macOS Tahoe Beta 2 Lets You Add a Menu Bar Background

In macOS Tahoe Beta 2, Apple included a new option to add a background to the menu bar, making it possible to have a menu bar design that’s similar to the menu bar in macOS Sequoia.

macos tahoe show menu bar background
As part of ‌macOS Tahoe‌’s Liquid Glass design, Apple removed the background of the menu bar, so it blends into the wallpaper or background behind it. The icons of the menu bar are more free floating with the transparent look, though Apple does add a slight gradient to wallpapers to improve visibility.

The menu bar toggle is available in the System Settings app under the Menu Bar section. Turning it on clearly delineates the background from the menu bar for those that prefer the non-transparent aesthetic.

With the second beta of ‌macOS Tahoe‌, Apple is making updates to address some of the issues that developers have raised. Apple also changed the color of the Finder icon to better match the traditional Finder colors.

Related Roundup: macOS Tahoe
Related Forum: macOS Tahoe

Popular Stories

top stories 2025 12 20

Top Stories: iOS 26.3 Beta, Major Apple Leaks, and More

Saturday December 20, 2025 6:00 am PST by
You'd think things would be slowing down heading into the holidays, but this week saw a whirlwind of Apple leaks and rumors while Apple started its next cycle of betas following last week's release of iOS 26.2 and related updates. This week also saw the release of a new Apple Music integration with ChatGPT, so read on below for all the details on this week's biggest stories! Top Stories i...
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

iPhone 18 Pro Features Leaked in New Report, Including Under-Screen Face ID

Tuesday December 16, 2025 8:44 am PST by
Next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will be equipped with under-screen Face ID, and the front camera will be moved to the top-left corner of the screen, according to a new report from The Information's Wayne Ma and Qianer Liu. As a result of these changes, the report said the iPhone 18 Pro models will not have a pill-shaped Dynamic Island cutout at the top of the screen....
ios 18 security update

Don't Want to Upgrade to iOS 26? Here's How to Stay on iOS 18 [Update: Now Unavailable]

Friday December 19, 2025 10:37 am PST by
Since the beginning of December, Apple has been pushing iPhone users who opted to stay on iOS 18 to install iOS 26 instead. Apple started by making the iOS 18 upgrades less visible, and has now transitioned to making new iOS 18 updates unavailable on any device capable of running iOS 26. If you have an iPhone 11 or later, Apple is no longer offering new versions of iOS 18, even though there...
airpods pro 3 new blue

AirPods Pro 3's Static and Noise Issues Haven't Been Resolved

Thursday December 18, 2025 3:44 pm PST by
Since the AirPods Pro 3 launched, there have been complaints from users who have noticed a static-like sound or a crackling issue when using the earbuds, particularly when Active Noise Cancellation is on but no media is playing. Users have also run into strange high-pitched whistling sounds that happen intermittently. We shared the issues back in late October, and despite two subsequent...
apple music chatgpt

ChatGPT's Apple Music Integration Is Now Live

Wednesday December 17, 2025 3:50 pm PST by
There's now a dedicated Apple Music app for ChatGPT, which allows ChatGPT to make music recommendations and build playlists. Apple Music can be added to ChatGPT through the Settings section in the Mac app, website, or iOS app. Apple Music is listed under the apps option, and connecting to it requires signing in with your Apple Account for authorization purposes. ChatGPT can be used to...
samsung exynos 2600 2nm%402x

Samsung Announces World's First 2nm Mobile Chip Ahead of Apple

Friday December 19, 2025 3:59 am PST by
Samsung has officially unveiled the Exynos 2600, the world's first 2 nanometer mobile system-on-a-chip (SoC), built on the company's Gate-All-Around (GAA) process. The 10-core ARM-based design aims to deliver improved performance and efficiency for flagship devices like the upcoming Galaxy S26 series. The chip uses Arm's latest cores and supports new instructions for improved CPU speed and...
apple beta 26 lineup

Apple's 2026 and 2027 Product Roadmap: Foldable iPhone, iPhone 18 Pro, M5 Macs, and More

Tuesday December 16, 2025 4:42 pm PST by
There has been a whirlwind of rumors over the last few days, sourced from leaked internal software designed for the iPhone and the Mac, and news sites like The Information. Below, we have a quick recap of everything we've heard this week, which serves as a guide to Apple's product plans in 2026 and beyond. We've organized the info by likely release date, though there are some products that...
iOS 26 Maps Glass

Apple Quietly Discontinued Flyover City Tours in Apple Maps

Thursday December 18, 2025 1:31 pm PST by
Apple Maps no longer offers a Flyover feature that provides users with automated tours of notable landmarks in major cities. The Flyover option appears to have been nixed around when iOS 26 launched, but its removal went largely unnoticed. Flyover city tours were introduced in 2014 with iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite, using Flyover imagery to generate an aerial tour. Most cities with Flyover...

Top Rated Comments

Zorn Avatar
26 weeks ago
Great - this is the best way to handle it. Let us who want the fresh look have it, and anyone who has a funky wallpaper that makes this not work can check an option. Everyone can be happy.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
n-evo Avatar
26 weeks ago
An actual screen shot of what it looks like would’ve been nice (and kinda expected) if you dedicate a separate article to this instead of just a description.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Adora Avatar
26 weeks ago

An actual screen shot of what it looks like would’ve been nice (and kinda expected) if you dedicate a separate article to this instead of just a description.
Just noticed most parts of my system monitor are missing and the preferences don't open. They were just hidden behind the browser.



Attachment Image

Attachment Image
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MDTyKe Avatar
26 weeks ago
Good god the dropdown menus for Weather etc and Battery are just disgusting. Why take something that's easy to read, and make it more difficult to read due to all the chaos blurs and lines in the background? Who in their right mind thought this was a good idea?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dorv Avatar
26 weeks ago
I know taste is subjective, but to me this is one of the best looking parts of Liquid Glass on my Mac.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MDTyKe Avatar
26 weeks ago

My M4 Pro Mini is always very warm when doing nothing. I already thought about downgrading but in low power mode it's only slightly warm. In Sequoia it was permanently cool.

It's the WindowServer process, that is stressing the GPU and the Efficiency Cores.
That's unfortunate. In Accessibility I have enabled "Reduce Transparency" but check out what it does to the Messages app (it's more obvious when in Light Mode).

Apple really had an opportunity to make macOS lightning fast, but instead they seem set on slowing it down as much as possible with bloat features. It's very, very frustrating to see the direction it's going. Literally, Linux in a VM operates much, much faster than macOS native. Yes, I know it's a beta, but the point still remains - this is all bloat features that nobody is asking for. I just hope they allow us to turn this **** off.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)