fences as well. **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** Fences helps keep me organized. I no longer have a desktop cluttered with way too many icons. They're all neatly grouped together now and tucked out of the way when not needed. ### 5. Organize your Desktop! **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Saul A. | Editorial & Graphic Design Expert II, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 19, 2023 **What do you like best about Fences?** Fences will keep your desktop looking nice and neat while keeping your shortcuts organized. **What do you dislike about Fences?** Double-clicking to make the fences UI disappear causes the Recycle Bin Icon to vanish, which discourages me from using that feature. **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** I like to have my shortcuts handy, but I hate a cluttered desktop. This app fixes my problem! ### 6. Invaluable Tool - Hard to Use Windows Without it! **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Christopher N. | Group Safety, Health, Environment and Quality Specialist, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** October 08, 2021 **What do you like best about Fences?** - Buy once use forever (I've been using it for 5+ years, and it's still receiving updates) - Ability to automatically sort desktop files saved to your desktop into 'fences' based on file type, name, etc. (huge time saver). - Ability to double click to hide fences and all icons on your desktop (convenient for hiding the content of your desktop when conducting training, presenting in Microsoft Teams meetings, or taking screenshots) - Ability to set a fence as a portal to a folder. In my case, I link it to my downloads folder, so I don't have to open the folder continually. - Trusted established developer. **What do you dislike about Fences?** Occasionally when swapping between laptop and desktop monitors, the location, order, and settings get re-arranged. The good news is that you can restore the previous arrangement from the program's settings with a click. **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** It's an invaluable tool that allows quick access to regularly opened folders and sorts desktop icons automatically to prevent mess and significantly improve productivity. ### 7. Perfect for Desktop Organization **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Kimberly H. | Owner, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** August 26, 2021 **What do you like best about Fences?** I love how easy it is to use to organize everything. I can have a clean desktop and enjoy how everything looks. What you have is called containers. You put tabs or things in each container and can label it how you like. For instance, I have one for photography stuff. I put in things like Photoshop and Lightroom, etc, and that's where I find those icons. I have another for other things. The colors go well with my desktop, and it looks clean and organized. I'm not too fond of a messy desktop, and this fixes it. **What do you dislike about Fences?** Nothing really. Not much of a learning curve. Maybe at first, but then it's easy. The user area is where you change colors and things like that. Once you have your container you can edit the title and change the name, etc. **Recommendations to others considering Fences:** Make it your own and ensure that it's exactly how you like it. It's easy to use and you can change colors and sizes of your containers. Everything is easily edited and fits within multiple containers if you like. **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** Everything keeps me organized. I love having icons within the containers or fences, and that is how I keep my desktop looking gorgeous and clean. ### 8. great way to organize your desktop **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** June 25, 2021 **What do you like best about Fences?** Because you are able to organize your desktop icons, it makes it really easy to find what you are looking for and remove the clutter **What do you dislike about Fences?** There were some bugs a few years ago, but from what I can tell those have been resolved **Recommendations to others considering Fences:** If you are looking to declutter your desktop, this is a good product that is intuitive to use. **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** Really this software helps those who are overwhelmed with desktop clutter. ### 9. very good and also very bad **Rating:** 1.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** john t. | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 04, 2020 **What do you like best about Fences?** yes, it did hide all unnecessary content on desktop **What do you dislike about Fences?** one of the most common feature but yet missing in fence fence opens under all other opened win app on desktop it took more mouse clicks than for me to open win explorer which of course opens on top of all app, to select the file i want and close explorer **Recommendations to others considering Fences:** with such a fatal missing feature, of course not for sure, anyone using will discover the problem immediately when they wanted something and found that they cannot even see it if there is an app opened that cover most of the screen or where they have placed their fence **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** no point just to beautify my desktop, it has also to be useful when i need it when i have multiple docs opened and i wanted some data in a file, i click on the top of my screen to bring down the fence directory and what did i get? i cannot even see the content, i have to minimize to desktop all my other opened docs just to look for the file that i wanted and then i have to reopen all of them again, what a hassle, what is worst, apparently, this has be reported to the Devs for sometime just a common feature that even win explorer can do it and yet the Dev dont seems to be bothered, be warned ### 10. Great desktop software to keep your desktop neat **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Ted G. | Project Manager/ERP Consultant, Computer Software, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 18, 2019 **What do you like best about Fences?** I love that my desktop looks neat, organized, and professional. Fences has a good appearance and is easy to setup. I have never had any problems with it. **What do you dislike about Fences?** I don't dislike anything. It is pretty much a perfect application. **Recommendations to others considering Fences:** Just go to Stardock's website and buy it! **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** It makes my desktop organized and makes my computer have a neat and professional appearance. ### 11. Organize desktop easy to manage **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** November 22, 2019 **What do you like best about Fences?** I like the I can customize my screens and I can make several tabs. It makes it easier to find documents or applications if organized they way you like. **What do you dislike about Fences?** the price for the service is a bit expensive. In reality the service provided is simple and more of a perk not a necessity. **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** The biggest benefit is organizing but also when i have to cast or use my laptop for presentation i have the option to "disappear" my desktop icons and docs. I don't have to show everyone a messy desktop but instead a clean one. Privacy is a big benefit. ### 12. Great for desktop Organization **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Evan S. | Vessel IT Team Lead, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** November 19, 2019 **What do you like best about Fences?** I mainly use it for keeping desktop clutter free and using rules to move stuff to the correct folder. **What do you dislike about Fences?** It can bog down the system at times and become unresponsive. This is rare but it has happened a few times **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** Keeping my desktop clean! ### 13. Fences review **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Matthew H. | Designer, Architecture & Planning, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 12, 2019 **What do you like best about Fences?** I like the ability to organize my computer desktop and how easy it is to do so **What do you dislike about Fences?** Not much I dislike. If I was to be picky I’d like to be able to put fences within fences. **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** I am able to clean up a very cluttered desktop which allows me to find what I’m looking for easily and focus on other stuff that matters. ### 14. Great for Type A Desktop Organizers, like myself **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Stephen G. | Quality Assurance Analyst, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 28, 2019 **What do you like best about Fences?** I like the ability to organize my desktop as I like it, creating areas to store different types of files. Self-sorts, per settings. Very reliable. **What do you dislike about Fences?** Occasional hiccups are frustrating but few and far between. Non-type A users will hate using your computer... **Recommendations to others considering Fences:** It isn't for everyone, but if you are particular about the organization of your desktop, it will make you happy and your life easier. Worth the cheap cost. Frequent updated and well-supported. Lots of other desktop customization programs available from the **What problems is Fences solving and how is that benefiting you?** I can find my files faster and more reliably. Efficiency increased. I'm happier. ## Fences Discussions - [Is fences a good program?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/is-fences-a-good-program) - 1 comment - [View Fences pricing details and edition comparison](https://www.g2.com/products/fences/reviews?section=pricing&secure%5Bexpires_at%5D=2026-05-14+13%3A55%3A04+-0500&secure%5Bsession_id%5D=1843019f-d27a-4a4a-8bd4-bfba3f4e96eb&secure%5Btoken%5D=4ac71e2b182a1c0744d10a00e0102bf11e526abc0f6339ed9b5238fdca43724a&format=llm_user) ## Top Fences Alternatives - [EverAfter](https://www.g2.com/products/everafter/reviews) - 4.6/5.0 (159 reviews) - [Zeplin](https://www.g2.com/products/zeplin/reviews) - 4.4/5.0 (115 reviews) - [Zenzap](https://www.g2.com/products/zenzap/reviews) - 4.6/5.0 (84 reviews)