Best Mac apps for menu bar icons hidden by the notch
At a glance
| App | Price | Requirements | Good fit for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bartender | Bartender 7 one time; Pro yearly; prices not readable on the page; 4 week trial, 14 day for Pro | Bartender 7 targets macOS 27; Bartender 6 for macOS 26 | Command Bar, triggers, profiles and automatic handling of items hidden by the notch. |
| Ice | Free, GPL 3.0; sponsor links only | macOS 14 | Hide and show items, an Ice Bar, drag and drop arrangement, search and profiles. |
| Hidden Bar | Free, MIT; no price on the README | macOS 13 (older v1.10 supports 10.13 to 12) | Hides menu bar icons behind an arrow, with Command drag rearranging. |
| Vanilla | Free; Vanilla Pro $10 one time; 30 day money back guarantee; no trial listed | macOS minimum not stated | Hides menu bar icons; Pro adds shortcuts, removed icons, auto hide and launch at login. |
| ChocolateBar | $15 once with 1 year of updates; 48 hour free trial; 7 day refund | macOS 12 to 15, per its compatibility page | Hides crowded icons or shows them in a second row under the menu bar. |
| NotchSpace | Free | macOS 15.0 or later; chips not listed | A free notch shelf, app launch bar and menu bar manager on the Mac App Store. |
Prices and availability were checked on 4 November 2026. Verify the linked product page before buying.
Start with the free fixes: remove menu bar controls you do not need in System Settings. If icons still disappear behind the notch, use a menu bar manager. Bartender lists automatic handling of items hidden by the notch, and Ice adds a second row. NotchStar does not fix this. Prices as of 4 November 2026.
How we checked
Each entry comes from the maker’s own pages, read on 4 November 2026: websites, pricing pages, GitHub pages and Mac App Store listings. Nothing was tested by hand for this list, so it says what each maker states and no more. Where a page did not state a price or a macOS version, this list says so instead of guessing. Prices as of 4 November 2026. The free macOS steps come from the Apple support pages linked in the sources. The notch specific claims below are limited to what each page says about the notch.
At a glance
| App | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Bartender | crowded bars where you want notch handling done for you | Bartender 7 one time; Pro yearly; prices not readable on the page; 4 week trial, 14 day for Pro |
| Ice | a free fix with a row of hidden icons below the bar | Free, GPL 3.0; sponsor links only |
| Hidden Bar | hiding a few icons behind one arrow | Free, MIT; no price on the README |
| Vanilla | a cheap way to hide icons | Free; Vanilla Pro $10 one time; 30 day money back guarantee; no trial listed |
| ChocolateBar | seeing every icon in a second row, on macOS 15 or earlier | $15 once with 1 year of updates; 48 hour free trial; 7 day refund |
| NotchSpace | a free app that rearranges icons and adds a shelf | Free |
Six apps that can help, one entry each
Bartender
Best for: crowded bars where you want notch handling done for you.
Bartender’s page lists a Command Bar to search and trigger menu bar items, triggers that show items on conditions, a Bartender Bar, profiles, styling, spacing and Shortcuts and AppleScript automation. It also lists automatic handling of items hidden by the notch. The prices rendered as Loading, so none is recorded here. Version 7 targets macOS 27, and its page says Tahoe support for 7 comes after launch, so check which version fits your macOS.
Price: Bartender 7 one time; Pro yearly; prices not readable on the page; 4 week trial, 14 day for Pro. Requires: Bartender 7 targets macOS 27; Bartender 6 for macOS 26.
Ice
Best for: a free fix with a row of hidden icons below the bar.
Ice hides and shows menu bar items with an always hidden section, shows hidden items in an Ice Bar below the menu bar, and supports drag and drop arrangement, search, profiles, spacers, groups and hotkeys. Its README says some features are not implemented yet. Its release notes also describe an inset appearance for screens with a notch.
Price: Free, GPL 3.0; sponsor links only. Requires: macOS 14.
Hidden Bar
Best for: hiding a few icons behind one arrow.
Hidden Bar hides icons behind an arrow and lets you rearrange with Command drag. It is described as ultra light, and its feature set is basic, with no second row or search. It is offered through an App Store listing, a Homebrew cask and GitHub downloads.
Price: Free, MIT; no price on the README. Requires: macOS 13 (older v1.10 supports 10.13 to 12).
Vanilla
Best for: a cheap way to hide icons.
Vanilla hides icons for free. Pro adds custom keyboard shortcuts, a Completely Removed icons section, auto hide after five seconds and launch at login, and each Pro license activates on up to 10 Macs. The macOS minimum and version are not stated.
Price: Free; Vanilla Pro $10 one time; 30 day money back guarantee; no trial listed. Requires: macOS minimum not stated.
ChocolateBar
Best for: seeing every icon in a second row, on macOS 15 or earlier.
ChocolateBar shows hidden icons in a second row under the bar. The maker’s own pages are the only source, claims such as its memory use are not measurements, and its supported macOS range stops at 15. See the ChocolateBar comparison.
Price: $15 once with 1 year of updates; 48 hour free trial; 7 day refund. Requires: macOS 12 to 15, per its compatibility page.
NotchSpace
Best for: a free app that rearranges icons and adds a shelf.
NotchSpace lets you hold Command to rearrange icons and collapse left side items. It also has a shelf and app launch bar, and its listing says it is not a clipboard tool. See the NotchSpace comparison.
Price: Free. Requires: macOS 15.0 or later; chips not listed.
How to choose
- Step one, free: in System Settings, open Menu Bar and turn off controls you do not use.
- Step two, free: hold Command and drag supported icons out, or hide an app’s own icon in its settings.
- One app’s menus run behind the camera: use Scale to fit below built in camera for that app, set in Finder.
- Still crowded: Bartender for the most complete fix, Ice for free, ChocolateBar for a second row.
- Only want the notch to look black: that is a look, not a fix. See the full guide to hidden icons.
- Want tools around the notch: NotchStar adds ten, but not icon recovery. Its own menu bar icon help explains its one item.
Left out
TopNotch, which gives the menu bar a black background, is a visual change and not a manager. The apps here are the same six as the general menu bar manager list; this page is ordered by the notch problem.
Sources
Official pages, read on 4 November 2026. Prices as of 4 November 2026.
