Ice
Open-source menu bar manager for macOS
Quick Take: Ice
Ice is the right tool at the right time. It arrived exactly when the Mac community needed a trustworthy Bartender replacement and delivered a clean, native, open-source solution. It lacks some of Bartender's polish and advanced features, but for the core job—keeping your menu bar organized—it's excellent. The SwiftUI architecture means it's tiny, fast, and Mac-native. The open-source code means you know exactly what it does. If your menu bar is a mess, install Ice. It'll take two minutes and you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner.
Best For
- •MacBook Users with Notch Display Limitations
- •Ex-Bartender Users Seeking a Trustworthy Alternative
- •Minimalists Who Want a Clean Desktop
Install with Homebrew
brew install --cask iceWhat is Ice?
Ice is a free, open-source menu bar manager for macOS built by Jordan Baird. It does one thing well: it lets you hide, show, and reorganize the icons in your Mac's menu bar. If you're running a MacBook with a notch and your menu bar icons are getting clipped behind it, Ice solves that problem. The menu bar on macOS has been getting increasingly crowded. Between system icons (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, battery, Control Center, Siri, clock) and app icons (1Password, Bartender, Rectangle, Stats, iStat Menus, Dropbox, Docker, Amphetamine, Tailscale, clipboard managers), a typical power user's menu bar can have 15-25 icons. On a 14-inch MacBook Pro, the notch eats the center of the menu bar, and icons that overflow behind the notch become inaccessible. Before Ice, the go-to solution was Bartender—a paid app ($16) that hid and organized menu bar icons. When Bartender was acquired by an unknown company in 2024 under unclear circumstances (the original developer, Ben Surtees, sold it without a public announcement, and the new owners' identity and data practices were initially opaque), many users looked for alternatives. Ice emerged as the free, open-source answer. Ice works by creating up to three sections in your menu bar: always visible, hidden (revealed by clicking an Ice icon or a hotkey), and an 'always hidden' section that stays out of sight. You drag icons between sections to organize them. Icons in the hidden section are accessible with a single click or keyboard shortcut—they slide out from behind the Ice separator, you interact with them, and they slide back. The always-hidden section is for icons you never need to see but that apps require to run (some apps won't function without a menu bar icon). Ice is lightweight, runs natively on macOS 14+ (Sonoma and later), and uses minimal resources. It doesn't inject into other processes or use accessibility hacks—it manages icon visibility through macOS's own window management APIs. The app is actively maintained on GitHub with regular updates.
Deep Dive: Why the Mac Community Switched from Bartender to Ice
The Bartender acquisition controversy, the rise of open-source alternatives, and what it says about trust in developer tools.
History & Background
Ice appeared on GitHub in early 2024 as a straightforward SwiftUI project by Jordan Baird. It initially attracted modest attention as 'yet another Hidden Bar alternative.' The turning point came in May 2024 when security researcher Jeff Johnson discovered that Bartender had been quietly sold to Applause, a company with no track record in Mac utilities. Bartender's new privacy policy included language allowing data collection, and the ownership change had happened silently—existing users weren't notified. Within days, 'Bartender alternatives' was trending, and Ice's GitHub stars surged from hundreds to thousands.
How It Works
Ice is a pure SwiftUI application that uses macOS accessibility APIs (NSStatusBar, NSStatusItem) to manage menu bar item visibility. It stores preferences in UserDefaults and persists icon configurations between launches. The three-section system works by controlling the ordering and visibility of NSStatusItem objects. Because it uses system APIs rather than custom window overlays, it interoperates correctly with macOS's own menu bar behavior, including the notch region and Control Center.
Ecosystem & Integrations
Ice exists in a small ecosystem of menu bar managers alongside Bartender, Hidden Bar, and Dozer (abandoned). Its differentiation is the combination of active maintenance, open-source transparency, and three-section flexibility. Many users pair Ice with complementary utilities: Stats for system monitoring, BetterDisplay for display management, and Rectangle for window management—all adding their own menu bar icons that Ice then organizes.
Future Development
Jordan Baird has outlined plans for custom menu bar appearance (tinting, transparency), profile support (different icon arrangements for different contexts), and improved drag-and-drop UX. The project accepts community contributions and several features have been added through pull requests. The roadmap is intentionally conservative—Ice aims to be simple and reliable rather than feature-packed.
