Skip to main content

Managing menu bar items

The divider model​

Barred uses a simple mental model: a single divider (|) splits your menu bar into two sections.

  • Right of the divider — visible at all times.
  • Left of the divider — hidden. Pushed off-screen until you click Barred to expand the hidden section.

There is no separate list with show/hide toggles — the menu bar itself is the source of truth.

Rearranging items​

Rearranging menu bar icons uses the standard macOS gesture:

  1. Hold ⌘ (Command).
  2. Click and drag any menu bar icon.
  3. Drop it anywhere along the menu bar.

To hide an item, ⌘-drag it to the left of the Barred divider. To reveal a hidden item permanently, ⌘-drag it back to the right of the divider.

Some system items (Control Centre, Siri, Spotlight) cannot be rearranged due to macOS restrictions — this is a system limitation, not a Barred one.

Revealing hidden items temporarily​

Click Barred's menu bar icon (or click the divider itself) to toggle the hidden section:

  • Expanding slides the hidden section into view so you can click those icons.
  • Collapsing tucks them back off-screen.

The hidden section auto-collapses after a configurable delay — see Settings.

Reviewing detected items​

Open Settings → Menu bar items to see a read-only list of everything Barred has detected, grouped by Visible and Hidden. This is useful for confirming that Barred can see a given app's status item before you try to rearrange it.

Each row shows the app icon, the item's title (when available), and the app name. When a single app owns multiple items (like iStat Menus), Barred numbers them to help you tell them apart.

New items​

When a new app adds a menu bar icon, Barred detects it automatically on its next scan. New items appear in whatever position macOS places them — typically to the right of the divider. ⌘-drag them to the hidden section if you'd like them tucked away.

Quitting Barred​

Choosing Quit Barred from the menu restores the menu bar: the divider is removed and all hidden items are revealed again, so nothing is lost when Barred isn't running.