The Notification Center on MacOS has had its share of changes over time. With MacOS Big Sur, Apple revamped this handy spot to include widgets.
While not much has changed with Notification Center widgets in MacOS Monterey, you may not have had a Mac during the Big Sur days, making you unfamiliar with these widgets.
Let’s take a look at how to open the Notification Center; add, remove, and rearrange widgets; and use those you plop into the mix.
Access the Notification Center on MacOS Monterey
To view your Notification Center, simply click the Date and Time on the right side of the menu bar. You can also swipe to the left from the right side of the screen with two fingers on your trackpad.
At the top, you’ll see notifications from apps like Mail, Home, Reminders, or whichever apps you designated to show Notification Center alerts.
Below those, you have your widgets. Just scroll down to view them all.
To close the Notification Center, click anywhere on your desktop. You can also click the Date and Time or swipe from left to right on the trackpad.
Add, remove, and rearrange Notification Center widgets
You can pick and choose which widgets to display in the Notification Center. In some cases, you can also select their sizes.
Step 1: Open the Notification Center, scroll to the bottom, and click Edit Widgets.
Step 2: While in this mode, you have apps with available widgets on the left, with a search box at the top of the list for finding a particular one. You’ll see widgets for Mac apps like Calendar, Reminders, and -- new with MacOS Monterey -- Find My. If you have any third-party apps installed that offer widgets, you’ll see those too.
In the center are the widgets you can pick from, and on the right is the Notification Center for viewing widgets you add or decide to remove.
If you see a widget in the center that has more than one size available, it may have an S, M, or L beneath it for small, medium, or large. Pick the size you want to see a preview.
Step 3: To add a widget to the bottom of the Notification Center, just click it. To park it in a particular spot, drag it where you want it in the Notification Center on the right.
To remove a widget, click the Minus Sign in the upper-left corner of the widget in the Notification Center.
To rearrange widgets, drag them to different locations in the Notification Center.
Step 4: When you finish adding or removing widgets, click Done at the bottom of the Notification Center on the right.
Resize, remove, and rearrange active widgets
Additionally, you can resize, remove, and rearrange widgets while you’re viewing the Notification Center. Scroll down to the widget area and then do one of the following.
- Resize a widget: Right-click or hold Control and click. Then, select a new size in the pop-up menu.
- Remove a widget: Hold Option and click the Minus Sign in the upper-left corner.
- Rearrange widgets: Drag and drop the widgets in the order you’d like them.
Use Notification Center widgets
Once you have the widgets you want in the locations you want them, using them is easy.
Some widgets may simply display information. When you click one, it’ll open the app or site on your Mac. For instance, if you click the News widget, this opens the News app, and if you click the Weather widget, this opens the Weather Channel in Safari.
Other widgets may give you ways to interact. For example, if you have the Notes widget, you can click a certain note to open the Notes app to that specific note. The same goes for the Calendar widget. Select a particular event in the Calendar widget to open that exact event in the Calendar app.
Notification Center widgets on MacOS give you a quick and easy way to view the weather, news, reminders, notes, and more.
For other new features in MacOS Monterey you might want to explore, look at how to take advantage of Apple Shortcuts or how to use live text on Mac.
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