Support

Open your notch

Launch Top Notch, then move your pointer to the top-center edge of your display and click to expand. Use the menu bar icon to open Settings or quit. You can enable Expand on Hover in Settings.

Music and Spotify

Start playback in Apple Music or Spotify. When macOS asks, allow Top Notch to control that app. You can review this in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Automation. Controls depend on the player and its current playback state. Lyrics are optional and require an internet connection.

Weather

Enter your city in Settings. Weather requires an internet connection and uses the city you type; no device location permission is needed. If the city is ambiguous, include its state or country. Select a day in the Weather card to see its hourly forecast. Version 1.1 uses Apple WeatherKit and defaults to Fahrenheit.

YouTube

Paste a supported YouTube link into the video widget. Clipboard detection is a separate optional setting under Privacy. Some private, age-restricted, or embedding-disabled videos need to open in your browser. An internet connection is required.

Clipboard history and AI

Clipboard History and YouTube clipboard detection are separate settings and start disabled in the Mac App Store edition. History stores up to 20 copied text items locally. Optional AI summaries require you to enable the feature and supply a Google Gemini API key. A requested summary sends selected text to Google. Provider terms and any API charges apply.

Calendar

Enable the Calendar widget and allow calendar access when requested. You can review access in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Calendars. macOS requests full access to read events; Top Notch displays events and does not edit them.

Widgets and launch at login

Use Settings to choose enabled widgets. Launch at Login is optional. To review background launch permission, open System Settings → General → Login Items & Extensions.

Privacy and clearing data

Top Notch has no user account or developer analytics. Preferences, notes, and history are stored locally. Weather, artwork, lyrics, video playback, and optional AI features connect to their providers. See the Privacy Policy for details. Settings → Privacy → Clear All Data deletes saved histories and resets preferences after confirmation.

Mac App Store edition

The Store edition uses Apple’s app sandbox. Private system integrations, system volume or brightness overlay replacement, and global shortcuts from the direct edition are not included. Media controls work with Apple Music and Spotify after Automation permission. Battery readings depend on what macOS and connected devices expose.

Contact support

Email contact@startupstartup.app with your macOS version, Top Notch version, and steps that reproduce the problem. Please omit API keys and private clipboard or calendar content.