Notifications settings on Mac
On your Mac, use Notifications settings to specify when you don’t want to be disturbed by notifications, and to control how notifications are shown in Notification Center.
To change these settings, choose Apple menu 
in the sidebar. (You may need to scroll down.)
Open Notifications settings for me
Notification Center
Option | Description |
|---|---|
Show previews | Show a preview in notifications for the app or website. For example, if you receive an email, a preview of the email is shown in the Mail notification.
Note: The setting you choose in the “Show previews” pop-up menu is used as the default setting for individual app previews. |
Show Notifications: when display is sleeping | Pause or allow notifications when the display is in sleep. |
Show Notifications: when screen is locked | Pause or allow notifications when the screen is locked. |
Show Notifications: when mirroring or sharing the display | Pause or allow notifications when you mirror or share the display.
For example, you might want to pause notifications while you’re giving a presentation. See Extend or mirror your Mac desktop across multiple displays. |
Summarize notifications | You can use Apple Intelligence* to summarize notification previews so you can quickly scan them for key details. See Summarize notifications and reduce interruptions with Apple Intelligence. |
Application Notifications
Customize notifications for apps and websites. The available options vary by app.
Option | Description |
|---|---|
Allow notifications | Turn notifications on or off. When you turn notifications off, the alert style and other notification options are dimmed. |
Alert Style | Select a notification location:
Select a notification style:
|
Allow critical alerts | Let apps send critical notifications. For example, when you select this option for the Home app, notifications for accessories such as smoke sensors or door locks are always shown, even when a Focus is on. |
Allow time sensitive alerts | Let apps send time-sensitive notifications. For example, when you select this option for the Calendar app, notifications for events that require your immediate attention are shown. To show these notifications when a Focus is on, you must also set the option for the Focus in Focus settings. See Choose which notifications to allow. |
Badge application icon | Let the app show the number of notifications on its icon in the Dock. For example, Calendar shows a badge on its icon when you receive invitations. |
Play sound for notification | Let the app play notification sounds. |
Show previews | Show a preview in notifications for the app or website. For example, if you receive an email, a preview of the email is shown in the Mail notification.
|
Notification grouping | Choose whether and how notifications for the app or website are grouped in Notification Center:
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