# Open source Mac notch apps, with licenses and limits > Ten Mac notch apps whose source you can read, with the license, macOS version, latest release and honest limits for each, checked 4 November 2026. Canonical: https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-open-source-mac-notch-apps/ Last updated: 2026-11-04 Published 2026-11-04. ## At a glance | App | Price | Requirements | Good fit for | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Boring Notch](https://github.com/TheBoredTeam/boring.notch) | Free, GPL 3.0 | macOS 14 or later, Apple silicon or Intel | The best known of the group. Music, calendar, a shelf with AirDrop, a mirror and volume overlays. | | [Atoll](https://github.com/Ebullioscopic/Atoll) | No price stated, GPL 3.0 | macOS 14.0 or later, a notched MacBook | Live activities, lock screen widgets and a long tool list under GPL 3.0. | | [NotchPop](https://notchpop.pages.dev) | Free, MIT license | macOS 14 or later, Apple silicon and Intel | Clipboard, shelf, music, calendar, timers and system stats under the MIT license. | | [NotchDrop](https://github.com/Lakr233/NotchDrop) | Free if you build it; a Mac App Store listing exists, price not read. MIT | macOS version not stated | A single purpose file shelf with AirDrop, about 5.1 MB. | | [MewNotch](https://github.com/monuk7735/mew-notch) | Free, GPL 3.0 | macOS 14.0 or later | Volume and brightness overlays, a shelf with AirDrop, now playing and a mirror. | | [DynamicNotch](https://github.com/jackson-storm/dynamicnotch) | No price stated, GPL 3.0; donation links only | macOS 14.6 or later | Live activities for media, downloads, AirDrop, a timer, Focus and Hotspot. | | [Sapphire](https://sapphire-app.tech/) | Free tier; paid plans from $15.99 a month. AGPL 3.0 | macOS 14.6 or later, Apple silicon or Intel | Face ID on Mac, window snapping and lock screen widgets. The paid features are stubs in the public tree. | | [NotchBar](https://github.com/navtoj/NotchBar) | No price stated for the app, AGPL 3.0 | macOS 14.5 or later | A few widgets: media playback, a system monitor and an active app display. | | [Notchi](https://github.com/sk-ruban/notchi) | Free, GPL 3.0 | macOS 15.0 or later, a notched MacBook | Tracks Claude Code and Codex sessions, with usage quota and cost, in the notch. | | [SuperIsland](https://dynamicisland.app/) | Free | macOS 14 or later, a physical notch | A JavaScript extension SDK and store. The site says open source, but the repository shows no license file. | Prices and availability were checked on 4 November 2026. Verify the linked product page before buying. Boring Notch is the best known open source Mac notch app in this group: GPL 3.0, 11,252 GitHub stars and about 2.06 million downloads across its stable releases. NotchPop is MIT, Atoll and MewNotch are GPL 3.0, and Sapphire is AGPL 3.0. Most are free. Checked 4 November 2026. ## How we checked Each repository README and license were read on 4 November 2026, along with the app's own site where one exists. The license names below are the ones the repository states. The list is not ranked. Each entry has a "best for" label, based on what the project says it does, and a limit taken from the same pages. Recent release dates matter for open source, so each entry says where a date was visible. Open source here means you can read the code. It does not tell you the app is maintained, signed or safe, so those points are covered per app. ## The entries ### Boring Notch: best for a well known, GPL licensed all rounder GPL 3.0, with 11,252 stars and 1,185 forks on GitHub on 4 November 2026. It needs macOS 14 or later on Apple silicon or Intel and covers music, calendar and reminders, a shelf with AirDrop, a mirror and system overlays. It is not signed with an Apple Developer ID. Its newest stable release is 2.7.3 from 24 November 2025, with version 2.8 only as release candidates. ### Atoll: best for the widest feature list in source form GPL 3.0, with 5,177 stars, 366 forks and 62 contributors. Live activities, lock screen widgets, clipboard history, timers, calendar previews and CPU, GPU, memory, network and disk stats are listed. It needs macOS 14.0 or later and a notched MacBook, and it asks for Accessibility, Camera, Calendar, Screen Recording and Music permissions. ### NotchPop: best for MIT licensed tools with no login MIT license, free, no login. GitHub shows v1.5.49 while its site shows v1.5.44, so the site looks stale. The last release was in May 2026, no privacy policy page is linked, and the maker is a GitHub handle. ### NotchDrop: best for a small, single purpose shelf MIT license. Files dragged to the notch are kept for 1 day by default, and it opens AirDrop from the notch. GitHub Releases is empty, so you build it from source or use the Mac App Store listing, whose price was not read. The macOS minimum is not stated. ### MewNotch: best for GPL volume and brightness overlays GPL 3.0, macOS 14.0 or later, version 2.4.0 from 19 October 2026 with Sparkle updates. It is unsigned, and the notch does not show at first launch on Macs without one. ### DynamicNotch: best for the closest copy of iPhone Dynamic Island behavior GPL 3.0, very active: v1.6.4 on 3 November 2026. It needs macOS 14.6, listing no clipboard, shelf, calendar or window snapping. It has a floating capsule on Macs without a notch and 38 or more languages. ### Sapphire: best for Face ID and window snapping from a public AGPL tree AGPL 3.0, with 402 stars and a last push on 29 October 2026. The paid AI and live data features are stubs in the public tree, and paid plans use an account and Stripe. Optional anonymous analytics go to Google Analytics. ### NotchBar: best for a minimal widget bar to build on AGPL 3.0, macOS 14.5 or later. It is version 0.0.3.2, labelled a prerelease, with few widgets, and its README mentions a Gatekeeper popup. ### Notchi: best for watching Claude Code and Codex sessions GPL 3.0, macOS 15.0 or later. It shows session time, usage quota and 30 day cost. An optional Anthropic or OpenAI key for sentiment analysis sends prompts to that provider. ### SuperIsland: best for scripting your own modules Its site says free and open source, but the repository shows no license file, so treat the license as unconfirmed. There has been no release since June 2026. ## What to check before you install one Open source notch apps differ from paid ones in a few practical ways, and the pages above show each of them. - **Signing.