Alternatives
Mac menu bar managers compared
Bartender, Ice, Thaw, Hidden Bar, Vanilla, Dozer, Barbee, and Coat Check: what each one does, what it costs, and whether it works on macOS 27.
Updated October 19, 2026
Two different jobs
Most menu bar managers hide icons: you choose which icons to tuck away, and reveal them with a click, a hotkey, or a second bar. Coat Check does a different job: it reaches icons that macOS already hid because there was no room, usually behind the notch on a MacBook, without moving anything. You can use one of each.
All of them at a glance
| App | Price | Source code | macOS 27 (October 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coat Check | Free | Open source (MIT) | Being tested |
| Bartender | $24.99 once for Bartender 7, or Bartender Pro at $19.99 a year; 4-week trial | Closed source | Bartender 7 supports it, with some features still in beta |
| Ice | Free | Open source (GPL-3.0) | Not working; last stable release October 2024 |
| Thaw | Free | Open source (GPL-3.0) | Thaw 3 alpha (pre-release) |
| Hidden Bar | Free | Open source (MIT) | Version 1.11.1 from GitHub works; the App Store version can’t hide icons |
| Vanilla | Free; Pro is $10 once | Closed source | Not stated by the developer |
| Dozer | Free | Open source (MPL-2.0) | No statement; last release 2020 |
| Barbee | Free with in-app purchases; lifetime $12.99 | Closed source | Reported not working |
What macOS does on its own
macOS 26 Tahoe added Allow in the Menu Bar to System Settings, so you can switch any app’s icon off. It can’t hide an icon and bring it back on demand. macOS 27 added an overflow indicator: when icons don’t fit, they fold behind it, and a click shows them. You can’t choose which icons go there. More on the notch and hidden icons.
How to choose
- You want full control and don’t mind paying: Bartender.
- You want full control, free and open source: Thaw.
- You want a simple icon hider: Hidden Bar or Vanilla.
- You just need the icons the notch hides: Coat Check.
Comparing the two best-known options? Read Bartender vs Ice.