Apple Reveals 'Scale to Fit' Setting to Prevent a Mac App's Menu Bar Items From Being Hidden Under Notch - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Reveals 'Scale to Fit' Setting to Prevent a Mac App's Menu Bar Items From Being Hidden Under Notch

Apple today shared a new support document that explains how users can ensure that an app's menu bar items do not appear hidden behind the notch, or the "camera housing" as Apple calls it, on the new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.

scale to fit notch setting macos
In the support document, Apple says users can turn on "scale to fit below built-in camera" for an app to adjust the active area of the display, ensuring that the app's menu bar items appear below the notch and are always visible.

Menu bar items appearing hidden behind the notch was demonstrated by Quinn Nelson, host of the YouTube channel Snazzy Labs.

To turn on "scale to fit below built-in camera" for an app on the new MacBook Pro models, open the Finder app and click on Applications in the sidebar. Then, right click on the desired app and select "Get Info." In the Info window that opens, check off the "scale to fit below built-in camera" box and the display will automatically adjust when the app is open.

The setting was demonstrated in a tweet by Joseph Angelo Todaro, a design advocate for Sketch.


Apple notes that developers can update their app to work better with the notch, in which case the "scale to fit below built-in camera" setting no longer appears.

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Buy Now)
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

Popular Stories

Mac Pro Feature Teal

Apple Discontinued More Than Just the Mac Pro This Month

Monday March 30, 2026 9:35 am PDT by
While it felt inevitable, it was still big news last week when Apple announced that the Mac Pro was discontinued after a nearly 20-year run. Apple discontinued a lot more than just the Mac Pro this month, though, as outlined below. Mac Studio with 512GB of RAM Apple no longer allows customers to configure the Mac Studio with 512GB of RAM, with the maximum amount of unified memory now...
m5 macbook pro green 2

Apple Now Selling Refurbished M5 MacBook Pro, iPad 11, and M4 iPad Pro at Reduced Prices

Wednesday April 1, 2026 12:13 pm PDT by
Apple added the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 chip and the iPad 11 to its online store for refurbished products today, allowing customers to purchase like-new models at a discount. The refurbished devices are available in the U.S., Canada, UK, and many other European countries. Pricing on the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 chip starts at $1,359 in the U.S. for the model with a 10-core CPU,...
16 inch MBP and 140W Charger Feature

Apple's New 16-Inch MacBook Pro Charger Has a Compatibility Issue

Thursday April 2, 2026 1:19 pm PDT by
The latest version of Apple's 140W USB-C Power Adapter included with 16-inch MacBook Pro models with the M5 Pro or M5 Max chip has an issue for some. After the 16-inch MacBook Pro was updated last month, customers in some countries began to notice that Apple's 140W USB-C Power Adapter that comes with it has a subtle design change that breaks compatibility with Apple's Power Adapter Extension ...

Top Rated Comments

59 months ago

Did you notice that “scale to fit” restores the bezels of the previous generation MBP on the left and right side as well (not just the top of the screen)? This is how it maintains the aspect ratio. It is literally scaling down the whole screen
Yep. This is literally the worst possible solution.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
59 months ago
Lol, a terrible solution to a problem we didn't had before. Nice job.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
59 months ago
The video shows the entire screen shrinking at the same aspect ratio, bizarre. I would have expected the menubar to simply slide down the same number of pixels as the notch is tall, making it the same total aspect ratio as previous MBPs

This is going to be annoying for pixel critical work that designers (and artists, etc) do, as it's no longer a perfect 2x multiple PPI (for the default scale resolution, at least). Scaling the entire screen down a bit means you're no longer integer scaling the display.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Superhappytree Avatar
59 months ago
When you have to have settings, dark modes and apps to appease the notch and yet you have floods of people on here defending it as “great design, well done Apple”.

It’s a massive design fail that interferes with UX and UI.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
59 months ago
Why not just give an option for the system to ignore the notch area, and simply put the menu bar below the notch…

Essentially maintaining the scale but just making the screen shorter?
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macpot Avatar
59 months ago
Notch gonna lie, that is amazing!

It makes every one happy, bezel lovers will find themself at home now.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)