The Best Mac Keyboard Shortcuts Manager
Stop relying on your mouse. Notchy includes a powerful Hotkey Manager that lets you bind global keyboard shortcuts to system actions, scripts, and productivity tools.
Global Keybinds
Assign custom shortcuts like ⌘ + Shift + V to open your clipboard history, or ⌥ + Space to instantly drop a file, no matter what app you are currently using.
Trigger Scripts & Apps
Go beyond basic system functions. Use Notchy's Hotkey Manager to instantly launch your favorite applications or execute custom bash/AppleScript workflows.
Lightweight Alternative
Heavyweight launchers like Alfred or Raycast constantly index your files and consume memory. Notchy's Hotkey Manager is a zero-latency, ultra-lightweight alternative for power users.
Visual Feedback
When you trigger an action via a hotkey, Notchy can display a beautiful, non-intrusive confirmation animation dropping down from your MacBook's hardware notch.
Command Palette (⌃⌥K)
Press ⌃⌥K anywhere and type — jump to any Notchy tab, toggle Caffeine, start a timer, or run an Apple Shortcut. Every action is one keystroke away, with ⌘1–9 tab switching built in.
Knock to Open
Double-tap a bare modifier key — knock knock — to open the notch, the Shelf, or Clipboard. Chords like ⌘C never false-trigger, and it works on every Mac and keyboard.
Everything Notchy does, in one app
- 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
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- 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
- Custom islands through the local developer API (off by default)
- iPhone-style call island — Answer/Decline FaceTime on the notch
- Notch Terminal — real VT100/xterm shell in a PTY, its own tab
- Camera Guard — alert (or block) when any app opens your camera
- 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
- 134 languages, fully localized
- Native SwiftUI, tuned for Apple silicon
Mac Hotkey Manager — FAQ
How do I create global keyboard shortcuts on Mac?
While macOS has basic shortcut settings, Notchy provides a powerful Hotkey Manager. You can assign global keybinds to trigger system actions, run scripts, or open specific apps from anywhere.
Is Notchy an alternative to Raycast or Alfred?
Notchy isn’t a full spotlight replacement like Raycast, but it serves as an excellent, lightweight alternative if you primarily want to bind global hotkeys to specific actions and scripts without heavy indexing.
Can I use hotkeys to control Notchy itself?
Yes. You can set up custom hotkeys to instantly open Notchy’s clipboard manager, start a Pomodoro timer, toggle Focus mode, or peek at your calendar without lifting your hands from the keyboard.
Does Notchy have a command palette like Raycast?
Yes. Press ⌃⌥K (configurable) anywhere in macOS and a Spotlight-style command palette drops from the notch — type to jump to any tab, toggle Caffeine, start a timer, or run an Apple Shortcut. Switch tabs with ⌘1–9 or arrow keys while the panel is open.
What is Knock — opening the notch without a shortcut?
Knock lets you double-tap a bare modifier key (Control, Option, Command, or Shift) to open the notch, the Shelf, Clipboard, Caffeine, or toggle play/pause. Because a modifier+key chord cancels the tap, real shortcuts like ⌘C never false-trigger. Works on every Mac and keyboard.