Compare · checked September 2026
MediaMate vs notchos
MediaMate replaces macOS’s volume and brightness HUDs with fresh visuals that tuck into the notch, and it is lovely at exactly that. It is less a tool belt than a better version of the system’s own overlays — small, sharp, and cheap.
MediaMate’s own site — see it for yourself before deciding anything.
Where MediaMate wins
- The best-looking take on the system HUD problem, at a friendly price.
- Small scope, done well — it does not try to be a dashboard.
Where notchos differs
- notchos also replaces the HUD question — volume, brightness, now playing live in the pill — and then keeps going.
- Twenty tools, dictation, integrations, themes, snap, and drop actions: the belt, not just the badge.
- Both are one-time purchases; notchos is the one you stop needing other utilities after.
The honest verdict
If your only itch is the ugly system HUD, MediaMate scratches it for less. If the notch could be doing actual work between volume presses, that is notchos.
Twenty tools. One hover. $9.99, once.