When Apple first introduced the notch to the MacBook Pro, the community was split. Some people didn't mind it, while others found it visually distracting. This divide led to the creation of two very different types of apps: those that try to hide the notch, and those that try to make it useful.
TopNotch is the king of hiding it. OneNotch is the king of using it. Here is how to decide which approach is right for you.
TopNotch: The Eraser
TopNotch has one single, simple job: it makes your macOS menu bar completely black.
Because MacBooks use MiniLED displays, rendering a pitch-black menu bar effectively blends the physical notch into the screen, making it practically invisible. It's a fantastic, free cosmetic utility that does exactly what it promises.
If looking at the camera cutout actively bothers you, and you want your screen to look like a perfect rectangle again, TopNotch is the app for you.
OneNotch: The Utility Belt
OneNotch takes the opposite approach. If the notch has to be there, why not give it a job?
Instead of hiding the cutout, OneNotch wraps a powerful, interactive dashboard around it. It turns dead space into the most productive part of your screen.
Here is why you might want to embrace the notch instead of hiding it:
1. Incredibly Low Resource Usage
A common fear is that adding a "dashboard" to your screen will drain your battery. OneNotch was built with extreme core optimization. It runs on native SwiftUI and AppKit, engineered to consume virtually 0% CPU when idle. It is so lightweight that running OneNotch has the same battery impact as running TopNotch—almost none.
2. The Ultimate Clipboard Manager
Why travel to the corner of your screen to paste something? OneNotch stores your clipboard history right on the notch.
- Use Copy Stack to copy multiple items and paste them in sequential order.
- Organize text into Boards for easy access.
- Access a floating panel right at your cursor with a keyboard shortcut.
3. AI Agent Monitoring
For developers and power users, OneNotch is the only app that integrates with AI coding agents like Codex and Claude. You can monitor API responses, task progress, and token quotas directly on the notch. It frees up your terminal windows and keeps you in the zone.
4. Media & Live Activities
OneNotch also handles Now Playing media controls, calendar previews, and iOS-style Live Activities, giving you all the benefits of a "Dynamic Island" without the bloat.
Which should you choose?
- Choose TopNotch if: You want a purely aesthetic fix. You don't need extra productivity tools; you just want the camera cutout to disappear, and you want it for free.
- Choose OneNotch if: You want to work faster. For a one-time price of just $9.99 (with a generous free tier), OneNotch turns an annoyance into a feature. Its deep performance optimization ensures your battery lasts all day, while the integrated clipboard and AI tools actively improve your workflow.
Ready to put your notch to work? Download OneNotch for free and transform how you use your Mac.