The free NotchBox Alternative with no Pro unlock
NotchBox is one of the few notch apps that still supports macOS 13 Ventura, and it packs a lot into the cutout — music for Apple Music and Spotify, a drag-and-drop shelf with AirDrop, a Pomodoro timer, camera mirror, network speed, clipboard history and a calendar. It is free to install, with a NotchBox Pro in-app purchase at $4.99. Notchy runs on the same macOS 13 floor and asks for nothing: there is no Pro tier, no unlock and no licence key, and the feature list runs past where a notch hub usually stops.
- NotchBox price
- Free with in-app purchases; NotchBox Pro $4.99
- NotchBox requires
- macOS 13.0 or later
- Notchy price
- Free — donations optional
Why use Notchy instead of NotchBox?
- No feature sits behind a purchase
NotchBox is free to download with a $4.99 Pro in-app purchase. Notchy has no equivalent — every one of its tools is in the build you download, funded by optional donations rather than an unlock.
- The overlap is genuinely covered
Now Playing with artwork and scrubbing for Apple Music and Spotify, a file drop shelf that AirDrops without opening Finder, Pomodoro, countdown and stopwatch, camera mirror, clipboard history, calendar, app launcher and quick notes are all in Notchy too.
- Then it keeps going into developer and system territory
AI usage and spend tracking across providers, Claude Code permission approvals from the notch, a real VT100 terminal, listening-port management for whatever is holding port 3000, CPU temperature, GPU utilisation, battery health and a stocks watchlist. That is a different class of tool from a notch hub.
- Where NotchBox does something Notchy doesn't
NotchBox carries a water-intake tracker, a habit tracker and a bookmark manager. Notchy has none of those — if daily habit logging from the notch is the reason you are looking, NotchBox is the closer fit.
How Notchy stacks up
Honest, feature-by-feature comparison of every major macOS notch app — no affiliates.
Swipe the table sideways to see every app.
| Feature | Notchy | Alcove | NotchNook | Boring Notch | DynamicLake | MediaMate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | 100% Free | $17 one-time | $25 (or $3/mo) | Free (Open Source) | Paid | Paid |
| Minimum macOS | macOS 13 Ventura+ | macOS 14 Sonoma+ | macOS 14 Sonoma+ | macOS 14 Sonoma+ | macOS 14 Sonoma+ | macOS 14 Sonoma+ |
| Architecture | Pure SwiftUI (Native) | Swift (Native) | Swift (Native) | Swift (Open Source) | Swift (Native) | Swift (Native) |
| Now Playing Controls | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| AI Usage Tracker (Claude / Codex / Cursor) | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Command Palette (⌃⌥K) | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Localized (134 languages) | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Clipboard History | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Pomodoro Focus Timer | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| File Stash / Drop Shelf | Yes | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| System HUDs (Volume/Brightness) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| AirPods Connected Reveal | Yes | Yes | Yes | — | — | — |
| Lock Screen Widgets | Yes | Yes | — | — | — | — |
| Quick Notes | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Calendar Widget | Yes | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | — |
| Caffeine Toggle | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Synced Lyrics | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Image Converter (HEIC/JPG/PDF) | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Apple Reminders Capture | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Audio Output Switcher | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Device Battery (Mouse/Keyboard) | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Download Finished Alerts | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Run Apple Shortcuts | Yes | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| Camera Mirror / Webcam Preview | Yes | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| Zip & Unzip Files | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hide the Notch | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Window Snapping (drag to notch) | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| App Launcher Tab | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| OCR + Searchable Clipboard | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Text Snippets / Expander | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Menu-Bar Icon Hiding | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| System-Wide Mic Mute | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Live System Stats (CPU/RAM) | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| iPhone-Style Call Island | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Built-In Terminal | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
