Best Mac notch apps in 2026, compared by job

Nine apps now compete for the strip of black glass at the top of a MacBook screen. Four are free, one sells a subscription, and one can't be bought right now. We make one of them, NotchBuddy, so read this knowing that. Every fact about the others comes from their own websites and READMEs, checked on 25 September 2026, and we say where ours falls short.

Quick picks

The table

How we judged “best”

There isn't one best notch app, because they do different jobs. We grouped them by the job you'd hire them for and checked five things: price and licence, the macOS version each needs, whether it works on Macs without a notch, what it actually lists as features, and whether it's still being updated.

The Boring Notch: best free and open source

The best-known free option, with around 10,800 stars on GitHub. Music is its strength, alongside a file shelf, calendar, reminders and replacement volume and brightness pop-ups. Its builds aren't signed with an Apple Developer ID, so macOS warns you the first time you open it, and its latest stable release is 2.7.3 from November 2025. Full comparison.

Atoll: best free option for power users

Built on The Boring Notch's code, Atoll adds system stats, clipboard history, a timer, weather, lock-screen widgets, AI usage tracking and a screen assistant that uses your own Gemini key. It's GPL-3.0 and still shipping (2.3.3 in July 2026). Its README lists a notched MacBook as a requirement. Full comparison.

Notchy: most features for free

Notchy lists 74 features, from Face Unlock and a terminal to window snapping and AI usage, runs on macOS 13 or later, and works as a pill on Macs without a notch. It's free with optional donations but isn't open source; its site says so plainly. Don't confuse it with a separate open-source project also called Notchy that runs Claude Code in the notch.

Alcove: best polish

Alcove is the closest thing to an iPhone Dynamic Island on a Mac: music, the volume and brightness pop-ups, calendar, weather and lock-screen widgets, all very refined. It's $14.99 once for up to three devices, with a 72-hour trial and a 14-day refund. It needs macOS 15, and its file tray is announced for version 1.8. Full comparison.

OmniNotch: most tools for the money

Twenty tools, including an on-device AI chat through Apple Intelligence, AI usage tracking, weather, stocks, a teleprompter, clipboard history and a file shelf. It's $14.99 once for three Macs, with a $5 price for its first users, still labelled beta, with a 7-day refund. Full comparison.

MacNotch: best for developer dashboards

Pull requests, Jira, AI coding sessions and Screen Time next to the usual music, file shelf and timers. It's $22.99 once or $3.99 a month, with a 14-day trial, three Macs per licence, and it's also in Setapp. Full comparison.

NotchBuddy: best if you sell software (and want a pet)

Ours. 19 tools, including a Pomodoro timer, clipboard history, a file shelf with AirDrop, spoken reminders, notes and focus sounds, plus live sales alerts from Stripe, RevenueCat, Lemon Squeezy, Polar, Paddle, Dodo Payments, Gumroad and App Store Connect. Five animated pets live in the notch. It's $20 once for one Mac, needs macOS 14, is signed and notarized by Apple, and has a 14-day refund.

What it doesn't have: weather, volume and brightness pop-ups, an AI chat, a free trial, or a licence that covers more than one Mac.

NotchDrop: just the file drop

A free, MIT-licensed drop zone in the notch with AirDrop, on the Mac App Store. It hasn't been updated since November 2024, but The Boring Notch's shelf and OmniNotch both build on it.

What about NotchNook?

NotchNook popularised the idea. As of 25 September 2026 its product page and Setapp listing are offline and Homebrew has disabled its package; its maker's site announces a successor called NOOTCH. See NotchNook alternatives.

How to choose in two minutes

1. Decide what you'll look at most

   Music and pop-ups: Alcove or The Boring Notch. Timers, clipboard and notes: OmniNotch, Atoll or NotchBuddy. Code reviews: MacNotch. Sales: NotchBuddy.

2. Check your Mac

   No notch, or an external display? Skip apps that list a notched MacBook as a requirement. Still on macOS 14? Skip Alcove.

3. Decide on price

   Free and open source: The Boring Notch or Atoll. Several Macs: Alcove, OmniNotch or MacNotch, which cover three. One Mac and you sell software: NotchBuddy.

4. Try it

   Alcove and MacNotch have trials, the free apps cost nothing to try, and NotchBuddy and OmniNotch have refund windows of 14 and 7 days.