Key Features
Three-Section Menu Bar Organization
Ice splits your menu bar into three zones: always visible, hidden (shown temporarily when you click Ice's icon or hover), and always hidden. This gives you fine-grained control. Keep your essential icons (Wi-Fi, sound, battery) always visible, put occasional-use items (VPN, Tailscale, Stats) in the hidden section, and permanently hide things you never need to see (like the Spotlight icon). The three-tier system is more flexible than Bartender's original two-tier approach.
Drag-and-Drop Reordering
Rearranging icons is done by holding Cmd and dragging them—the standard macOS gesture—and Ice respects the new positions. You can also configure the order within Ice's preferences panel. Unlike some alternatives that lose your arrangement after a restart, Ice persists your layout reliably. This matters because macOS itself has a frustrating habit of rearranging third-party menu bar icons after system updates.
Auto-Hide with Smart Reveal
Hidden menu bar items can be revealed by clicking Ice's toggle icon, hovering over the menu bar area, or using a configurable keyboard shortcut. You can set a delay for auto-hide, so items briefly appear when their status changes (like a new notification) before sliding back out of view. This 'peek and dismiss' workflow keeps your menu bar clean without making hidden items hard to access.
SwiftUI Native Architecture
Ice is built entirely with SwiftUI, Apple's modern UI framework. This means it looks and behaves like a first-party Apple app—native animations, proper Dark Mode support, correct font rendering, and standard macOS settings panels. It's a 2MB download. Compare that to Electron-based alternatives that ship an entire Chromium browser in a 200MB package just to manage some icons.
Notch Compatibility
On MacBook Pro models with the camera notch, menu bar space is severely limited—icons on the left side can get hidden behind the notch or overlap with it. Ice correctly handles the notch boundary, ensuring hidden icons don't visually collide with the camera housing. It's a small thing, but menu bar managers that get the notch wrong are practically unusable on modern MacBooks.
Open Source and Privacy-First
Ice's entire codebase is on GitHub under the MIT license. There is no analytics, no telemetry, no crash reporting, no account system, and no network requests beyond checking for updates (which you can disable). After the Bartender acquisition controversy, this transparency is Ice's strongest selling point. Anyone can read the code and verify exactly what it does.
Who Should Use Ice?
1The Developer with Too Many Tools
A full-stack developer runs Docker Desktop, OrbStack, Tailscale, 1Password, Stats, Raycast, and several other apps that all put icons in the menu bar. On their 14" MacBook Pro, half these icons are hidden behind the notch. They install Ice, drag their essential icons (1Password, Stats CPU gauge, Wi-Fi) to the always-visible section, put everything else in hidden, and finally have a clean menu bar. Clicking the Ice icon briefly reveals the rest when needed.
2The Ex-Bartender User
After reading about the Bartender acquisition and its new data collection terms, this user uninstalls Bartender and looks for alternatives. They try Ice, which replicates the exact functionality they used—hiding less-important icons and revealing them on demand. The migration takes two minutes. The only difference is their menu bar manager is now free, open-source, and doesn't have opaque ownership.
3The Minimalist
A designer keeps their workspace intentionally minimal. They use Ice to hide every menu bar icon except the clock and Wi-Fi. When presenting their screen to clients, there are no distracting status indicators or app icons visible. The always-hidden section ensures even background apps don't add visual noise.
How to Install Ice on Mac
Ice installs via Homebrew Cask in seconds. It requires macOS 14 (Sonoma) or later.
Install via Homebrew
Run `brew install --cask ice` in your terminal. The app downloads and installs to your Applications folder.
Launch and Grant Permissions
Open Ice from Applications. macOS will ask for Accessibility permissions—grant these so Ice can manage menu bar icon positions.
Organize Your Icons
Hold Cmd and drag menu bar icons to rearrange them. Click the Ice icon (a small dot/line in the menu bar) to toggle hidden icons. Open Ice's preferences to assign icons to always-visible, hidden, or always-hidden sections.
Set to Launch at Login
In Ice's preferences, check 'Launch at login' so your menu bar stays organized after every restart.
