The MacBook notch explained
The notch is the black cutout at the top centre of recent MacBook displays. It holds the camera and sensors, and it lets the screen extend closer to the edges of the lid.
How macOS handles it
macOS treats the area beside the notch as the usable menu bar and keeps menu items out of the notch itself. Apps get “safe area” information that tells them how much space the notch occupies, so they can avoid it.
The side effect
When a menu bar has many icons, some can end up hidden behind the notch, with nothing on screen showing that they are there. Our guide on hidden menu bar icons covers fixes.
Making use of it
Because the notch is fixed, always visible and in the same place, developers use it as the anchor for small panels. That is what a notch app does.
Macs without one
Not every Mac has a notch. Some notch apps provide a floating pill so the same ideas work on any display. See notch apps for Macs without a notch.
