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https://github.com/stephanjoseph/SaneBar

The privacy-first menu bar manager for macOS. Native, lightweight, and scriptable.
https://github.com/stephanjoseph/SaneBar

bartender-alternative claude-ai mac-app macos macos-app menu-bar menu-bar-manager menubar open-source pair-programming privacy status-bar swift swiftui vibecoding

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The privacy-first menu bar manager for macOS. Native, lightweight, and scriptable.

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README 

          
# SaneBar



[![License: MIT](https://img.shields.io/github/license/stephanjoseph/SaneBar)](LICENSE)

[![Release](https://img.shields.io/github/v/release/stephanjoseph/SaneBar)](https://github.com/stephanjoseph/SaneBar/releases)

[![macOS 15+](https://img.shields.io/badge/macOS-15%2B-blue)](https://github.com/stephanjoseph/SaneBar/releases)

[![Privacy: 100% On-Device](https://img.shields.io/badge/Privacy-100%25%20On--Device-success)](PRIVACY.md)

[![Built with Claude](https://img.shields.io/badge/Built%20with-Claude-blueviolet)](https://claude.ai)



**The privacy-first menu bar manager for macOS.** Native, lightweight, and scriptable.



Hide clutter. Lock sensitive icons behind Touch ID. Find any app instantly.



![SaneBar Find Hidden Icon](docs/images/find-icon.png)



### Icons Revealed

![Menu bar with all icons revealed](docs/images/menubar-revealed.png)



### Icons Hidden

![Clean menu bar with icons hidden](docs/images/menubar-hidden.png)



---



## Download



**[View All Releases](https://github.com/stephanjoseph/SaneBar/releases)** (macOS 15 Sequoia or later)



Or via Homebrew:

```bash

brew install --cask stephanjoseph/sanebar/sanebar

```



---



## How It Works



1. **Click** the SaneBar icon to show/hide your menu bar icons

2. **⌘+drag** icons to choose which ones hide

3. **Option-click** the SaneBar icon to open Power Search

4. That's it!



Icons to the **left** of SaneBar = can be hidden  

Icons to the **right** of SaneBar = always visible



---



## Features



### Privacy First

- **🔒 Secure Reveal** — The *only* menu bar manager that locks hidden icons behind **system authentication** (password prompt). Protect sensitive apps like crypto wallets, messaging tools, and VPNs.

- **100% On-Device** — No analytics. No telemetry. No network requests. Everything stays on your Mac.



![Privacy Settings](docs/images/settings-general.png)



### Power Search

- **Find Hidden Icon** — Search and click any menu bar app, even if hidden behind the Notch

- **Keyboard Navigation** — Arrow keys to navigate, Enter to select, Escape to close

- **Virtual Click** — Activate menu bar items without seeing them

- **Per-Icon Hotkeys** — Global shortcuts for your most-used menu bar apps



### Automation Ready

- **AppleScript Support** — Full scripting integration for Shortcuts and automation workflows

- **Smart Triggers** — Auto-show on WiFi network, app launch, or low battery

- **Profiles** — Save different setups for work, home, or presentations



![Rules and Automation](docs/images/settings-rules.png)



### Core

- **One-click hide/show** — Toggle visibility with a single click or hotkey (default: ⌘\\)

- **⌘+drag to organize** — Choose which icons hide and which stay visible

- **Auto-hide** — Icons disappear after a configurable delay



### Gestures

- **Hover to reveal** — Move your cursor to the top of the screen to show hidden icons

- **Scroll to reveal** — Two-finger scroll up in the menu bar area



### Customization

- **Liquid Glass** — Beautiful translucent styling on macOS 26 Tahoe

- **Bar Styling** — Tint, shadow, borders, and rounded corners (all macOS versions)



![Appearance Settings](docs/images/settings-appearance.png)



Works perfectly on Macs with Notch. **100% private** — no network requests, no analytics, no account.



---



## Power User Features



### 🔍 Find Hidden Icon

Quickly find and activate any menu bar app without lifting your hands from the keyboard.

1. **Option-click** the SaneBar icon, or use the menu **Find Icon…** (default hotkey: ⌘⇧Space)

2. Type an app name and press **Return**

3. SaneBar will reveal hidden icons and **virtually click** the app's menu bar item

4. After a configurable delay (default 15 seconds), icons automatically hide again



This works even if the icon is physically hidden behind the Notch or off-screen!



### ⌨️ Per-Icon Hotkeys

Assign a specific global hotkey to any menu bar app.

1. Open **Find Icon…** window

2. Select an app from the list

3. Click the **Record Shortcut** box in the footer

4. Press your desired key combination

5. Now, pressing that hotkey will instantly show hidden items and open that app's menu



### 🎨 Bar Styling

Customize the look of your menu bar panel.

