How to Fix macOS Menu Bar Icons Missing or Disappearing (2026 Guide)

Why Are My Mac Menu Bar Icons Missing or Disappearing?

If you've ever glanced up at the top of your Mac screen and noticed that familiar icons — Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, battery, or your favourite third-party apps — have simply vanished, you're not alone. macOS menu bar icons going missing or disappearing is one of the most widely reported desktop interface problems on Mac in 2026, especially on MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models with the notch, and on machines running macOS Sequoia or macOS Tahoe.

The issue can be subtle (a single icon disappears) or catastrophic (the entire right side of your menu bar goes blank). Either way, it disrupts your workflow and makes it hard to access system controls quickly. This guide covers every proven fix — from a one-command Terminal cure to deeper system resets — so you can get your menu bar back in order fast.

The Root Causes: Why macOS Hides Menu Bar Icons

Before jumping to fixes, it helps to understand why this happens. There are three main culprits:

• The notch problem: On MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models with the camera notch, macOS reserves a dead zone around the notch. When too many icons accumulate in the menu bar, macOS silently hides the overflow behind the notch — with no indicator that icons are missing.
• Control Center process crash: The ControlCenter daemon manages menu bar items. If it crashes or enters a bad state (common after macOS updates), icons vanish until the process is restarted.
• Corrupted preference files: The com.apple.systemuiserver.plist and related preference files store which icons are visible. Corruption — often triggered by a forced shutdown or a failed macOS update — can cause icons to stop rendering.
• Third-party app conflicts: Some menu bar utilities (like older versions of Bartender or Dropbox) can conflict with newer macOS builds after an update, causing their icons or nearby system icons to disappear.

Fix 1: Reduce Menu Bar Icon Spacing with Terminal (Notch Fix)

This is the fastest and most effective fix for the notch-related disappearing act. By shrinking the spacing between menu bar items, you recover horizontal space and push hidden icons back into view.

Open Terminal (Applications > Utilities > Terminal) and run these two commands:

defaults -currentHost write -globalDomain NSStatusItemSpacing -int 6
defaults -currentHost write -globalDomain NSStatusItemSelectionPadding -int 6

Then log out and log back in (Apple menu > Log Out). The reduced spacing takes effect immediately on login and your hidden icons should reappear. The default spacing value is 12; dropping it to 6 can recover 30–40 pixels of menu bar real estate — often enough to reveal everything hidden behind the notch.

If you ever want to revert to the default spacing, run:

defaults -currentHost delete -globalDomain NSStatusItemSpacing
defaults -currentHost delete -globalDomain NSStatusItemSelectionPadding

Then log out and back in again.

Fix 2: Restart Control Center (Quickest No-Reboot Fix)

If your icons disappeared suddenly and the notch isn't the issue — for example on an iMac or Mac mini — a crashed ControlCenter process is the likely cause. You can restart it without rebooting your Mac.

Via Terminal:

killall ControlCenter

macOS will automatically relaunch ControlCenter within a second or two, and your menu bar icons should repopulate. If that doesn't work, also try:

killall SystemUIServer

Via Activity Monitor (no Terminal needed):

1. Open Activity Monitor (Spotlight: Cmd + Space, type "Activity Monitor").
2. In the search box, type ControlCenter.
3. Select the process and click the X (Force Quit) button.
4. macOS restarts it automatically — icons should return within seconds.

Fix 3: Delete Corrupted Menu Bar Preference Files

If icons are still missing after restarting ControlCenter, corrupted preference files are the next suspect. Deleting them forces macOS to regenerate fresh, clean defaults.

Open Terminal and run the following commands one at a time:

rm ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.systemuiserver.plist

rm ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.controlcenter.plist

killall SystemUIServer
killall ControlCenter

After the last two commands, your menu bar will flicker briefly and reset. You may need to re-add some icons via System Settings > Control Center, but the missing icons should now be visible and configurable again.

Note: macOS Ventura and later use Control Center heavily, so deleting com.apple.controlcenter.plist is safe — it regenerates automatically on next login.