** Boring Notch and MewNotch are unsigned, so macOS will warn you the first time. Follow the README steps rather than a forum post. - **Release dates.** NotchPop's last release was May 2026, SuperIsland's June 2026, and Boring Notch's newest stable release November 2025. DynamicNotch released on 3 November 2026. Check the date against your macOS version. - **Permissions.** Atoll and Sapphire ask for Accessibility and Screen Recording. Grant only what a feature you use needs, and read the README to see why. - **Where the binary comes from.** NotchDrop has no GitHub release, so the choice is to build it or use the Mac App Store listing. ## How to choose - **You want the best known project:** Boring Notch. - **You want the most features in source form:** Atoll. - **You want the permissive MIT license:** NotchPop or NotchDrop. - **You want to build on a small base:** NotchBar or SuperIsland. - **You want AI agent status:** Notchi. See [the AI coding agents list](https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-mac-notch-apps-for-ai-coding-agents/). NotchStar is the other kind of choice. It is closed source, $4 once for up to 3 Macs, signed and notarized, with a 7 day trial and no account. Read [the safety guide](https://www.notchstar.com/guides/is-notchstar-safe/) for what it asks for and what leaves your Mac, and [NotchStar compared with Atoll](https://www.notchstar.com/vs/atoll/) for the differences. ## Sources All read on 4 November 2026. - [Boring Notch](https://github.com/TheBoredTeam/boring.notch) - [Atoll](https://github.com/Ebullioscopic/Atoll) - [NotchPop](https://notchpop.pages.dev) - [NotchDrop](https://github.com/Lakr233/NotchDrop) - [MewNotch](https://github.com/monuk7735/mew-notch) - [DynamicNotch](https://github.com/jackson-storm/dynamicnotch) - [Sapphire](https://sapphire-app.tech/) - [NotchBar](https://github.com/navtoj/NotchBar) - [Notchi](https://github.com/sk-ruban/notchi) - [SuperIsland](https://dynamicisland.app/) ## Quick answers. ### Is NotchStar open source? No. NotchStar is closed source. The safety guide lists its permissions and what leaves your Mac, so you can judge it without reading code. ### Does open source mean an app is safe? No. It means you or anyone else can read the code. It does not mean someone has. Check the license, the release history and the permissions the app asks for. ## Keep reading. - [The best free Mac notch apps, and what free really means](https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-free-mac-notch-apps/): Ten free Mac notch apps, from fully free open source to free tiers with paid upgrades, with macOS versions and limits from official pages, 4 November 2026. - [The best Mac notch apps in 2026, compared fairly](https://www.notchstar.com/guides/best-mac-notch-apps/): Compare thirteen Mac notch apps from their official pages, with prices, requirements, strengths, limits and who each one suits. Updated 4 November 2026. - [Is NotchStar safe? Signing, permissions and what it sends](https://www.notchstar.com/guides/is-notchstar-safe/): NotchStar is signed and notarized by Apple, needs no account and sends nothing unless you opt in. See every permission it asks for and how to check it yourself. - [NotchStar vs Boring Notch](https://www.notchstar.com/vs/boring-notch/): An evidence based comparison of NotchStar and Boring Notch, the free GPL 3.0 notch app: price, signing, HUDs, release history, features and who each one suits. - [NotchStar vs Atoll](https://www.notchstar.com/vs/atoll/): NotchStar compared with Atoll, the open source Dynamic Island style notch app: GPL 3.0 source, live activities, lock screen widgets and release history. ## More in Notch apps. - [The best free Mac notch apps, and what free really means](https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-free-mac-notch-apps/): Ten free Mac notch apps, from fully free open source to free tiers with paid upgrades, with macOS versions and limits from official pages, 4 November 2026. - [Best Mac notch apps for developers, and what each one adds](https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-mac-notch-apps-for-developers/): Nine Mac notch apps that suit developers: clipboard transforms, system stats, extension SDKs, agent status and more, with prices and limits, 4 November 2026. - [Best Mac notch apps for Claude Code, Codex and other coding agents](https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-mac-notch-apps-for-ai-coding-agents/): Ten Mac notch apps that show or approve Claude Code and Codex activity: which approve, which only watch, with prices and limits, 4 November 2026. - [Best Mac notch apps with a file shelf and AirDrop](https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-mac-notch-apps-with-a-file-shelf/): Ten Mac notch apps with a file shelf: how long files stay, AirDrop, actions on dropped files, prices and limits, checked from official pages on 4 November 2026. - [Best Mac notch apps with clipboard history, compared](https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-mac-notch-apps-with-clipboard-history/): Ten Mac notch apps with clipboard history: how many items, search, password manager handling, prices and limits, checked on 4 November 2026. - [Best Mac notch apps for screenshots, from a tray to a full recorder](https://www.notchstar.com/best/best-mac-notch-apps-for-screenshots/): Six Mac notch apps that handle screenshots: a tray for macOS shots, annotation, OCR and screen recording, with prices and limits, checked on 4 November 2026.