Tack+ in plain facts: what it does, what it costs, and when to choose something else

What is Tack+?

Tack+ is a macOS utility that gathers everyday tools in one panel at the edge of the screen. Closed, it is a line six points thick at the bottom or the top of the display. A firm push of the pointer against that edge opens the panel above your windows; it folds back when the pointer leaves. The name is written "Tack+" (also "Tack Plus"), the website is tackplus.app, and it is not affiliated with other apps whose name contains "Tack".

What does Tack+ do?

The panel's home can be rearranged like a phone's home screen. Other pages open from a dock of icons: Safari tabs, Reminders, recent files, quick system settings, Contacts, Shortcuts, Apple Notes and a dictionary. The Tack+ home page shows the panel in action.

How much does Tack+ cost?

Tack+ is a subscription at $4.99 USD a month, with updates included. One subscription covers all your Macs, because it is attached to your account.

• 3-day free trial: download Tack+, create your account in the app, and everything is open for 3 days, no card needed. After that, the app locks until you subscribe. One trial per account.
• Cancel anytime: from the customer portal. The subscription stays active until the end of the period already paid, then the app locks.
• Nothing extra for the assistant: its model runs on your Mac, so there is no usage fee.

What does Tack+ need to run?

• macOS 14 Sonoma or later, on Apple silicon or Intel Macs. About 35 MB on disk.
• A notch is not required: on any screen Tack+ is a line at the top or bottom edge.
• Permissions, only for what you use: reading Messages needs Full Disk Access, and sending an iMessage needs Automation; the calendar, reminders and contacts ask for their usual macOS permissions.
• For the assistant: a Mac with Apple silicon and a 2.74 GB model download, made from within Tack+. See our local AI assistant guide.

Where is Tack+ weaker?

• No system pop-ups, notifications or live activities. Tack+ doesn't replace the macOS volume and brightness pop-ups, doesn't show notifications, calls, chargers or AirPods, and has no lock screen widgets.
• Two messaging apps. Tack+ reads your Messages and WhatsApp conversations; it sends replies in Messages, but only prepares WhatsApp replies, which you send in WhatsApp.
• A simple Stash. Up to 24 files or folders, remembered where they are. No AirDrop, conversion or cloud links.
• A text clipboard. The history keeps text and links, not images or files, and doesn't sync with the iPhone.
• Two music players. Spotify or Apple Music, one at a time; audio from a browser or another app isn't controlled.
• An account, and a subscription. Tack+ is paid monthly after a 3-day free trial; there is no one-time purchase.
• Young and closed. Tack+ was first released on September 16, 2026, and isn't open source.
• Face Lock is a convenience, not a safe. A photo can fool a camera; your Mac password or Touch ID remains the real lock.
• A small AI model. The assistant acts on short requests; it is not a chatbot for long conversations.
• Two sides, not every voice. Meetings tells you apart from the others on the call, not one participant from another; the others' side needs macOS 14.2 or later, and it does not record video.

Where is Tack+ stronger?

• Any Mac. Same panel with or without a notch, at the bottom or top edge; macOS 14 or later, Intel and Apple silicon; signed and notarized by Apple.
• Your Mac's apps, in the panel. Browse your Messages and WhatsApp conversations, reply to an iMessage, see today's appointments and unread Mail, reach Safari tabs, Reminders, Notes, Contacts, Shortcuts and recent files.
• One search, ⌥ Space: the clipboard, the Stash, conversations, today's appointments and reminders, each result saying where it comes from.
• Tools in the same gesture: an eyedropper, a Focus timer with short and long breaks, a notepad.
• Calls transcribed on the Mac. Any call app, no bot in the meeting; each sentence is transcribed by macOS on the Mac and its audio deleted, and the local assistant can summarise the call. See how to transcribe a call on a Mac.
• An AI that stays on the Mac. The assistant's model runs locally, asks before changing a file, and sends your requests to no AI service.
• Private pages. Face Lock can veil Messages, Mail, Clipboard and Notes, or the whole panel, until the camera recognizes you (up to five face profiles, off by default).
• What it reads stays on the Mac. Only your account and four settings travel between your Macs. Six languages.

When should I choose another kind of app?

Who makes Tack+, and can I trust it?

Tack+ is developed in France and published by Pensa Corporation, a Canadian company (Ontario); the press kit and the legal notice (both in French) name the publisher. The app is signed and notarized by Apple, and its updates are delivered as signed archives through Sparkle, an update system widely used by Mac apps sold outside the App Store.

• Privacy: what Tack+ reads (messages, calendar, clipboard) stays on the Mac. The account carries the subscription and four settings: the notepad, Shortcuts favourites, the music source and the home layout.
• Releases: first version on September 16, 2026, with frequent updates since. The release feed is public.
• No ratings yet: Tack+ is new, and this site shows no review scores because it has none to show.

How do I switch from a notch app to Tack+?

1. Quit the other app from its menu bar icon, then remove it from System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions (Login Items on macOS 14) so it doesn't come back at login.
2. Open Tack+ and sign in. The line sits at the bottom edge; to wrap it around the notch, pick the top edge with the position pill in the panel, or from Tack+'s menu in the menu bar.
3. Push the pointer against the edge, or press ⌥ Space. Drag a file toward the edge to drop it in the Stash.

Want to keep both? Leave Tack+ at the bottom edge and your notch app at the top: they don't use the same spot. We haven't tested every combination, so quit one if anything misbehaves.