Fix 4: Re-enable Icons via System Settings

Sometimes icons don't disappear due to a crash — they've been toggled off in settings, either by you, a family member, or a macOS update that reset preferences.

1. Open Apple menu > System Settings.
2. Click Control Center in the sidebar.
3. Scroll through the Control Center Modules, Other Modules, and Menu Bar Only sections.
4. For any item you want visible in the menu bar, click its dropdown and set it to Show in Menu Bar.

Common icons to check: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Battery, Sound, Spotlight, Time Machine, and Screen Mirroring. After toggling them on, they should appear in the menu bar immediately — no restart required.

Fix 5: Reset NVRAM and Rebuild the Menu Bar

If none of the above fixes work, NVRAM corruption may be at play. NVRAM (non-volatile RAM) stores display-related settings, and a corrupted NVRAM can cause persistent menu bar rendering problems.

For Intel Macs:

1. Shut down your Mac completely.
2. Power it on and immediately hold Option + Command + P + R.
3. Hold the keys for about 20 seconds (you'll hear the startup chime twice on older models).
4. Release and let your Mac boot normally.

For Apple Silicon Macs (M1/M2/M3/M4):

Apple Silicon Macs don't have NVRAM in the traditional sense and reset it automatically at each boot. However, you can reset system settings by shutting down, then holding the power button until "Loading startup options" appears, selecting your startup disk, and booting normally. This triggers a clean SMC-equivalent reset.

After the reset, check your menu bar. If icons were missing due to display setting corruption, they should now render correctly.

Fix 6: Adjust Display Resolution to Recover Hidden Icons

Here's a clever workaround that works specifically when the notch is swallowing icons. Temporarily switching to a "More Space" display resolution makes the entire UI smaller — which shrinks the notch dead zone and forces hidden icons to pop back into the visible area.

1. Go to Apple menu > System Settings > Displays.
2. Click More Space (the rightmost option on the resolution slider).
3. Your menu bar icons should reappear.
4. Once you can see all your icons, use the Controls Center settings to move less-critical icons into Control Center and reduce menu bar clutter.
5. Switch back to your preferred resolution.

This is a temporary measure but gives you visibility to diagnose which icons are hiding and reorganise accordingly.

Still Stuck? CloudHouse Can Help Remotely

If your Mac's menu bar is still behaving erratically after trying every fix above — or if icons are disappearing repeatedly after reboots — the problem may be deeper: a corrupted user profile, a conflicting third-party menu bar utility, or a macOS file system issue that needs expert eyes. CloudHouse remote support connects you with a certified Mac specialist who can diagnose and resolve persistent menu bar, Finder, and desktop GUI issues without you leaving your desk. Pay only for the fix you need — no subscriptions, no wasted time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did my Mac menu bar icons suddenly disappear after a macOS update?

macOS updates frequently reset Control Center preferences or overwrite plist files, causing icons to revert to hidden defaults. Running killall ControlCenter in Terminal and then re-enabling icons in System Settings > Control Center is usually enough to restore everything.

Can I get all my menu bar icons back without restarting my Mac?

Yes. Running killall ControlCenter or killall SystemUIServer in Terminal restarts the menu bar process on the fly — your Mac will briefly flicker and then restore icons, all without a full reboot.

Why are my menu bar icons hiding behind the notch on my MacBook Pro?

macOS doesn't display an overflow indicator when icons run out of space near the notch — they simply disappear. The fastest fix is to run defaults -currentHost write -globalDomain NSStatusItemSpacing -int 6 in Terminal, then log out and back in to reduce icon spacing and reclaim hidden space.

How do I stop menu bar icons from disappearing permanently?

Long term: move non-essential system icons (like AirDrop, Screen Mirroring, Hearing) into Control Center instead of the menu bar. This frees up space for critical third-party icons. You can also use a third-party menu bar manager like Bartender or Ice to control exactly which icons show in the primary bar.

Is it safe to delete com.apple.controlcenter.plist?

Yes, it is safe. macOS automatically regenerates this preference file on the next login with factory defaults. You will need to reconfigure your menu bar icon preferences in System Settings > Control Center after deleting it, but no system data or files are affected.