Kitsmith / Hubs / DynamicNotch
A free, open-source island built on its own engine — live activities, HUDs, and a floating capsule for notchless Macs.
Our take
The open-source hub with the most raw feature volume: live activities, temporary alerts, gesture controls, and physics-based animation the developer built from scratch rather than forking. Free, GPL-3.0, and updated in the last day at last check.
- Price
- Free
- License
- Open source
- Requires
- macOS 14.6 or later
- Get it via
- GitHub
- Developer
- Evgeniy Petrukovich
Do you use DynamicNotch?
Who made this
Belarus
Solo developer of DynamicNotch, self-published as the name of the GitHub account that owns the repo.
What it does
Live Activities
Now Playing with audio visualizer, Downloads, AirDrop, Timer, Screen Recording indicator, Focus mode, Personal Hotspot, and Lock Screen surfaces.
Temporary Alerts
Interactive HUDs for battery charging, Bluetooth connections, Wi-Fi, VPN, and Focus toggling.
Physics-based animation
Spring animations and jelly-like morphing built on a custom engine, not a fork of an existing project.
Floating capsule for notchless Macs
Automatically renders as a Dynamic-Island-style capsule on iMac, Mac mini, external monitors, or older MacBooks.
Gesture controls
Mouse drag, trackpad swipes, and scroll-to-dismiss, with adaptive corner radii during the swipe.
Deep customization
Notch width/height, stroke, background, and animation presets are all adjustable.
The deal
- Free and open source (GPL-3.0)
- No Apple Developer account yet — first launch needs a manual Gatekeeper approval in Privacy & Security
- Optional donations via Boosty and DonationAlerts
DynamicNotch — questions people ask
Is DynamicNotch really free?
Yes — free and open source under GPL-3.0, with optional donations via Boosty or DonationAlerts.
Does it work on a Mac without a notch?
Yes — it automatically renders as a floating Dynamic Island capsule on notchless Macs and external displays.
Why does macOS warn me on first launch?
The developer doesn’t have an Apple Developer account yet, so you need to approve it once in System Settings → Privacy & Security.
Is DynamicNotch free?
Yes — DynamicNotch is free.
Can I run DynamicNotch together with another notch app?
No — DynamicNotch draws at the notch, so it takes the place of any other notch app (hubs included). Apps that live in the menu bar or on screen stack alongside it fine.
Where can I download DynamicNotch?
DynamicNotch is available via GitHub.
Is DynamicNotch open source?
Yes — DynamicNotch is open source.
Reviews
No public ratings yet. Reader reviews are coming to Kitsmith soon.
Listing hand-verified July 27, 2026 from the developer's site and public sources.
How DynamicNotch compares
Not sold on DynamicNotch? These swap in
Notch apps run one at a time — pick one of these instead, not as well.
Alcove
$14.99 one-timeLive activities and widgets around the notch, with the most polished animations in the category.
NotchNook
$25 one-time (or $3/mo)The feature-maximal island: file shelf, widgets, live activities, and deep customization.
boring.notch
FreeFree, open-source island with media controls and small utilities — the no-commitment entry point.
DynamicLake
$13.99 one-timeIsland platform covering music, notifications, calendar, and utilities — with an explicit Liquid Glass design option.
Keep DynamicNotch — stack these next to it
These live in the menu bar or on screen, so they run happily alongside any notch app.