| Camera/Mic Privacy Indicator | Yes | — | — | — | — | — |
Everything Notchy does, for free
- Fluid Dynamic Island animations on the Mac notch
- Command palette (⌃⌥K) — every action one keystroke away
- Knock — double-tap a modifier key to open the notch
- AI usage tracker (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot)
- Detach any tab into a menu-bar popover
- Now Playing music controls (Apple Music & Spotify)
- Time-synced karaoke lyrics under the notch
- Mac clipboard history shelf (password-manager safe)
- Searchable clipboard — filter by text, file name, or OCR'd words
- On-device OCR — copy a screenshot, get its text (Apple Vision)
- Window snapping — drag a window to the notch to tile it
- App Launcher — pin apps to the notch, open with one tap
- Text snippets — TextExpander-style pastes from the ⌘K palette
- One-tap screen capture to clipboard + shelf
- Color eyedropper — sample any pixel, hex auto-copied
- System-wide mic mute for every meeting app at once
- Keystroke HUD for demos & screencasts (secure-input safe)
- Keyboard cleaning lock with countdown island (⌘⎋ unlocks)
- Menu-bar icon hiding — Bartender-style separator & chevron
- Live CPU / memory / network stats flyout
- Open GitHub PR count in the notch (Keychain-stored token)
- iPhone-style call island — Answer/Decline FaceTime on the notch
- Notch Terminal — real VT100/xterm shell in a PTY, its own tab
- Privacy Indicator — pill when any app's camera or mic goes live
- Caps Lock HUD — brief island on every toggle
- Full Charge island with adjustable threshold + low-battery sound
- Alt HUD styles — edge-pinned bar or circular gauge off the notch
- Audio-reactive Now Playing visualizer (real FFT of system audio)
- Custom closed-notch idle animation — drop in your own Lottie JSON
- Drag-and-drop file drop shelf — persists across relaunches
- Zip & unzip files right from the shelf
- Image converter (HEIC, PNG, JPEG, TIFF, PDF) + video → GIF
- Run Apple Shortcuts with one tap
- Screenshots auto-staged on the shelf, ready to drag
- Download finished alerts with Reveal in Finder
- USB drive mount island with one-tap Eject
- Apple Reminders quick capture & due list
- macOS Pomodoro notch timer & stopwatch — streaks + 7-day chart
- Resizable expanded panel (width & height, live preview)
- System HUDs (volume, brightness, battery)
- Audio output switcher (speakers, AirPods, monitor)
- AirPods connection manager & battery
- Magic Mouse, Keyboard & Trackpad battery + low-battery alerts
- Quick notes & Calendar widgets
- Camera Mirror (check your appearance)
- Keep Awake (caffeine toggle)
- Teleprompter (Cuely) for Zoom calls
- Focus-aware alerts & native haptic feedback
- Lock screen widgets & hide-the-notch mode
- 133 languages, fully localized
- Native SwiftUI, tuned for Apple Silicon
The honest verdict on NotchBox
NotchBox deserves credit for holding the macOS 13 line while most new notch apps start at Sonoma, and $4.99 is a fair price for what Pro unlocks. But if the appeal was a free notch hub, Notchy runs on the same Ventura floor with nothing gated, and adds a whole developer and system layer NotchBox does not attempt.
NotchBox alternative — FAQ
Is NotchBox free?
It is free to download, with in-app purchases. The App Store listing shows NotchBox Pro at $4.99, so the full app is a paid unlock rather than a free app outright.
What macOS does NotchBox need?
macOS 13.0 or later, per its App Store listing — the same floor Notchy sets, which makes these two unusual among current notch apps. Most of the newer ones start at macOS 14 Sonoma.
Is NotchBox Pro worth it?
$4.99 once is not much for a notch hub, so the honest question is whether you need to pay at all. Notchy covers the music controls, drop shelf with AirDrop, timers, camera mirror, clipboard and calendar without a Pro tier, so try the free route before the unlock.
Does NotchBox use a lot of battery?
Any notch app renders all day, so idle cost is what matters rather than the feature count. Open Activity Monitor with nothing playing and read the CPU column while the notch sits closed — an idle notch should cost close to nothing. Notchy is native SwiftUI and idles around 0.1% CPU.
What does Notchy have that NotchBox doesn't?
AI provider usage and spend, Claude Code approvals, a VT100 terminal in the island, listening-port management, CPU temperature and GPU monitoring, external display brightness over DDC, synced lyrics, dictation and window snapping.
Is Notchy really free?
Yes — no trial, licence key, subscription or in-app purchase. Development is funded by optional donations, and supporters are credited on the Hall of Fame page.