User Guide
Everything OneNotch can do, step by step. 98 short articles in 14 topics.
Getting started
Installation, permissions, the menu bar, keyboard shortcuts and updates.
- Install OneNotch and set it upSystem requirements, installing in the Applications folder and going through first-time setup.
- Grant permissions to OneNotchWhich features each macOS permission unlocks, how to grant it, and what to do when you've granted it but OneNotch doesn't detect it.
- The menu bar icon and the Settings windowWhat's in OneNotch's menu in the menu bar, and how to open Settings and find your way around.
- Keyboard shortcutsAll of OneNotch's default keyboard shortcuts and how to change them.
- Change OneNotch's languageUse OneNotch in English or another language, separately from the language of macOS.
- Update OneNotch and see what's newCheck for new versions automatically, update manually, and open the What's New page again.
Notch
Open, close, switch pages, customize and use the notch on every display.
- Open and close the notchOpen the notch by hovering, clicking, using a shortcut or swiping down. It closes on its own when you move the pointer away.
- Notch pages and how to switch between themThe notch has Clipboard, Media and AI pages, plus pages you open from the toolbar and orbs. Switch pages with a swipe or Tab, and choose which page opens by default.
- Interaction zones on the closed notchThe two edges of the closed notch open the Media or AI page directly, and the middle opens your default page.
- Customize the notch layoutDrag and drop to choose which buttons sit in the two orbs and on the toolbar, and which pages the notch has, in which order.
- Drop files on the notch for quick actionsDrag an image, video, PDF or archive onto the notch to resize, convert, compress, remove the background, merge PDFs, unzip or AirDrop it.
- External displays, Macs without a notch and notch sizeChoose which display shows the notch, use Pill on displays without a notch and adjust the notch height.
- The notch in full screen and during screen captureChoose whether the notch hides when an app is full screen, and whether it appears in screenshots and screen recordings.
- Appearance: background, glass effect and accent colorChange the notch's background style, turn on the Liquid Glass effect and choose an accent color.
Clipboard
Clipboard history, Clipboard Panel, Copy Stack, boards, privacy and sync.
- Clipboard history in the notchEverything you copy is saved and shown as a row of cards in the notch. Click a card to use it again.
- Clipboard PanelOpen your whole clipboard history as a floating list beside the pointer with ⇧⌘C.
- What the clipboard can saveHow text, links, color codes, images, files and videos are saved and shown.
- Search, filter and sort clipsSearch by content, filter by type or app with @, and choose the display order.
- Paste straight into other appsClick a clip and it's pasted right into the app you're using, without pressing ⌘V.
- Copy Stack: copy several things, paste them in orderDouble-press ⌘ to collect several copies in a queue, then each ⌘V pastes one item in order.
- Work with a clipRight-click a clip to copy it as plain text, transform the text, edit it, open links, grab one-time codes, resize images and more.
- Copy alerts and soundsThe "Copied" toast under the notch, the ✓ in the menu bar, and the sounds when you copy and paste.
- Rename clipsGive a clip a memorable name so you can spot it on its card and find it again by name.
- Pin clips to boardsCollect the clips you use often into named boards so they don't scroll out of your history.
- Lock boards with a passcode and Touch IDHide and encrypt the pinned items in a board, and unlock it with a passcode, Touch ID or Apple Watch.
- Find images by the text in themOneNotch reads the text in images you copy, so search can find a screenshot by what it says.
- Keep passwords and private apps out of your historyPause clipboard recording, skip sensitive content, exclude apps and turn off link previews.
- Choose how long to keep history and free up spaceChoose how many items to keep and for how long, set a storage limit for images, see how much space is in use and clear your history.
- Sync your clipboard across Macs with iCloudYour clipboard history follows you to your other Macs through your own iCloud.
- Back up your clipboard and move it to another MacExport your history and boards to a file, then import it on this Mac or another Mac.
- Import history from Paste, Maccy and other appsBring your history and pinned items from Paste, PastePal, PasteNow, Maccy or CopyClip into OneNotch.
- Let AI agents use your clipboard (MCP)Let Claude Code, Cursor, Codex and other apps that support MCP search, read and write to your clipboard history.
Screenshot
Capture types, text recognition, color picking, preview cards and Annotate.
