Menu bar icons hidden behind the notch: fixes
When the menu bar fills up, some icons on the right side can end up with no room to show beside the notch, with nothing to tell you they are still there. The fix is to free space: remove icons you do not need, set others to show only when active, and, if one app’s own menus are the problem, use Apple’s Scale to fit setting for that app.
Step 1: remove Apple controls you do not use
- Open the Apple menu, then System Settings, then click Menu Bar in the sidebar (you may need to scroll down).
- Under Menu Bar Controls, turn off items you do not need.
- For Sound, Focus, Now Playing and similar items, use the pop up menu to choose Show When Active instead of Always Show.
Apple’s guide lists these controls. Battery is a control on MacBooks, so check its options too.
Step 2: remove icons by dragging
Apple’s Control Center guide says: hold Command and drag the icon off the menu bar. This works for Apple’s own items. Some third party icons cannot be removed this way. Open that app’s settings and look for an option to show it in the menu bar.
Step 3: check third party icons
Menu Bar settings has an Allow in the Menu Bar list. Select app menu bar items there to show or hide them. Apps you rarely open do not need a permanent icon.
Step 4: when one app’s menus are the problem
If the app’s own menus on the left run into the cutout, use Scale to fit below built-in camera in the app’s Get Info window. Read what Scale to fit does.
Step 5: a menu bar manager
If you still need more icons than fit, a menu bar manager app can hold the extras. Our longer hidden icons guide compares the options. Note that a manager is another app with its own icon and permissions.
Check that it worked
Open the app whose icon was missing and look at the right of the menu bar. Change one thing at a time, so you know which change helped and can undo the one that did not.
Hiding the shape of the notch does not bring icons back. See how to hide the notch, and how to see all menu bar icons for the checklist version.
NotchStar adds one small star icon to the menu bar for settings and quitting, and its ten tools open from the notch instead of from menu bar icons. The System tool is one example.
