OverflowBar review
A focused, free menu bar organizer for keeping selected icons in a persistent second row.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
OverflowBar is a native macOS menu bar manager for users with crowded status areas. It lets you select third-party menu bar items, hide their original icons, and access them through a persistent arrow that reveals a second row. The app supports Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, multiple displays, display notches, and reduced-motion settings. Its focused design suits people who want more room without removing access to the original controls.
As an open-source product with a free plan, OverflowBar keeps its pricing model straightforward. Its main value is the persistent second row: selected icons can be hidden from their original positions, revealed through hover, and activated through the original menu bar controls where possible. Users can refresh and select discovered items, while local capture stores selected menu bar icon images. The feature set also includes layout reset and restore-all controls, giving users a direct way to recover from layout changes.
The main setup considerations are platform requirements and permissions. OverflowBar requires macOS 15 or later, and its full feature set requires Accessibility and Screen Recording permissions. The current build is ad-hoc signed and not Apple-notarized, which may matter to users who prioritize a more formal macOS distribution path. OverflowBar is a good fit for users who specifically want a persistent second row, hover reveal, and multi-display support. It is less suited to anyone looking for a broader customization system centered on rearrangement or keyboard shortcuts.
OverflowBar pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Persistent second row keeps selected menu bar icons accessible
- Supports multiple displays, display safe areas, and notches
- Safe Reset and restore-all controls simplify layout recovery
- Where it doesn't
- Requires macOS 15 or later
- Accessibility and Screen Recording permissions are required
- Ad-hoc signed and not Apple-notarized
OverflowBar fact sheet, pricing and score →
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