Mac Notch Apps in 2026: What Each One Is Actually For

Mac notch apps fall into three groups, and each one solves a different problem. Notch panels add widgets such as media controls and a file tray near the camera, menu bar managers bring back icons the notch hides, and cosmetic apps only change how the notch looks.

Apple also ships a free setting that can move an app below the camera, so you may not need an app at all. This guide covers each group, what it costs to try, the limits the vendors admit to, and the mistakes people make when they choose one.

Do you need a notch app at all?

Start by asking what is actually wrong. If every icon you use shows in the menu bar, you do not need a menu bar manager. If you already like how the top of your screen looks, skip the cosmetic apps.

Notch panels are the optional category. Most people who install one want quick music controls, a file shelf or a calendar glance. Check whether a standard Mac feature covers the job first, such as Control Center for volume and playback. Open it from the Control Center icon in the top-right corner of the menu bar.

If you own a Mac without a notch, none of these tools fix a camera problem, because there is no camera housing to hide anything. Menu bar managers can still help with a crowded menu bar on those models, though.

Why the notch hides menu bar icons

The notch is a camera housing in the middle of the top edge of the screen. The menu bar runs right through it. On a crowded menu bar, items near the middle can sit under the housing and never show up.

Count what should be there. Open the menu bar, list the icons you rely on, and check which ones are missing. That count tells you which type of app you need.

One writer who uses a 14-inch MacBook Pro describes “twenty-something icons fighting for two inches of screen real estate next to the notch.” That writer says “half of them just disappear behind the camera cutout.” This is one author’s experience, not a measurement. Use it as a warning sign, not as data.

Mac notch apps that add a panel near the camera

Notch extensions turn the area around the camera into a small panel. You hover or click it to see controls. Common jobs are media controls, a file shelf, a calendar and live status alerts. These apps solve a convenience problem. They do not bring back hidden menu bar icons.

NotchNook

NotchNook’s site describes itself as “The original notch app, rebuilt for your Mac.” It has two editions. Pro adds “Music with lyrics,” a file tray with AirDrop, a calendar, and Live Activities for things like AirPods and battery. Classic keeps media controls, the file tray, the calendar and basic Live Activities.

The site says one license covers up to 2 of your Macs. Both editions need macOS 14.6 or later, and Pro needs Apple silicon. Check your chip under Apple menu > About This Mac before you choose Pro.

Prices are where sources disagree. The price did not load on NotchNook’s site when I checked, so open its pricing page yourself before you buy.

One comparison site reports that NotchNook went offline in September 2026 during an ownership dispute at its developer. The same site says it could not confirm whether licenses bought before September still work. I could not verify that report, so ask the developer before you pay.

Boring Notch

Boring Notch is open source. FavTray describes it as free under the GPL-3.0 license, with no trial, no paid tier and no account. It needs macOS 14 or later.

FavTray also says Boring Notch is not notarized. That means macOS blocks the first launch. To allow it, open System Settings > Privacy & Security and click Open Anyway. You do this once. The project’s GitHub page did not load when I checked, so confirm the license and current macOS support there.

Brow and Alcove

Brow describes itself as a productivity hub for the notch area. Its own site lists macOS 14 or later. Alcove takes a Dynamic Island style approach to the same space.

Test both on your own Mac. Feature lists in comparison articles do not always match, and the panel you like in a screenshot may feel different after a week of use.

Menu bar managers for hidden menu bar icons on Mac

A menu bar manager does the job that a notch panel does not. It keeps your icons usable by moving the ones you rarely click out of the way, and it gives you a place to reach the rest.

Bartender 5 is the best-known tool in this group. Its page says it gives access to “the menu bar items otherwise hidden by the notch on MacBook Air and Pro screens.” It is paid software. The page offers a 4-week trial, then prompts you to purchase. The license covers all the Macs you own and are the main user of.

Check compatibility before you buy. The Bartender 5 FAQ says “Bartender 5 is only compatible with macOS Sonoma.” If you run a newer macOS, check the current version page, because newer Bartender versions may exist. I did not confirm them.

Ice is the other tool in this group. Its homepage calls it “a powerful menu bar management tool” and links to a GitHub page and a donate page. The homepage does not show a price, a license or a minimum macOS version. Read the GitHub page before you install.

Here is how a manager works in practice. Say you run 20 menu bar icons and 6 of them disappear behind the notch. A manager lets you keep the icons you need in view and tuck the rest into a hidden section. To rearrange icons yourself, hold ⌘ and drag an icon to a new position.

