7 Best Bartender Alternatives for Mac (Free, 2026)
Short answer: the best free Bartender alternative in 2026 is Thaw, the actively maintained open-source fork of Ice, with macOS 27 support in its 3.0 test builds. Hidden Bar is the simplest free pick and already hides icons on macOS 27. For a cheap paid option, Barbee is $12.99 once. If you only need to reorder icons and clear the bar in one click, FavTray’s Menu Bar tool is free.
TL;DR
- Free and open source, most Bartender-like: Thaw.
- Free, simplest, works on macOS 27 today: Hidden Bar 1.11.1.
- Cheap and paid: Barbee ($12.99 once) or Vanilla Pro ($10).
- Reorder plus Collapse all / Open all, alongside developer tools: FavTray, free.
- Want every feature and fine with the new owners: Bartender itself (Bartender 6 for Tahoe; Bartender 7 for macOS 27 is in beta).
Versions, prices and macOS 27 status checked on 28 September 2026 on each app’s GitHub releases, website or Mac App Store listing.
Bartender defined the menu bar manager category for a decade. Then in June 2024 it was sold to Applause Group without any announcement. Users discovered the sale from a changed code-signing certificate, and trust, the one thing an app with screen-recording permission can’t lose, went with it. Search interest in “Bartender alternative” has stayed high ever since, and macOS 27, which draws the whole menu bar as a single window, broke most icon hiders again in September 2026.
This is an honest comparison of the seven alternatives worth considering, including where each one falls short.
Best Bartender alternatives compared
| App | Price | Open source | Hides icons one by one | macOS 27 (checked 28 Sep 2026) | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thaw | Free | Yes (GPL-3.0) | Yes, plus an always-hidden section | 3.0 alpha builds; stable 2.0.1 targets macOS 26 | The most Bartender-like free app |
| Hidden Bar | Free | Yes (MIT) | One divider | Works from v1.11.1 (direct download) | Minimalists |
| FavTray Menu Bar | Free (part of FavTray) | No | No: reorder, plus Collapse all / Open all | Tested on macOS 26; supports macOS 14+; not yet verified on 27 | Developers who want one app for many jobs |
| Barbee | $12.99 once or $4.99/year (in-app) | No | Yes | Not verified by us | A cheap, polished paid option |
| Vanilla | Free; Pro $10 once | No | Hide toggle | macOS 27 beta available | Simplicity |
| Ice | Free | Yes | Yes | Doesn’t work | Nobody new; move to Thaw |
| iBar | Free tier | No | Groups icons | Not verified by us | Casual users |
| Bartender | Bartender 7 $24.99 once, or Bartender Pro yearly | No | Yes, with triggers and search | Bartender 7 in beta | Users who accept the new ownership |
1. Thaw: the maintained Ice fork
Thaw is a free, open-source (GPL-3.0) fork of Ice, and in 2026 it is the free app closest to Bartender: a hidden section, an always-hidden section, hotkeys, and per-icon placement. It imports your Ice settings, so switching takes a minute. The stable release, 2.0.1 (2 September 2026), targets macOS 26 Tahoe; macOS 27 support is in the 3.0 test builds (3.0.0-alpha.7, 25 September 2026).
Strengths: free, open code, active development. Weaknesses: on macOS 27 you are running alpha software for now, and like every hider it relies on behaviour Apple doesn’t officially support, so point updates can break it.
2. Hidden Bar: the minimalist
Hidden Bar is free and open source (MIT). One divider, one toggle: if your need is “tuck these eight icons away”, it does exactly that and nothing else. Version 1.11.1 (18 September 2026) hides icons on macOS 27 again, in the direct download from GitHub; the App Store version can’t hide on 27. It needs Accessibility permission and uses a private Apple framework.
Strengths: the simplest setup, and it works on macOS 27 today. Weaknesses: no per-icon rules, search or always-hidden section, and its development has been sporadic (before 2026, the previous release was in January 2022).
3. FavTray Menu Bar: reorder and Collapse all
FavTray’s Menu Bar Manager takes a deliberately simpler approach. Full disclosure: FavTray is our app. It does three things: reorder your icons in one click, Collapse all to move every app icon out of the bar, and Open all to bring them all back. It doesn’t hide icons one by one and has no search or rules; we removed per-icon hiding because it wasn’t reliable on macOS 15 and later. Reorder, Collapse all and Open all are free with no daily limit.
Strengths: free, and it sits in an app that replaces several other menu bar utilities at once: eye-rest breaks, port killing, meeting join buttons, AI usage limits and GitHub notifications live behind the same icon. Weaknesses: no per-icon hiding, which is the main reason people buy Bartender. It asks for Accessibility and Screen Recording permission (Screen Recording draws the icon thumbnails). Not yet verified on macOS 27.
The honest pitch: if your menu bar is crowded because you run six utility apps, the fix might not be hiding their icons. It might be needing fewer apps.
4. Barbee: the low-cost paid pick
Barbee is on the Mac App Store as a free download, with a 3-day trial and then $12.99 once or $4.99 a year through in-app purchase. It hides and shows icons in one click, auto-hides, adds shortcuts, and can put emoji, SF Symbols or text in the bar. It is roughly half Bartender 7’s price, from a small developer, without Bartender’s history.
