diff --git a/macos/Sources/Features/Terminal/TerminalController.swift b/macos/Sources/Features/Terminal/TerminalController.swift
index 8ad1509d5..0c1417cd0 100644
--- a/macos/Sources/Features/Terminal/TerminalController.swift
+++ b/macos/Sources/Features/Terminal/TerminalController.swift
@@ -59,7 +59,30 @@ class TerminalController: NSWindowController, NSWindowDelegate, TerminalViewDele
         let center = NotificationCenter.default
         center.removeObserver(self)
     }
-    
+
+    /// Update the accessory view of each tab according to the keyboard
+    /// shortcut that activates it (if any). This is called when the key window
+    /// changes and when a window is closed.
+    func relabelTabs() {
+        guard let windows = self.window?.tabbedWindows else { return }
+        guard let cfg = ghostty.config else { return }
+        for (index, window) in windows.enumerated().prefix(9) {
+            let action = "goto_tab:\(index + 1)"
+            let trigger = ghostty_config_trigger(cfg, action, UInt(action.count))
+            guard let equiv = Ghostty.keyEquivalentLabel(key: trigger.key, mods: trigger.mods) else {
+                continue
+            }
+
+            let attributes: [NSAttributedString.Key: Any] = [
+                .font: NSFont.labelFont(ofSize: 0),
+                .foregroundColor: window.isKeyWindow ? NSColor.labelColor : NSColor.secondaryLabelColor,
+            ]
+            let attributedString = NSAttributedString(string: " \(equiv) ", attributes: attributes)
+            let text = NSTextField(labelWithAttributedString: attributedString)
+            window.tab.accessoryView = text
+        }
+    }
+
     //MARK: - NSWindowController
     
     override func windowWillLoad() {
@@ -144,8 +167,14 @@ class TerminalController: NSWindowController, NSWindowDelegate, TerminalViewDele
         // the view and the window so we had to nil this out to break it but I think this
         // may now be resolved. We should verify that no memory leaks and we can remove this.
         self.window?.contentView = nil
+
+        self.relabelTabs()
     }
-    
+
+    func windowDidBecomeKey(_ notification: Notification) {
+        self.relabelTabs()
+    }
+
     //MARK: - First Responder
     
     @IBAction func newWindow(_ sender: Any?) {
diff --git a/macos/Sources/Features/Terminal/TerminalManager.swift b/macos/Sources/Features/Terminal/TerminalManager.swift
index e904630be..d078bc24f 100644
--- a/macos/Sources/Features/Terminal/TerminalManager.swift
+++ b/macos/Sources/Features/Terminal/TerminalManager.swift
@@ -87,7 +87,6 @@ class TerminalManager {
         // Create a new window and add it to the parent
         let window = createWindow(withBaseConfig: base).window!
         parent.addTabbedWindow(window, ordered: .above)
-        relabelTabs(parent)
         window.makeKeyAndOrderFront(self)
     }
     
@@ -95,7 +94,13 @@ class TerminalManager {
     private func createWindow(withBaseConfig base: Ghostty.SurfaceConfiguration?) -> TerminalController {
         // Initialize our controller to load the window
         let c = TerminalController(ghostty, withBaseConfig: base)
-        
+
+        // For new windows, explicitly disallow tabbing with other windows.
+        // This overrides the value of userTabbingPreference. Rationale:
+        // Ghostty provides separate "New Tab" and "New Window" actions so
+        // there's no reason to make "New Window" open in a tab.
+        c.window!.tabbingMode = .disallowed;
+
         // Create a listener for when the window is closed so we can remove it.
         let pubClose = NotificationCenter.default.publisher(
             for: NSWindow.willCloseNotification,
@@ -124,12 +129,6 @@ class TerminalManager {
         // Ensure any publishers we have are cancelled
         w.closePublisher.cancel()
         
-        // Removing the window can change tabs, so we need to relabel all tabs.
-        // At this point, the window is already removed from the tab bar so
-        // I don't know a way to only relabel the active tab bar, so just relabel
-        // all of them.
-        relabelAllTabs()
-        
         // If we remove a window, we reset the cascade point to the key window so that
         // the next window cascade's from that one.
         if let focusedWindow = NSApplication.shared.keyWindow {
@@ -151,32 +150,7 @@ class TerminalManager {
     /// Relabels all the tabs with the proper keyboard shortcut.
     func relabelAllTabs() {
         for w in windows {
-            if let window = w.controller.window {
-                relabelTabs(window)
-            }
-        }
-    }
-    
-    /// Update the accessory view of each tab according to the keyboard
-    /// shortcut that activates it (if any). This is called when the key window
-    /// changes and when a window is closed.
-    private func relabelTabs(_ window: NSWindow) {
-        guard let windows = window.tabbedWindows else { return }
-        guard let cfg = ghostty.config else { return }
-        for (index, window) in windows.enumerated().prefix(9) {
-            let action = "goto_tab:\(index + 1)"
-            let trigger = ghostty_config_trigger(cfg, action, UInt(action.count))
-            guard let equiv = Ghostty.keyEquivalentLabel(key: trigger.key, mods: trigger.mods) else {
-                continue
-            }
-
-            let attributes: [NSAttributedString.Key: Any] = [
-                .font: NSFont.labelFont(ofSize: 0),
-                .foregroundColor: window.isKeyWindow ? NSColor.labelColor : NSColor.secondaryLabelColor,
-            ]
-            let attributedString = NSAttributedString(string: " \(equiv) ", attributes: attributes)
-            let text = NSTextField(labelWithAttributedString: attributedString)
-            window.tab.accessoryView = text
+            w.controller.relabelTabs()
         }
     }