Hidden Bar — Hide and Show Menu Bar Items on macOS

Introduction

Hidden Bar is a free, open-source macOS utility that collapses menu bar icons into a toggleable section. As developers run more tools and services, the menu bar gets crowded. Hidden Bar lets you decide which icons stay visible and which stay tucked away until you need them.

What Hidden Bar Does

• Hides selected menu bar icons behind a collapsible separator
• Toggles hidden icons with a single click or configurable keyboard shortcut
• Supports an always-hidden section for icons you rarely need to see
• Starts at login automatically so your menu bar stays clean
• Runs with minimal memory and CPU overhead

Architecture Overview

Hidden Bar is a native Swift application that manages menu bar item visibility by inserting separator items into the system status bar area. It detects third-party status items and allows the user to drag them between visible, hidden, and always-hidden zones. The app uses NSStatusItem APIs and observes menu bar layout changes in real time.

Self-Hosting & Configuration

• Install via Homebrew: brew install --cask hiddenbar
• Also available as a free download from the Mac App Store
• Requires macOS 10.13 High Sierra or later
• Drag menu bar icons across the separator line to rearrange visibility
• Enable Launch at Login in the app preferences for persistent configuration

Key Features

• Three-zone menu bar management: visible, hidden, and always-hidden
• One-click toggle or keyboard shortcut to expand or collapse hidden icons
• Drag-and-drop reordering directly in the menu bar
• Auto-hide timer that collapses the expanded section after a configurable delay
• Completely free with no ads, subscriptions, or telemetry

Comparison with Similar Tools

• Bartender — commercial app with more advanced features like search and triggers; Hidden Bar is free and open source
• Dozer — similar free alternative but no longer actively maintained; Hidden Bar is under active development
• Ice — newer open-source option with additional customization; Hidden Bar is simpler and lighter
• Vanilla — freemium model with limited free tier; Hidden Bar is fully free with no restrictions

FAQ

Q: Is Hidden Bar free? A: Yes. It is completely free and open source under the MIT license, with no in-app purchases.

Q: Does it work on Apple Silicon Macs? A: Yes. Hidden Bar runs natively on both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs.

Q: Can I set a keyboard shortcut to toggle hidden items? A: Yes. You can configure a global keyboard shortcut in the app preferences.

Q: Does it survive reboots? A: Yes. Enable Launch at Login and your hidden/visible icon configuration persists across restarts.

Sources

• https://github.com/dwarvesf/hidden
• https://apps.apple.com/app/hidden-bar/id1452453066