FurlWhy the notch hides your icons
On MacBooks with a notch, the menu bar is split around the camera. When you open an app with many menu bar items, the newest icons are pushed toward the middle — and the ones that land under the notch simply disappear from view. They're still running; you just can't see or click them.
macOS doesn't warn you or move them anywhere you can reach. On macOS 27, a built‑in overflow button collects icons that don't fit, but it decides for you and offers no shortcuts.
Ways to get them back
- Quit a few menu bar apps so the bar is short enough to fit beside the notch. Blunt, but free.
- Hold ⌘ and drag icons to reorder them, pulling the ones you need out from under the notch toward the right.
- Use a menu bar manager that knows which icons the notch covers and opens them for you.
See and open the hidden ones with Furl
Furl is free and built for the notch. It lists every menu bar icon the notch is covering and opens any of them with a click. A keyboard search (⌃⌥⌘K) jumps to an icon by name — type a few letters, even Korean initial consonants, and press Return. You can also collapse the whole bar behind one chevron so nothing hides by accident again.
Collapsing needs no Accessibility permission; opening another app's icon for you asks for it once.
FAQ
Why did my menu bar icons disappear on my MacBook?
The notch covers the middle of the menu bar. When the bar is full, the icons that fall under the notch are hidden from view even though the apps are still running.
How do I see icons hidden behind the notch?
Shorten the menu bar by quitting apps or ⌘‑dragging icons to the right, or use a free app like Furl that lists every notch‑covered icon and opens it with a click or a keyboard search.
Does macOS 27 fix the notch problem?
macOS 27 adds an overflow button that gathers icons that don't fit, but it chooses automatically and gives you no shortcuts or control over which icons hide.