User level: Level 1 (24 points)If anyone finds a way to adjust the icon spacing in the Menu Bar please reply here. I've already sent in an Apple Feedback. Returning to large spaces between system icons is just plain silly. It's a waste of much needed space. App icons are still nice and tight.
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
Original Title: Menu Bar Spacing
Posted on Sep 20, 2026 12:51 AM
User level: Level 9 (72,871 points)Sep 20, 2026 4:55 AM in response to lllusion
lllusion wrote:
Apple broke the menu bar in a way that makes it difficult for others to fix. The old terminal commands don't work either.
The Terminal commands that used to alter the spacing no longer work. Apple owns macOS, we just lease it. They can change whatever they want. Although it happens, they don't take away 'regular' settings all that often, meaning those that are accessed via System Settings or another GUI. However, the 'undocumented' features accessed only via the command line are removed more often. Those who don't ever open Terminal (the vast majority of Apple users fall into that category) will never notice the change.
Incidentally, iStat Menus gives me the option of setting the Menu Bar spacing to Compact (my usual) or Standard. I'm running Golden Gate on this Mac, and that setting still applies. So, your statement that, "Apple broke the menu bar in a way that makes it difficult for others to fix," is false. All the menu bar items except the 'fixed' clock and control center are affected by the setting. The system items (Spotlight, Network, Sound, Bluetooth, Passwords, Time Machine) are shifted along with the 3rd party items, and the spacing is even.
Compact spacing on top, Standard spacing on bottom:
I have no idea if the underlying parameters that iStat Menus change are accessible via the command line, but clearly changing the spacing of the default icons is still possible. Reportedly, TinkerTool allows a similar adjustment.
User level: Level 10 (123,805 points)Sep 20, 2026 4:42 AM in response to lllusion
In macOS 27, Apple’s Menu Bar settings let you choose which status items appear, but Apple does not provide a setting for manually adjusting the spacing between menu-bar status items.
Apple describes status menus separately from Control Center and the date and time, which occupy their own areas of the menu bar.
Therefore, a setting that affects status-item spacing should not automatically be assumed to change the positioning or spacing of every element in the menu bar. Apple: Get to know your desktop, menu bar, and Dock
macOS 27 also includes an overflow mechanism that can appear when there is insufficient horizontal space for all menu-bar items.
The available space can be affected by the number and width of status items, third-party menu-bar applications, and the display's effective resolution or scaling.
Apple’s overflow behaviour should therefore be distinguished from manually adjusting the spacing between items. Apple: What’s new for enterprise in macOS 27
Removing unnecessary menu-bar items can create additional available space, but this is not the same as changing the spacing between the remaining items. Apple does not document an Apple-supported control for manually changing that spacing.
Accordingly, the most precise conclusion is: macOS 27 does not provide an Apple-supported setting for manually adjusting the spacing between menu-bar status items. This does not establish that third-party utilities or Terminal commands cannot modify the appearance; those methods would need to be evaluated individually for compatibility with macOS 27.
The statement “Apple broke the menu bar in a way that makes it difficult for others to fix. The old Terminal commands don't work either” is too categorical. The available documentation establishes the new overflow behaviour, but it does not establish that Apple “broke” the menu bar or that previous Terminal commands no longer work. Those conclusions would require separate evidence or testing.
User level: Level 2 (446 points)Sep 20, 2026 1:07 AM in response to lllusion
There is an app called Thaw. It is based on an app called "Ice." The ice does not support updates now, but Thaw is still supported. Ice : https://icemenubar.app/
https://github.com/thaw-app/Thaw
Thaw is an open-source app, and it allows you to change the icon spacing.
It also allows you to hide and show when certain actions are performed, like dragging the cursor and clicking on an icon
Note: There is no stable version for macOS Golden Gate 27, and it will be there in the upcoming days.
User level: Level 1 (24 points)Sep 20, 2026 1:15 AM in response to weeklycod
👍
https://brow-app.com/blog/macos-27-menu-bar
Apple broke the menu bar in a way that makes it difficult for others to fix. The old terminal commands don't work either.
Originally posted at discussions.apple.com/thread/256361020