Meet the new menu bar

The familiar and functional menu bar now comes with added control

- ALEX BLAKE

THE macOS MENU bar is familiar, functional, and mostly stays out of your way. While macOS 26 (Tahoe) hasn't revolutionized it, the update has certainly spruced things up with tweaks and new features that bring an extra level of control to your Mac.

That includes a new selection of controls and widgets, the ability to change the menu bar's appearance in granular detail, easier editing of the menu bar in conjunction with the Control Center, and more.

As well as that, you can now use secondary menu bars that work like submenus — add one and click it to access a pop-out window of apps, widgets, and controls. This is helpful if you find that cluttered menu bar items get lost under your Mac's notch. Now, you can conceal lesser-used ones until you need them, ensuring nothing gets hidden due to an overpacked menu bar.

Read on to find out how to use these features in macOS Tahoe and breathe new life into your menu bar.

HOW TO Change the menu bar's appearance

1 Show background

Don't like macOS Tahoe's invisible menu bar? You can put it back to the old, more translucent style by opening System Settings and going to Menu Bar, then enabling the toggle next to "Show menu bar background".

2 Reduce transparency