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YellowDot

Hide the macOS yellow recording dot
For macOS 12.2+ try RecordingIndicatorUtility
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Hide that pesky yellow dot

As long as the YellowDot app is running, the corner dot will always be hidden.
The menubar icon allows you to Pause hiding, Quit the app, and even Hide the menubar icon itself.

How it works?

YellowDot works by searching for the dot on the screen, and then moving it off screen where it's not visible anymore. This action is done every second to keep the dot hidden at all times.

But why?

The yellow dot is useful in letting you know if an app is using the microphone without your permission, or if you forgot an app open that's still recording.
But when you're already familiar with all the apps that use the microphone, it turns into an annoyance.
screenshot of yellow dot in the corner of the screen with an arrow pointing at it

FAQ

Does it work on macOS 12.2+?

Since macOS 12.2, the dot is no longer a simple window that can be moved away.

Removing the dot in 12.2 and later requires altering system files, which YellowDot doesn't do.

Tyshawn Cormier came up with a very clever solution for this in his RecordingIndicatorUtility app. Check it out if you still want to hide the dot!

How do I quit YellowDot?

  • Click on the menubar icon (or launch YellowDot again if the icon is hidden)
  • Click on the Quit button

Why would I want to hide the yellow dot?

The idea came from this HackerNews thread: Apple added an orange dot that’s a showstopper for live visuals

When projecting live visuals, you might want to make the screen background black to give the impression of floating effects. The yellow dot in the corner breaks that illusion.

The user Sydney San Martin posted a command-line implementation in that thread called undot and I decided to make an easy to use app for it.