App Menu
The App Menu in Salesforce is the Setup page where admins configure the order, visibility, and inclusion of apps available to users across the org.
Definition
The App Menu in Salesforce is the Setup page where admins configure the order, visibility, and inclusion of apps available to users across the org. In Salesforce Classic, the App Menu was a dropdown in the top-right corner that let users switch between apps. In Lightning Experience, the App Menu role has been mostly absorbed by the App Launcher, but the App Menu Setup page still exists for org-level configuration of which apps are exposed to users and in which order.
App Menu is the admin-facing configuration. It is distinct from the user-facing App Launcher (the grid icon that lets users switch apps) and the Lightning App itself (the configured page set with navigation, utility bar, and identity). The App Menu page lets admins decide which Lightning Apps appear in the App Launcher and which Salesforce Mobile App navigation shows the app. The Setup path is App Manager (Lightning Experience) or Setup, Create, Apps (Classic). The role is largely behind-the-scenes for Lightning-era orgs.
How the App Menu fits into Salesforce navigation history
Classic App Menu vs Lightning App Launcher
In Salesforce Classic, the App Menu was a dropdown in the top-right corner of every page. Users clicked it to switch between apps (Sales, Service, Marketing, custom apps). Each app had its own tab set. In Lightning Experience, the equivalent role belongs to the App Launcher: a grid icon in the top-left that opens a panel of available apps. The App Launcher is more discoverable and supports search, but the underlying concept (a way to switch between admin-configured apps) is the same. Most modern orgs run Lightning Experience exclusively, so the term App Menu is now mostly historical.
App Manager: the modern configuration page
Setup, App Manager is the Lightning-era replacement for the Classic Apps setup page. It lists every Lightning App and Classic App in the org. From here, admins create new Lightning Apps, edit existing ones, set visibility per profile, and configure app-specific navigation. The App Manager is the single configuration surface for everything an app contains: branding, utility bar, navigation items, profile assignments. Even Classic Apps that still exist in the org appear in App Manager, though their editor is more limited than the Lightning App editor.
App visibility and the user experience
Each app's visibility is configured through the App Manager: Visible to Profiles. A user sees an app in their App Launcher if their profile has Visible access. Permission sets can extend visibility beyond profile. The App Menu Setup page (the legacy version) controlled the order apps appeared in the Classic dropdown; in Lightning, users can drag-and-drop reorder their own App Launcher panel, with admin-defined defaults as the starting point. The two-tier system (admin defaults plus user customization) is intentional: it lets admins seed sensible navigation and lets users adapt to their own workflow.
Default App per profile
Beyond visibility, each profile has a Default App setting: which app opens after the user logs in. Setup, Profiles, edit the profile, App Settings, Default App. A support agent might default to the Service Console. A salesperson might default to the Sales app. Setting the right Default App saves a click on every login and orients the user immediately. The setting is per-profile, so admins do not have to manage it per-user. The Default App is the closest the Lightning App Menu equivalent comes to enforcing a navigation policy.
Mobile App Menu and the Salesforce Mobile App
The Salesforce Mobile App has its own App Menu, accessed through the hamburger menu. The mobile version shows the apps available to the user with touch-optimized navigation. The configuration lives in Setup, Mobile Apps, Salesforce Mobile App. The mobile menu respects the same visibility rules as the desktop App Launcher but with different layout constraints. Mobile-specific app configurations (different tabs, different utility components) are supported through the Lightning App editor's Mobile section.
Connected Apps in the App Menu
Connected Apps with the right Start URL and visibility configuration also appear in the App Launcher alongside Lightning Apps. This is how external systems (Slack, Google Workspace, internal tools) surface as launchable apps inside Salesforce. The Connected App configuration is separate from the Lightning App configuration, but the user-facing experience is unified: both appear in the App Launcher panel. Admins managing the App Menu equivalent in modern orgs are typically curating both Lightning Apps and Connected Apps for the right user populations.
Why the term App Menu still matters
Most Lightning-era admins do not see the term App Menu in their daily work. The functionality has been absorbed by App Manager (admin-facing) and App Launcher (user-facing). The term persists in legacy documentation, Classic-era training materials, and the Salesforce Mobile App where the hamburger menu is still called the App Menu in some contexts. For new admins learning the platform today, knowing the term helps when reading older Trailhead content or Salesforce Help articles referencing the original App Menu.
Configuring the App Menu equivalent in Lightning Experience
Configuring the App Menu equivalent in Lightning means using App Manager: create Lightning Apps, set per-profile visibility, configure default apps per profile, and curate the Connected App list. The work is incremental and most useful when new user populations are onboarded.
- Open App Manager
Setup, Quick Find App Manager, click the link. The page lists every Lightning App and Classic App in the org, with their visibility and last modified date.
- Review app visibility per profile
For each Lightning App, click the dropdown, Edit. Review the User Profiles section. Confirm trial, community, partner profiles do not see admin apps.
- Set Default App per profile
Setup, Profiles, edit each profile. App Settings, Default App. Pick the app that should open after login for that profile. Save.
- Configure Connected App visibility
Setup, Connected Apps OAuth Usage. For each Connected App that should appear in the App Launcher, configure the Start URL and the Visibility (profiles or permission sets).
- Curate the navigation per app
For each Lightning App, the Navigation Items list controls which tabs appear in the navigation bar. Edit per app to keep the navigation focused.
- Test the App Launcher experience per profile
Log in as a representative user from each profile, open the App Launcher, confirm the right apps appear in the right order. Make adjustments based on the experience.
The modern Lightning-era configuration page that replaced the Classic Apps page. Single source of truth for Lightning App configuration.
Per-app setting that controls which profiles see the app. Permission sets can extend.
Per-profile setting for which app opens after login. Saves a click per session.
Per-Connected-App configuration that includes the OAuth-based external app in the App Launcher.
The mobile-specific menu accessed through the hamburger icon in the Salesforce Mobile App.
- The term App Menu is mostly historical in Lightning Experience. New admins encountering it in documentation should map it to App Manager and App Launcher.
- Classic Apps still exist in some orgs. App Manager exposes both Classic and Lightning Apps in one list, which can be confusing during migration.
- The Default App setting per profile applies on login only. Users who switch apps during their session do not return to the Default App on the next page load.
- App visibility is the union of profile and permission set grants. A user might see an app you granted through a permission set you forgot about.
- Connected App visibility requires the Start URL to be configured for the app to launch correctly from the App Launcher.
Trust & references
Straight from the source - Salesforce's reference material on App Menu.
- App ManagerSalesforce Help
- Lightning App LauncherSalesforce Help
- Classic Apps vs Lightning AppsSalesforce Help
About the Author
Dipojjal Chakrabarti is a B2C Solution Architect with 29 Salesforce certifications and over 13 years in the Salesforce ecosystem. He runs salesforcedictionary.com to help admins, developers, architects, and cert/interview candidates sharpen their fundamentals. More about Dipojjal.
Test your knowledge
Q1. What does App Menu control?
Q2. If an app is hidden in App Menu, will any user see it in the App Launcher?
Q3. Why would an admin reorder apps in App Menu?
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