Pro Tips
- • If you're migrating from Bartender, uninstall Bartender first to avoid conflicts with menu bar icon management.
- • Use the keyboard shortcut (configurable in Ice settings) to quickly toggle hidden icons without reaching for the mouse.
- • Ice works best when you give it a minute after login—some menu bar icons take time to appear, and Ice organizes them as they load.
Configuration Tips
Use the Always-Hidden Section for Cleanup
Some apps put icons in the menu bar that you never interact with (backup utilities, updaters, system extensions). Drag these to Ice's always-hidden section. They still function—they just never appear in your menu bar under any circumstances. This is the most effective way to reclaim notch-limited real estate.
Pair with Keyboard Shortcut for Fast Access
Set a global keyboard shortcut in Ice preferences (like Ctrl+Option+M) to toggle hidden icons. This lets you check on background apps without moving your mouse to the top of the screen—a small time-saver that adds up across hundreds of toggles per day.
Alternatives to Ice
Ice covers most menu bar management needs, but some users may want additional features.
Bartender
Bartender has been the menu bar manager since 2013 and offers more features: custom menu bar appearance, icon search, profile switching, and menu bar tinting. However, the 2024 acquisition by Applause raised serious privacy and trust concerns. Bartender also costs $16 and uses significantly more memory. For most users, Ice does everything they actually need from Bartender, for free and with full transparency.
Hidden Bar
Hidden Bar is another free, open-source alternative that predates Ice. It's simpler—just one hidden section toggled by a single arrow icon. Ice improves on Hidden Bar with three sections, better notch handling, and a more polished SwiftUI interface. Hidden Bar hasn't been updated as actively and can be glitchy on newer macOS versions.
Stats
Stats is a system monitor, not a menu bar manager, but it adds its own menu bar icons. Many users pair Stats (for CPU/memory/network monitoring) with Ice (to hide the Stats icons until needed). They complement each other perfectly.
Pricing
Ice is completely free under the MIT License. No donations required, no paid tiers, no in-app purchases. The developer, Jordan Baird, accepts optional GitHub Sponsors contributions, but the app has no paywalled features. It is and will remain free.
Pros
- ✓Completely free and open-source (MIT License)
- ✓SwiftUI native—tiny footprint (2MB, ~30MB RAM)
- ✓Excellent notch compatibility on modern MacBooks
- ✓No telemetry, no data collection, no account required
- ✓Three-section organization (visible, hidden, always hidden)
- ✓Replaces Bartender for most users' needs
- ✓Actively maintained with regular updates
- ✓Clean, intuitive preferences panel
Cons
- ✗Fewer features than Bartender (no custom icons, no menu bar tinting)
- ✗Requires macOS 14 Sonoma or later (no legacy Mac support)
- ✗No icon search/filter for users with 20+ items
- ✗Occasional layout reset after macOS updates (an OS-level issue, not Ice-specific)
- ✗Limited customization compared to premium alternatives
Community & Support
Ice is developed openly on GitHub with an active issues tracker. Jordan Baird is responsive to bug reports and feature requests. The project has attracted thousands of stars and a steady stream of pull requests from the community. Discussion happens primarily on GitHub Issues and occasionally on Reddit's r/macapps, where Ice is frequently recommended as the top Bartender replacement. Documentation is minimal but the app is simple enough that most users don't need it.
Frequently Asked Questions about Ice
Our Verdict
Ice is the right tool at the right time. It arrived exactly when the Mac community needed a trustworthy Bartender replacement and delivered a clean, native, open-source solution. It lacks some of Bartender's polish and advanced features, but for the core job—keeping your menu bar organized—it's excellent. The SwiftUI architecture means it's tiny, fast, and Mac-native. The open-source code means you know exactly what it does. If your menu bar is a mess, install Ice. It'll take two minutes and you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner.
About the Author
Productivity & Workflow Analyst
Related Technologies & Concepts
Related Topics
Menu Bar Management
Tools for organizing and managing macOS menu bar icons.
macOS Utilities
Essential utilities for customizing and improving macOS.
Sources & References
Fact-CheckedLast verified: Feb 23, 2026
- 1Ice GitHub Repository
Accessed Feb 23, 2026
Research queries: Ice menu bar manager macOS 2026