- Go to **Settings → Appearance**

- Enable "Custom Appearance"

- On macOS 26 Tahoe: Enable **Translucent Background** for the native Liquid Glass look

- On older macOS: Adjust **Tint Color**, **Opacity**, **Shadow**, **Border**, and **Rounded Corners**



### 💾 Profiles

Save different menu bar configurations for different contexts (e.g., "Work", "Gaming", "Presentation").

- Go to **Settings → General → Saved Profiles**

- Click **Save as Profile…**

- Restore any profile with a single click



---



## The Notch & 50+ Apps



**Worried about losing icons behind the Notch?**



If you have 50+ apps, macOS might hide some of them behind the camera housing (the "Notch") or off-screen. SaneBar handles this gracefully:



1. **Hiding**: SaneBar pushes unused icons safely off-screen so your menu bar looks clean

2. **Safety Lock**: If SaneBar itself would get pushed off-screen, it refuses to hide to ensure you never lose control

3. **Find Hidden Icon**: Can't see an icon because it's behind the Notch? Open **Find Icon…**, type the app name and hit Enter. SaneBar will find it and click it for you, even if it's invisible

4. **Tighter Icon Spacing**: Reduce system-wide menu bar spacing to fit more icons. Go to **Settings → Appearance** and enable "Reduce space between icons" (requires logout)



---



## Configuration



All settings are in the **Settings** window (click SaneBar icon → Settings, or press ⌘,).



| Tab | What's there |

|-----|--------------|

| **General** | Launch at login, show in Dock, security (authentication lock), software updates, saved profiles |

| **Rules** | Auto-hide behavior, revealing gestures (hover, scroll), automatic triggers (battery, apps, Wi-Fi) |

| **Appearance** | Divider style, menu bar styling (tint, opacity, shadow, border, corners), icon spacing |

| **Shortcuts** | Global keyboard shortcuts, AppleScript commands |

| **About** | Version info, privacy badge, licenses, support, report issue |



### Revealing Gestures (Settings → Rules)

- **Hover near top** — Show hidden icons when you move cursor to the top of the screen

- **Scroll up** — Two-finger scroll up in the menu bar reveals hidden icons



### Automatic Triggers (Settings → Rules)

- **Low Battery** — Auto-show when battery drops below threshold

- **App Launch** — Show when specific apps start

- **Wi-Fi Change** — Show on specific networks (click "Add current network")



### Icon Spacing (Settings → Appearance)



Reduce the spacing between **all** menu bar icons system-wide to fit more icons before they get hidden by the notch.



- **Enable**: Toggle "Reduce space between icons" in Appearance Settings

- **Defaults**: Ships with notch-friendly values (spacing=4, padding=4)

- **Logout required**: macOS reads these settings at login, so you must log out and back in for changes to take effect

- **Reversible**: Disable the toggle and log out to restore default spacing



---



## Privacy



**Your data stays on your Mac.** SaneBar makes zero network requests. No analytics. No telemetry. No account.



![100% On-Device](docs/images/settings-about.png)



[Full privacy details](PRIVACY.md)



---



## Support



Free to use! If SaneBar helps you, star this repo.



### Donations



| | Address |

|---|---------|

| **BTC** | `3Go9nJu3dj2qaa4EAYXrTsTf5AnhcrPQke` |

| **SOL** | `FBvU83GUmwEYk3HMwZh3GBorGvrVVWSPb8VLCKeLiWZZ` |

| **ZEC** | `t1PaQ7LSoRDVvXLaQTWmy5tKUAiKxuE9hBN` |



---



## For Developers



Build from source



### Requirements

- macOS 15.0+ (Sequoia or later)

- Xcode 16+

- Ruby 3.0+

- [XcodeGen](https://github.com/yonaskolb/XcodeGen)



### Build



```bash

git clone https://github.com/stephanjoseph/SaneBar.git

cd SaneBar

bundle install

./scripts/SaneMaster.rb verify

./scripts/SaneMaster.rb launch

```



### Project Structure



```

SaneBar/

├── Core/                   # Business logic

│   ├── Services/           # AccessibilityService, HoverService, etc.

│   ├── Controllers/        # StatusBarController, SettingsController

│   └── Models/             # Data models

├── UI/                     # SwiftUI views

│   ├── Settings/           # Modular settings tabs

│   └── SearchWindow/       # Find Hidden Icon UI

├── Tests/                  # 241 unit tests with mocks

├── scripts/                # Build automation (SaneMaster.rb)

└── project.yml             # XcodeGen configuration

```



AppleScript automation



```bash

# Toggle hidden items

osascript -e 'tell app "SaneBar" to toggle'



# Show hidden items

osascript -e 'tell app "SaneBar" to show hidden'



# Hide items

osascript -e 'tell app "SaneBar" to hide items'

```



The story



Built pair programming with [Claude](https://claude.ai). Wanted a menu bar manager that wasn't $15, didn't phone home, and actually worked on macOS Tahoe with Liquid Glass.



---



## License



MIT — see [LICENSE](LICENSE)