How to Install and Set Up MeetingBar on macOS

Updated

MeetingBar is a free, open-source macOS menu bar app that shows your upcoming meetings and lets you join them with one click, across 50+ meeting services like Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams. You can install it either through Homebrew with brew install meetingbar or from the App Store, then grant it calendar access so it can read your events. Setup is designed to be quick, but the app is only as useful as the calendar you connect it to — if your meetings aren't on a calendar macOS can read, MeetingBar won't see them.

Before you start

  • A Mac running macOS. MeetingBar is a macOS-only app; there is no Windows, Linux, iOS, or web version.
  • A calendar with your meetings on it. MeetingBar works with your calendar, so the events need to exist there first. The site lists "Work with all calendars" as a feature, which in practice means calendars you've added to macOS (iCloud, Google, Exchange, and so on).
  • A meeting link in the event. One-click joining depends on the event containing a recognized meeting URL. MeetingBar supports 50+ meeting services, so most common conferencing links are detected.
  • A way to install it: Homebrew, or the Mac App Store.

Install MeetingBar

Option 1: Homebrew (command line)

If you use Homebrew, the site gives the install command directly:

brew install meetingbar

Run that in Terminal. Homebrew downloads the app and links it into your Applications, after which you can launch it like any other app. This is the fastest path if you already manage software with Homebrew.

Option 2: Mac App Store

MeetingBar is also distributed through the App Store, where the site reports a 4.9 rating. Search for "MeetingBar" in the App Store and install it the normal way. This route handles updates through the App Store rather than Homebrew.

Either way, you end up with the same app: a menu bar item rather than a full window.

Set it up

  1. Launch MeetingBar. It appears in the macOS menu bar, not as a Dock window. That's expected — the whole point is that it stays out of the way.
  2. Grant calendar access when prompted. MeetingBar needs permission to read your calendar; without it, the app has nothing to display. macOS will show a permission dialog the first time. If you dismiss it, you can re-enable access later in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Calendars.
  3. Check that your meetings appear. Click the menu bar icon. Your upcoming events should be listed. If the list is empty, the problem is almost always calendar access or the wrong calendar being selected — not the app itself.
  4. Adjust preferences as needed. The site describes "powerful preferences," so this is where you tune behavior to your workflow — for example which calendars to show and how meetings are presented. Open the preferences from the menu bar item and work through the options that matter to you.
  5. Join a meeting with one click. When an upcoming event has a supported meeting link, clicking it in MeetingBar opens the meeting directly, without switching between apps or hunting for the link in your calendar.

Verify it's working

  • The menu bar icon shows your next meeting rather than an empty state.
  • Clicking a meeting with a Zoom/Meet/Teams link opens that meeting in the right app or browser.
  • Creating a meeting from MeetingBar works if you use that feature — the site lists "Join and create meetings in one click."

If meetings don't show up, recheck calendar permissions first, then confirm the events are on a calendar macOS is actually syncing.

Common snags

  • Nothing in the list: calendar permission was denied, or the calendar holding the events isn't enabled in macOS. Fix permissions in System Settings, then relaunch.
  • A meeting won't one-click join: the event may lack a recognized meeting URL, or use a service outside the supported set. You can still open the event and join manually.
  • You expected a window: MeetingBar lives in the menu bar by design. Look at the top-right of the screen, not the Dock.

What it costs and what it does with your data

MeetingBar is described as fully free and open-source, with source available on GitHub (5K stars). The site states it does not store user data. Optional support is available via Patreon, Buy Me a Coffee, or App Store in-app purchases — these are ways to support the project, not requirements to use it. The site reports 500K+ installations.

If you hit problems, the site points to a contact form with email and message fields, plus GitHub for source and issues.