- Screenshot shortcutsThe default capture shortcuts, how to make ⇧⌘3 and ⇧⌘4 use OneNotch instead of macOS, and how to fix conflicting shortcuts.
- Capture an area of the screenSelect the area to capture, move the selection, capture the same area as last time or pick an app window.
- Capture the full screen or a windowCapture the whole screen you're using, or capture the active window right away without selecting an area.
- Capture a long scrolling pageCapture a whole web page, conversation or long document as one image by scrolling while you capture.
- Capture a screen element or a subjectCapture exactly one button, field or frame on screen, or capture something and lift its subject off the background.
- Capture text from the screen (OCR)Select any area of the screen to grab its text and QR code contents, ready on your clipboard.
- Pick a color from anywhere on screenPress ⇧⌘1, move the magnifier to the pixel you want and click to copy its color code as HEX, RGB, HSL or HSB.
- The preview card after a capture (Quick Access)A small card in the corner of the screen after each capture: copy, save, annotate, pin it to the screen or drag it into another app.
- Pin a screenshot on screenKeep a screenshot floating above all windows so you can refer to it while you work.
- Format, save location and what happens after a captureChoose the image format, the folder to save to, what happens after each capture, and automatic cleanup of old screenshots.
- Annotate: open, save and copyOpen a screenshot in Annotate, get to know the window layout, then save, copy, share or drag the image out.
- Drawing tools in AnnotateRectangle, arrow, text, highlight, blur, spotlight, numbering, watermark, pencil, measure, magnifier, color picker, and the shortcut for each tool.
- Crop, rotate, resize and work with part of an imageCrop to an aspect ratio, rotate, scale the whole image, and use a selection to crop, copy text or highlight.
- Smart redaction, image translation and background removalFind and cover emails, phone numbers, cards and faces automatically, translate all the text in an image, and lift the subject off its background.
- Backgrounds, frames and effects for screenshotsAdd a color, gradient or wallpaper background, padding, shadow, rounded corners, progressive blur and camera tilt, and save them as a preset.
- Combine images in AnnotateAdd a second image or capture another area to place beside the image you're annotating.
- Capture and annotate right on screenSelect an area, then draw, type and blur right on the frozen screen, without opening a separate window.
Translation & Smart Select
Translate selected text, look up words, choose a translation service and convert as you select.
- Translate selected textSelect text in any app, press ⇧⌘G and read the translation right in the notch.
- Translate button beside your selectionSelect text and a small button appears beside it. Click it to translate without a shortcut.
- Type to translate in the notchOpen the Translation page in the notch, type or paste text, and read the translation in the column beside it.
- Change translation languages and translate backSet your two main languages, fix a wrongly detected language, translate into another language and translate back with the ⇄ button.
- Floating translation panelSee a detailed translation in a small panel that floats above all windows, and pin it when you need to read for longer.
- Dictionary, pronunciation and Read aloudLook up a word to see its phonetic spelling, meanings by part of speech, synonyms and examples, and hear how it's pronounced.
- Replace selected text with its translationWrite a sentence in your own language, select it, translate it and replace it with the translation right in the field you're typing in.
- Choose a translation service or an AI modelLet OneNotch pick a free service, translate on your Mac with Apple, use Google, Bing or Youdao, or use Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini with your own API key.
- Translate clips and text in imagesTranslate something you copied, or the text in an image, right from your clipboard history.
- Smart Select: convert as you selectSelect a price, a measurement, a time with a time zone, a calculation, a color code or a link, and the button beside the selection shows the converted result.
- Smart Select: currency, units, time zones, math and moreWhat Smart Select recognizes and the result it gives for each type.
- Add a selected date to CalendarSelect a date and time like "Design review Saturday, October 24 at 3pm" and add it as an event in Calendar with one click.
Music
Music controls, switching players, lyrics and player appearance.
- Control music from the notchSee what's playing, scrub, skip tracks and open the app or tab that's playing, right from the notch.
- Supported music apps and sourcesWhich apps OneNotch follows, and how to limit it to music apps only.
- Switch between playersWhen several apps are playing at once, choose which one the notch shows and controls.
- Music on the closed notchAlbum art and a visualizer on either side of the closed notch let you play, pause and skip tracks without opening the notch.