5. Vanilla
Vanilla is the long-running simple hider. The free version hides icons behind a toggle; Vanilla Pro ($10 once, up to 10 Macs) adds keyboard shortcuts, a “completely removed” section and auto-hide after five seconds. Its developer has a beta for macOS 27.
6. Ice: the former favourite
Ice was the standard free answer for two years, and it still has more GitHub stars than any other manager. But it is no longer actively developed: the last stable release was 0.11.12 in October 2024, the last commit landed in September 2025, and it doesn’t work on macOS 27. If you like Ice, use Thaw (above), which is the same idea, maintained.
7. iBar
Freemium, focused on grouping icons into expandable clusters. Popular with non-technical users; less precise for keyboard-driven workflows.
Bartender itself: the incumbent, with an asterisk
Bartender still has the deepest feature set: triggers, presets, per-app rules, a search palette. The new owners have kept it updated: Bartender 6 covers macOS 26 Tahoe, and Bartender 7 ($24.99 once, or a yearly Bartender Pro subscription) is built for macOS 27 and in beta as of 28 September 2026. If the ownership change doesn’t bother you, it remains the most capable tool. For many users the permission model is the dealbreaker: screen recording access means the app can see everything on your display, and that requires trust in whoever owns it.
The notch problem nobody solves
A note on physics: no manager can put icons under the MacBook notch. macOS doesn’t render that strip. If your real problem is icons vanishing behind the notch on a 14” MacBook, the fix is reducing what’s in the bar (guide here) or getting more from each icon you keep. On macOS 27, icons that don’t fit fold behind a » button instead, and ⌘-dragging your daily icons next to the clock keeps them visible longest (how that works).
FavTray goes one step further and makes the notch itself useful: its notch island turns the dead space into media controls, a calendar and an AI assistant. Any notch app can do this; here’s how to get a notch island on Mac.
Which Bartender alternative should you pick?
- Free and open source: Thaw. Hidden Bar if you want only a toggle.
- On macOS 27 right now, stable build: Hidden Bar 1.11.1.
- A cheap paid app: Barbee or Vanilla Pro.
- The menu bar tidied AND fewer apps overall: FavTray. The Menu Bar tool is free, and it retires the need for half the icons it manages.
- Maximum configurability, and you accept the new owners: Bartender.
- Tidy the bar without another app: start with macOS’s own Menu Bar settings and ⌘-drag.
Whatever you choose, prefer apps that state their permissions plainly. A menu bar manager can see your screen; you should know exactly who is behind it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best free Bartender alternative?
Thaw, for most people. It is a free, open-source (GPL-3.0) fork of Ice that is actively developed, imports your Ice settings, and has macOS 27 support in its 3.0 test builds. Hidden Bar is the simpler free pick and hides icons on macOS 27 from version 1.11.1. If you only want to reorder icons and collapse them all at once, FavTray's Menu Bar tool is free with no daily limit. Checked 28 September 2026.
What is the best open-source Bartender alternative?
Thaw (GPL-3.0), the maintained fork of Ice, is the closest open-source match to Bartender: a hidden section, an always-hidden section, hotkeys and per-icon placement. Hidden Bar (MIT) is open source too, with a single divider and toggle. Ice itself is open source but has had no stable release since October 2024.
Is there a Bartender alternative that works on macOS 27?
Yes. As of 28 September 2026, Hidden Bar 1.11.1 (the direct download, not the App Store build) hides icons on macOS 27 Golden Gate. Thaw supports macOS 27 in its 3.0 alpha builds, and Vanilla has a macOS 27 beta. Bartender 7, built for macOS 27, is itself still in beta. Ice doesn't work on macOS 27.
What is a good Hidden Bar or Ice alternative?
If Hidden Bar is too basic, Thaw adds an always-hidden section, hotkeys and search while staying free and open source. If you used Ice, Thaw is its maintained fork and imports your Ice settings. For a paid option with a small price, Barbee costs $12.99 once through the Mac App Store.
Why are people looking for Bartender alternatives?
In 2024, Bartender was quietly sold to a new owner without notifying users, and the app requests sensitive permissions (screen recording and accessibility). Many users decided that level of access requires more trust than an unannounced acquisition allows, and moved to open-source or transparent alternatives.
Do Bartender alternatives work with the MacBook notch?
Partially. No app can place icons under the physical notch, because macOS doesn't draw that region. Managers like Thaw and Hidden Bar let you hide rarely used icons so the important ones stay visible in the space that's left; FavTray's Menu Bar tool collapses all app icons at once and lets you reorder the ones that matter.
Does macOS have a built-in way to hide menu bar icons?
On macOS 26 Tahoe and 27 Golden Gate, yes: System Settings > Menu Bar > 'Allow in the Menu Bar' switches third-party icons off, and macOS 27 folds icons that don't fit behind a » button. On Sequoia and earlier you can only remove Apple's own items (Control Center settings) and ⌘-drag some icons off the bar; hiding third-party icons needs an app.