Cosmetic notch apps: what they hide and what they do not

Cosmetic apps change how the top of the screen looks. TopNotch hides the notch with black borders, so the menu bar looks uniform from edge to edge.

Brow sells its own notch app, and it says half of notch apps are described as cosmetic. The page gives no survey or count behind that claim. Treat it as a competitor’s opinion.

The trade-off is simple. A cosmetic app does not bring hidden icons back. If icons are missing, you still need a manager. Use a cosmetic app only when the look bothers you and your icons already show.

Apple’s free fix: Scale to fit below built-in camera

Apple does not sell a notch app, but it does have a per-app setting. Apple’s support article says that if an app’s controls or menu bar items appear blocked or hidden behind the camera housing, you can turn on “Scale to fit below built-in camera” for that app. The steps are:

1. Quit the app.
2. In Finder, click Applications in the sidebar.
3. Select the app.
4. Choose File > Get Info, or press ⌘I.
5. Select Scale to fit below built-in camera, then open the app again.

Apple’s article applies to MacBook Air with Liquid Retina and MacBook Pro with Liquid Retina XDR. It was published October 12, 2023.

The trade-off is bigger than it looks. Apple’s article says that while the setting is on, all open apps, or apps that share the same space, appear below the camera. That stays true until you quit the app using the scaled setting.

MacRumors reported the option in October 2021. It keeps menu bar items visible below the notch, but it gives no pixel figures. iMore says the setting reduces the display area and brings back larger bezels while the app runs.

Here is a worked example. You turn on Scale to fit for your browser because one menu item is hidden. Then you notice every open window sits lower and the screen looks smaller. Quit the browser, reopen Get Info, clear the checkbox and launch the browser again.

Which Mac notch app fits your problem

Use this table to match the problem you have with the type of app to try first.

If two rows fit you, start with the one that fixes the problem you feel every day. A missing icon you need at 9 a.m. matters more than a nicer-looking notch.

Check memory use before you add another notch app

Brow ran one test on a 14-inch MacBook Pro M3 Pro running macOS 15 Sequoia. It measured approximate idle RAM for each app. Its figures are: TopNotch about 10 MB, NotchDrop about 40 MB, Brow about 50 MB, Boring Notch about 60 MB, MediaMate about 70 MB, Alcove about 80 MB, Notchify about 90 MB and NotchNook about 110 MB.

Read these with care. Brow sells a competing notch app and ran the test itself, on one machine, at idle. Your results will differ. Use the ranking as a rough guide, not as a promise.

To check your own numbers, open Applications > Utilities > Activity Monitor. Click the Memory tab, then sort by the Memory column. Open each notch app one at a time and watch its row.

Mistakes people make with notch apps on Mac

1. Running two notch panels at once. Both try to use the same strip of screen. Test them one at a time.
2. Buying a cosmetic app to get icons back. It will not recover hidden items.
3. Ignoring license terms. NotchNook’s license covers up to 2 Macs. Bartender’s covers the Macs you own and are the main user of. A shared work Mac may not fit either rule.
4. Skipping the macOS version check. Find your version under Apple menu > About This Mac, then compare it with the minimum on the vendor’s page.
5. Forgetting Scale to fit’s side effect. Quit the scaled app once you finish with it, or every window you open keeps sitting below the camera.

Where Lazur fits if you want a voice assistant instead

Lazur is a different kind of notch app. It is a voice assistant that lives in the notch. It does not add a media panel, a file tray or a menu bar manager.

Hold ⌥ ⌘ to ask about anything on screen. Lazur answers out loud. Ask where something is, and it draws a circle and a label around it. Ask how to do something, and it guides you one click at a time, waiting for each click. It does not click buttons or operate apps for you.

So Lazur helps with “where is this button” and “what does this do” questions. It does not bring back hidden menu bar icons. If you want a comparison with a chat app that can see your screen, read ChatGPT on Mac vs Lazur. For a wider list of assistants, see the best AI buddy apps for Mac in 2026. To try Lazur, download it here. There is a free trial, and it does not ask for a credit card.

Next steps before you install anything

1. Count the menu bar icons you need. If any are missing, start with a menu bar manager.
2. If one app’s window is clipped under the camera, try Scale to fit on that app first.
3. If you want media controls or a file tray, try one notch panel and watch its memory use.
4. Before you buy, check the license, the macOS minimum and the price on the vendor’s own site.