Thaw is a free, open-source macOS menu bar manager for hiding, revealing, and arranging menu bar items. You can save arrangements as profiles associated with a display, Space, or Focus filter. Conditions such as battery level, Wi-Fi network, active Focus, or a script result can trigger items to appear or disappear. Appearance settings include tint, gradients, shadows, borders, custom shapes, and light and dark modes. Thaw supports macOS 26 and 27 and requires macOS 26 or later to install. It has a Raycast extension and thaw:// links that work with tools including Alfred, Shortcuts, Keyboard Maestro, and BetterTouchTool. The project says it needs no account and has no tracking, analytics, or telemetry. Accessibility permission is requested on first launch; Screen Recording is optional for live item previews and wallpaper-derived tinting. Thaw is GPL-3.0 licensed and can be installed with Homebrew or downloaded as a DMG from the latest GitHub release. The project says release builds are Developer ID-signed and notarized.
Who it is for
Thaw suits Mac users who want to organize menu bar items with profiles, triggers, or appearance settings. It is intended as a local utility for a single interactive user on their own Mac.
What is good
- Profiles can be tied to displays, Spaces, or Focus filters
- Triggers can use battery, Wi-Fi, Focus, or scripts
- No account, tracking, analytics, or telemetry
- Homebrew and DMG installation options
What to know first
- Requires macOS 26 or later
- Accessibility permission is requested on first launch
- Screen Recording is needed for certain optional features
Verdict
Thaw offers menu bar organization through profiles, conditional triggers, and appearance controls. It is a free GPL-3.0 utility, but requires macOS 26 or later.
Thaw plans and pricing
All plansCompared on menu bar customization software
- Free plan
- Yes
- Hide menu items
- Yes
- Rearrange items
- Yes
- Group menu items
- Yes
- Custom menu items
- Yes
- Keyboard shortcuts
- Yes
- Multiple displays
- Yes
- Notch support
- Yes
