The short answer. SpotMenu and Tuneful are the general controllers: playback, now-playing and a mini player for Spotify and Apple Music without opening the app. Spotifly is the Spotify-only player with a focus on fast control, and JukeBox is the smallest version — just the current song in the menu bar. Kaset and the two YouTube Music clients are players for a service that has no desktop app, which is a different job: they are the application, not a remote control. LyricsX, Lyrimuse and LyricGlow add synced lyrics, with different ideas of what synced means — line-level, word-level, and a visual effect. Muxie is the scrobbler, which is about recording what you played rather than controlling it. The dividing question is whether the music is playing somewhere else, because a controller assumes a player and a client is the player.
This guide covers 11 menu bar music controllers for macOS. Every fact below is drawn from the same verified records that back each app’s own page. The recommendations are our editorial judgment, not payment.
Quick comparison
| App | What it is | Pricing | Licence | Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JukeBox | media app | Open source | MIT | 0.9.5 |
| Kaset | media app | Open source | MIT | 0.14.1 |
| LyricGlow | media app | Open source | MIT | 0.8.0 |
| LyricsX | media app | Open source | MPL-2.0 | 1.6.3 |
| Lyrimuse | media app | Open source | GPL-3.0 | 1.9.0 |
| Muxie | media app | Free | not published | 2.4.0 |
| Spotifly | media app | Open source | MIT | — |
| SpotMenu | media app | Open source | MIT | 2.3.0 |
| Tuneful | media app | not published | not published | 2.15.1 |
| YouTube Music | media app | Open source | MIT | 3.12.0 |
| YouTube Music Desktop | media app | Open source | GPL-3.0 | 2.0.12 |
What actually decides this
- Controller or player. A controller drives Spotify or Music, which must be running. A client replaces the service’s own app. Installing a controller for a service that has no desktop app produces a menu bar item that controls nothing.
- Which services it speaks to. Spotify and Apple Music have APIs. YouTube Music does not have an official one, which is why its clients are separate applications rather than controllers. The list of supported services is the first thing to check.
- What the lyrics sync is. Line-level sync highlights the current line. Word-level sync highlights the current word. The second is much harder to source and much more impressive when it works, and it is the difference between two apps that both claim synced lyrics.
- Whether it can write back. A scrobbler records what you played to a service. A controller reads and sends commands. A player does both and owns the queue. Mixing these up is how people end up with three menu bar icons and no play button.
- What it costs in the menu bar. A now-playing title plus an artist plus a progress bar is a lot of horizontal space. A compact icon that expands on click is the version that survives contact with a small display.
- Whether it handles the browser. A lot of listening happens in a web player. A lyrics tool that can read the browser tab is more useful than one that only reads a desktop app, and the technique required is different.
Our picks
- SpotMenu — Its record describes Spotify and iTunes in the menu bar, which is the controller case. Choose it when you want Spotify and Apple Music control in the menu bar.
- Tuneful — Its record describes controlling Spotify and Apple Music from the menu bar or a mini player, which is the mini-player case. Choose it when you want a controller with a mini player.
- Spotifly — Its record describes a lightweight Spotify player focused on fast playback control, which is the fast-control case. Choose it when the service is Spotify and speed of control is the point.
- Kaset — Its record describes a native YouTube Music client for macOS, which is the client case. Choose it when you listen to YouTube Music and want a native app.
- LyricsX — Its record describes lyrics for iTunes, Spotify and Vox, which is the lyrics case. Choose it when you want lyrics for Spotify, Music or Vox.
- Lyrimuse — Its record describes word-synced desktop lyrics for several services and the browser, which is the word-sync case. Choose it when you want word-synced lyrics across several services and the browser.
The apps
JukeBox
JukeBox is a media app for macOS. A macOS app to view the currently playing song in the menu bar. It is released under MIT.
What it does. A macOS app to view the currently playing song in the menu bar.
JukeBox is listed with current version 0.9.5.
Full profile and verified facts for JukeBox →
Kaset
Kaset is a media app for macOS. Native YouTube Music client for macOS. It is released under MIT.
What it does. The missing YouTube and YouTube Music macOS app.
Kaset is listed with current version 0.14.1.
Full profile and verified facts for Kaset →
LyricGlow
LyricGlow is a media app for macOS. Synced lyrics player with word-by-word glow effects. It is released under MIT.
What it does. Word-by-word glow synced to playback. 3-line view (previous / current / next). Full lyrics modal with auto-scroll. Click any line to jump there.
LyricGlow is listed with current version 0.8.0.
Full profile and verified facts for LyricGlow →
LyricsX
LyricsX is a media app for macOS. Lyrics for iTunes, Spotify and Vox. It is released under MPL-2.0.
What it does. Work perfectly with your favorite music players. List of supported players. Automatically search & download live lyrics from various lyrics sources. List of supported sources. Display lyrics on desktop and menubar. you can customize font, color and position. Adjust lyrics offset on status menu.
LyricsX is listed with current version 1.6.3.
Full profile and verified facts for LyricsX →
Lyrimuse
Lyrimuse is a media app for macOS. Word-synced desktop lyrics for Apple Music, Spotify, QQ Music, NetEase Cloud Music, Kugou and YouTube Music / Spotify Web in the browser. It is released under GPL-3.0.
Lyrimuse is listed with current version 1.9.0.
Full profile and verified facts for Lyrimuse →
Muxie
Muxie is a media app for macOS. Last.fm scrobbler for Apple Music, Spotify Desktop, iPod Classic, Rockbox devices and some others. It is free.
