A Mac notch app for developers: what MakerNotch does

What is a notch app for developers?

A notch app uses the top area of a Mac screen for controls or information you want within reach. MakerNotch focuses on the products you maintain: open the panel, check a project’s connected services and follow a link to the original tool when you need to investigate.

Its project selector is useful when the same quick check involves several repositories, teams or payment accounts. If you rarely check these services, your existing browser bookmarks may be enough.

See it before setting anything up: watch the MakerNotch demo. It uses sample projects and data; watching it does not require connecting your accounts.

Choose a notch app by the job you need done

For music, files or widgets, compare general notch utilities. For your products, look at project-specific connections and the data they show. Our comparison of notch apps for developers separates those jobs, with sources and limits for each option.

MakerNotch’s workflow is organised around the project you select: check CI/CD, infrastructure, revenue, issues and more across multiple projects without switching browser accounts for each status check. Each integration needs its own initial connection and the appropriate permissions.

Your main task	What to look for
Check code, deployments and payments for a particular product	Project-specific connections, clear provider labels and links to the original data
Review a code change or approve a pull request	A review tool or the provider’s website; MakerNotch is a status panel
Keep music, files or personal widgets within reach	Compare the everyday controls and interaction of general notch utilities
Detect outages while your Mac is asleep	An external uptime monitor; a desktop app cannot provide continuous checks while asleep

Example: check two projects without changing browser sessions

Orbit and Bloom are fictional examples. Set up each project with credentials for the services it actually uses; a project name alone does not select an account or isolate data.

1. Select Orbit. Check its GitHub PRs and CI, then its Vercel deployments. A passing CI run and a Ready deployment are separate signals: open the deployed website if you need to verify the release.
2. Check the business context. Orbit uses Stripe in the demo. Verify the connected account, reporting period and currency before reading its payment figures.
3. Select Bloom. Read its configured services and check refresh status before treating the displayed values as current. Automatic refresh, when enabled, follows the selected project. Bloom uses Polar in the demo; follow the Polar setup and scope guide to configure its organisation and optional product UUID.
4. Open the original tool to act. Investigation, code reviews, billing changes and detailed reports still belong in the provider. Its website may ask you to sign in or switch accounts.

The time saved is in the repeated status check after setup. MakerNotch does not manage browser sessions, bypass permissions or combine every provider’s figures into one comparable total. See how to organise multiple projects and accounts and watch the demo.

Which tools can you connect?

MakerNotch currently supports these connections:

• GitHub: open pull requests and recent GitHub Actions runs.
• GitLab: open merge requests and pipelines.
• Vercel and Cloudflare Pages: production and preview deployments; connect Cloudflare Pages.
• Stripe and Polar: payment and subscription metrics. Polar can be filtered to one product.
• Linear: open issues assigned to you.
• Sentry: unresolved production errors.
• Supabase: project status and service health.
• DataFast: visitors and conversion.
• Resend: email delivery outcomes.

The providers report different signals over different periods. A successful deployment, a payment total and a service-health status are not a single guarantee that everything is working. Use the original provider for detailed reports and actions.

Start with GitHub pull requests and CI, Vercel deployments, or connections for several projects.

Does it work without a notch?

Yes. On a Mac with a notch, the panel occupies the top area around the camera cutout and expands to display its content. On a Mac without one, the app provides a panel at the top of the screen.

MakerNotch requires macOS 14 or later and supports Apple silicon and Intel. In settings you can adjust its appearance and choose whether to open it by hovering or clicking. Pick the behaviour that fits your normal pointer movements.

Set up your first project

1. Follow the installation and activation steps.
2. Name a project after a product you recognise, then connect one service.
3. Read its verification results and check that the returned data belongs to that product.
4. Choose the panel’s opening behaviour. Enable automatic refresh only if you want periodic background checks.
5. Add the next connection when it answers a question you regularly ask.

Notes, a focus timer and developer tools are also available beside the project views. They support the work around a status check; you can use the integrations without adopting a new task-management routine.

How are credentials and data handled?

Provider credentials are stored in the macOS Keychain, and your Mac contacts the configured providers directly. Projects, notes and preferences stay local. Licence activation uses Polar, and optional app updates contact the update service; the privacy policy explains these separately.

The status views read provider data. The explicit GitHub repository-creation action is an exception that creates a repository when you request it. Monitoring an existing repository does not require using that action.

What should you know before buying?

Automatic refresh is optional and follows the selected project. Sleep, network errors, token permissions and provider limits can delay or prevent a check. MakerNotch is not an always-on uptime monitor.

The licence is a one-time purchase for one simultaneous Mac, which you can release for use on another. See current pricing and licence terms and watch the app tour to decide whether the workflow suits you. The tour uses fictional projects and sample data.