- Arrange the player buttonsAdd, remove and rearrange the music controls by dragging them on the preview in Settings.
- Lyrics in the notch and in a floating panelShow lyrics in time with the music under the player, pop them out into a floating panel and highlight each word.
- Animated album art, visualizer and player colorCustomize how the player looks: animated album art, a visualizer that follows the actual audio, and colors that match the album art.
- Up Next countdown for Apple MusicA few seconds before Apple Music changes songs, the notch tells you which song is next.
Calendar & Reminders
See your calendar in the notch, add events and reminders, and get meeting alerts.
- See your calendar and reminders in the notchOpen the Calendar page in the notch to see events, reminders, the month view and your day briefing.
- Add events and reminders from the notchType one line, pick a time with the quick buttons and save it straight to Calendar or Reminders.
- Meeting alerts in the notchA card slides out under the notch before each meeting, with buttons to join, snooze or dismiss.
Notch tools
Keep Awake, per-app volume, System Monitor, Cleaning Mode and Presenter.
- Keep your Mac awakeKeep Awake stops your Mac from sleeping for 15 minutes to 8 hours, until the end of the workday, until an app quits or until you turn it off. Turn it on from the coffee cup in the notch.
- Sound: set the volume for each appA sound mixer right in the notch: system volume, output selection, mute every microphone with one click, and turn down each app that's playing sound.
- System MonitorCheck CPU, memory, battery, network, disk and temperature at a glance in 6 tiles right in the notch.
- Cleaning ModeLock the keyboard for a few minutes so you can wipe it without typing by accident, while the mouse and trackpad keep working. Press Esc 5 times to unlock.
- TeleprompterScroll your script right under the camera so you can read it while looking into the lens during meetings, video recordings or presentations.
- Draw on ScreenCircle, underline and draw arrows right on your screen while you present or share your screen. Your strokes fade out after a few seconds.
- Presenting: quiet, talk clock and paceOne button before you share your screen: OneNotch stops showing alerts, your Mac stays awake, and the talk clock shows how much time is left and whether you're ahead or behind.
Focus & Eye Break
A Pomodoro timer and 20-20-20 eye break reminders.
- Focus timer (Pomodoro)Set a work or break session, watch the countdown on the closed notch, switch between work and breaks automatically, and get an alert when time is up.
- Eye Break (20-20-20)Every 20 minutes of screen time, the notch reminds you to look into the distance for 20 seconds. It waits while you're on a call or watching a video, and you can pause it when you need to.
AI Agents
Track Claude Code and Codex, answer their requests and check your quota right in the notch.
- Track Claude Code and Codex in the notchTurn on AI agent tracking and connect Claude Code and Codex running in the terminal to see their progress right in the notch.
- Read agent status on the closed notchSee whether an agent is running, waiting for you or done with a glance at the notch.
- See what an agent is doingHover over an agent in the notch to see its model, the step it's running, the tools it used and its latest reply.
- AI page: session list and detailsSee all recent Claude Code and Codex sessions on one notch page, and open the details of each session.
- Allow, deny and answer agents from the notchWhen Claude Code or Codex asks for permission to run a command or asks a question, answer it right in the notch without going back to the terminal.
- Check AI quota, tokens and costTrack the 5-hour and weekly quotas for Claude Code and Codex, token counts and estimated cost in the notch.
- When the notch doesn't see your agentCheck the connection, reinstall the hooks, and fix Claude Code or Codex when it isn't connected or is signed out.
Alerts, HUD & Lock Screen
Volume and brightness HUD, battery and Bluetooth alerts, the lock screen and Clock timers.
- Replace the volume and brightness HUDReplace the macOS volume and brightness overlays with a bar right in the notch.
- Battery, Bluetooth, network, Focus and Caps Lock alertsSmall alerts appear in the notch when you plug in the charger, connect headphones, lose your network connection, change Focus or turn on Caps Lock.
- OneNotch on the lock screenControl music, read lyrics and see the lock and unlock animation right on the lock screen.
- Clock app timers in the notchTimers you set in the Clock app, with Siri or from Control Center count down right in the notch.
Utilities
Hide menu bar items and snap windows from the notch.
License
Buy, activate and move your license.
Troubleshooting
Fix common problems, send feedback and report bugs.