# ctrlhq vs Boring Notch: Free and fun, or paid and built for work.

> ctrlhq vs Boring Notch: Boring Notch is a free, open-source notch music player. ctrlhq is a paid notch app for tasks, time tracking, recording and meeting notes.

- ctrlhq: $19 once (launch price, regular $49), no subscription, 14-day money-back guarantee. Native, about 12 MB. macOS 26 Tahoe or later.
- Boring Notch: open-source notch app. Price: Free, open source. Source: https://github.com/TheBoredTeam/boring.notch
- Facts checked September 2026.

Boring Notch is a free, open-source notch app with a lovely music visualiser, calendar, a file shelf and HUD replacements. For a free app it's impressive, and if that's all you need, keep it.

ctrlhq costs money because it does a different job. It tracks your time, runs focus sessions, records your screen, transcribes meetings on-device and cleans up your disk, all from the notch, all offline, signed and notarized by Apple.

## ctrlhq vs Boring Notch at a glance

| | ctrlhq | Boring Notch |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $19 once (launch price, then $49) | Free |
| Open source | No | Yes (GPL-3.0) |
| Music controls and visualiser | Music controls | Yes |
| Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| File shelf with AirDrop | Yes | Yes |
| Tasks and time tracking | Yes | No |
| Clipboard history | Yes | No |
| Screen recording and meeting notes | Yes | No |
| Disk cleanup and app uninstaller | Yes | No |
| Signed and notarized by Apple | Yes | Needs a security bypass on first launch |
| Automatic signed updates | Yes | Manual or Homebrew |
| macOS | 26 Tahoe or later | 14 Sonoma or later |

## Choose Boring Notch if

- You want a free notch app for music and files.
- You care about open source, or want to hack on it yourself.
- You're on macOS 14 or 15.

## Choose ctrlhq if

- You want the notch to track your time and keep your tasks in view.
- You'd like recording, meeting notes and Mac cleanup without more apps.
- You want a signed, notarized app with support and automatic updates.

## Lightweight by design

ctrlhq is a native Swift app, about 12 MB to download, with no background daemons. It replaces a handful of single-purpose apps with one that's already running in your notch.

## The ctrlhq features that cover Boring Notch

- [Time tracking](https://ctrlhq.app/features/time-tracking): Your tasks and the running timer live in the notch, so you never forget to start or stop.
- [Focus timer](https://ctrlhq.app/features/focus-timer): Start a focus session on your top task. ctrlhq tracks the time and calls the break.
- [Clipboard history](https://ctrlhq.app/features/clipboard-history): Searchable clipboard history for text and images. ⌘⇧V opens it in any app.
- [Disk cleanup](https://ctrlhq.app/features/disk-cleanup): One scan shows what's safe to clear, what's worth a look, and the biggest files and folders on your Mac.

## FAQ

### Why pay for ctrlhq when Boring Notch is free?

If you only want music and a shelf, don't. ctrlhq is worth paying for if you'd otherwise buy a time tracker, a screen recorder, a meeting note-taker or a Mac cleaner.

### Is ctrlhq open source?

No. Your data stays on your Mac in a JSON file you can export, but the app itself is closed source.

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Boring Notch is a trademark of its owner. ctrlhq isn't affiliated with it. Download ctrlhq: https://ctrlhq.app/download · All comparisons: https://ctrlhq.app/compare