What it does. Muxie is a macOS Last.fm scrobbler for Apple Music, Spotify Desktop, iPod Classic, Rockbox, and portable players with .scrobbler.log support.
Muxie is listed with current version 2.4.0.
Full profile and verified facts for Muxie →
Spotifly
Spotifly is a media app for macOS. Lightweight Spotify player focused on fast playback control. It is released under MIT.
What it does. Lightweight and fast. Native macOS app built with SwiftUI. A real Spotify Connect device — play here, or drive your phone and speakers from here. Your library: playlists, albums, followed artists and liked songs.
Full profile and verified facts for Spotifly →
SpotMenu
SpotMenu is a media app for macOS. Spotify and iTunes in your menu bar. It is released under MIT.
What it does. Menu Bar Integration — View artist and song title directly in your menu bar. Playback Controls — Hover overlay with play/pause, skip, and album art. Keyboard Shortcuts — Global hotkeys for playback control. Track Liking — Like/unlike tracks via Spotify Web API (Spotify only).
SpotMenu is listed with current version 2.3.0.
Full profile and verified facts for SpotMenu →
Tuneful
Tuneful is a media app for macOS. Controller for Spotify and Apple Music from the menu bar or mini player. Its pricing is not published.
What it does. Tuneful brings notch, menu bar, and mini player controls for Spotify and Apple Music to your Mac. Beautiful, lightweight, and designed from the ground up to feel like a native part of macOS.
Tuneful is listed with current version 2.15.1.
Full profile and verified facts for Tuneful →
YouTube Music
YouTube Music is a media app for macOS. Desktop player for YouTube Music with plugin support. It is released under MIT.
What it does. Pear 🍐 is extension for music player.
YouTube Music is listed with current version 3.12.0.
Full profile and verified facts for YouTube Music →
YouTube Music Desktop
YouTube Music Desktop is a media app for macOS. Free cross platform Desktop Player for YouTube Music. It is released under GPL-3.0.
What it does. An unofficial cross platform desktop app for YouTube Music.
YouTube Music Desktop is listed with current version 2.0.12.
Full profile and verified facts for YouTube Music Desktop →
How to choose
- Free of charge. Muxie — no payment is required.
- No licence fee, source available. JukeBox, Kaset, LyricGlow, LyricsX, Lyrimuse, Spotifly, SpotMenu, YouTube Music and YouTube Music Desktop — the source can be read and, under the terms of each licence, reused.
- Pricing not published in our data. Tuneful — check the developer’s own site before assuming anything about cost.
Open source: JukeBox, Kaset, LyricGlow, LyricsX, Lyrimuse, Spotifly, SpotMenu, YouTube Music and YouTube Music Desktop (9 of 11).
Common mistakes
- Installing a controller for a service that has no desktop player.
- Expecting line-synced lyrics to behave like word-synced ones.
- Putting three now-playing widgets in the menu bar and losing the clock.
- Assuming a scrobbler will also control playback.
How this guide was put together
Each app’s facts come from its own record: the developer’s own pages and repository, the App Store listing where one exists, and the documentation, each with a source grade and an access date. Where a fact rests on the developer’s own statement rather than on something we verified independently, the sentence says so. Where our data has no value for something, the guide says “not published” instead of guessing.
A price appears here only where the record carries one from a stated source; the guide never estimates one, and it records the pricing model alongside so the two can be read together. Prices change and vary by region, so each app links to its own page for the current detail.
The facts and the recommendations are kept apart on purpose. Everything in the app entries, the comparison table and the answers above is composed from the records. The short answer, the criteria and the picks are our editorial judgment: they reflect what we would choose and why, and they are not paid for. Where we make a recommendation we name the condition it applies under, because we do not call anything “the best” without explaining the criteria.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I choose between these menu bar music controllers?
There is no single answer — it depends on what you need. This guide covers 11 menu bar music controllers: JukeBox, Kaset, LyricGlow, LyricsX, Lyrimuse, Muxie, Spotifly, SpotMenu, Tuneful, YouTube Music and YouTube Music Desktop. They differ mainly in pricing model, licence and the trade-offs each one carries. Pick by the trade-off you care about rather than by rank.
Are these menu bar music controllers free?
Pricing across this group: open source (JukeBox, Kaset, LyricGlow, LyricsX, Lyrimuse, Spotifly, SpotMenu, YouTube Music and YouTube Music Desktop), free (Muxie) and not published (Tuneful). Where we list pricing as not published, the developer does not state a model we could verify — check their own site before assuming anything about cost. We quote a price only where the record carries one from a stated source, and we never estimate one. Prices change and vary by region and by store, so always check the developer’s own page for the current figure.
Which of these menu bar music controllers are open source?
JukeBox (MIT), Kaset (MIT), LyricGlow (MIT), LyricsX (MPL-2.0), Lyrimuse (GPL-3.0), Spotifly (MIT), SpotMenu (MIT), YouTube Music (MIT) and YouTube Music Desktop (GPL-3.0) are open source.
Do these menu bar music controllers support Apple Silicon?
Our data does not carry an explicit Apple Silicon statement for any app in this group, so we do not claim one. The absence of a statement is not the same as the absence of support.
How do I choose between them?
Start with how you pay: the guide groups these apps by pricing model, because the budget is the constraint most people actually have. Then check the trade-offs listed for each app: the limitations are the part that decides most people’s choice, because they describe what the app will not do for you.
