Mac User Interacting with a Notification
Khamosh Pathak / How-To Geek

It’s very easy to get distracted when an app starts sending you annoying notifications. Right after you get an app notification, use the Notification Center on Mac to disable notifications for each app.

Quickly Turn off App Notifications from the Notification Center

You can disable an app’s notification from the notification itself. This works when you see a notification banner or alert in the top-right corner of the screen.

When you see a notification, right-click it and choose the “Turn Off” option. Your Mac will instantly stop notifications from the app.

Alternatively, you can use the Notification Center to do this. Click the Date and Time from the menu bar to show the Notification Center. You can also swipe in from the right edge of the trackpad with two fingers.

Here, you’ll see notifications from installed apps. The notifications will be grouped based on apps.

Right-click a notification and choose the “Turn Off” option to disable the notifications for the app.

Enable App Notifications from System Preferences

If you change your mind, you can enable notifications for an app from System Preferences. Click the Apple icon from the menu bar and choose the “System Preferences” option.

Select System Preferences from Apple Menu in Big Sur

Here, go to the “Notifications” section.

From the sidebar, choose the app for which you want to enable notifications. Then, click the toggle next to “Allow Notifications” to enable notifications for the app.


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Khamosh Pathak is a freelance technology writer who specializes in tutorials. His work has also been published on Lifehacker, iPhoneHacks, Zapier's blog, MakeUseOf, and Guiding Tech. Khamosh has nearly a decade of experience writing how-tos, features and technology guides on the internet.
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