Sticky notes on multiple monitors on a Mac
Updated 4 September 2026 · 6 minute read
The built-in Stickies app cannot show one note on two monitors at once, because a Stickies note is an ordinary macOS window and a window exists on exactly one display. Your four options are: mirror your displays, keep a duplicate note on each screen, drag the note across when you need it, or use a notes app that opens from the menu bar — macOS draws the menu bar on every connected display, so a menu bar note is one click away from any screen. Perch takes the last approach and opens the note on whichever display your cursor is on.
Why does my Mac sticky note only appear on one screen?
Because a sticky note in Apple Stickies is a window, and macOS windows belong to exactly one display and one desktop Space. That is not a bug or a missing preference — it is the same rule that applies to a Finder window or a Safari window. Consequences on a two- or three-monitor desk:
- Drag the note to the ultrawide, and it is no longer on the laptop screen.
- Switch Spaces on that display and the note stays behind on the other Space.
- Open anything fullscreen and the note is covered until you leave fullscreen.
- Unplug a monitor and macOS shuffles the note onto a remaining screen, usually not where you wanted it.
Nothing is lost — bringing Stickies to the front will show every note again — but "where did I leave that note?" becomes a small tax you pay several times a day.
Option 1: Mirror your displays
If your monitors are mirrored (System Settings › Displays, then set the second display to mirror the first), every screen shows the same desktop, so the same sticky note appears on all of them. This genuinely works and costs nothing.
It also throws away the reason you bought a second monitor — mirrored screens give you one desktop's worth of space, not two. Useful for a presentation setup, not for a working desk.
Option 2: Keep a duplicate note on each monitor
Make one Stickies note per display and drag each to the screen it belongs to. For information that never changes — a Wi-Fi password, a phone extension, a checklist — this is perfectly serviceable.
The failure mode is anything you edit: two copies drift apart within a day, and you end up trusting neither. There is no sync between Stickies notes.
Does "Assign to All Desktops" put Stickies on every monitor?
No, and this is the most common wrong turn. Right-clicking Stickies in the Dock and choosing Options › Assign To › All Desktops makes its windows follow you between desktop Spaces. Spaces and displays are different things: this helps if you swipe between Spaces on the same monitor, and does nothing at all about the monitor sitting next to it.
Two related settings worth knowing about, both in System Settings › Desktop & Dock:
- Displays have separate Spaces — on by default. Turn it off and macOS treats your screens as one big desktop; the menu bar then appears only on the main display, and fullscreen apps black out the others. It changes how notes behave, but it does not duplicate a note across screens.
- Stickies' own Window menu has a float-on-top option, which keeps a note above ordinary windows — but still only on its own display, and still not over a fullscreen app.
Option 3: Use a menu bar notes app
The menu bar is the one piece of interface macOS repeats on every connected display. A note that lives behind a menu bar icon is therefore reachable from any screen, without moving a window anywhere, and stays reachable while a fullscreen app is in front.
This is what Perch is built on. Click the menu bar icon on any display, or press ⌥ Space, and the panel opens right there — on the screen your cursor is on — showing the same note at the same scroll position you left it at. Per note, you can choose:
- Follow me (the default) — the note opens wherever you are.
- Pin to a display — the note only appears on the screen you assigned it to, so the grocery list stays on the big monitor and the standup notes stay on the laptop.
Perch is free to download with a 3-day full trial, then keeps 3 notes free or unlocks unlimited notes for $9.99 once. It has no iCloud sync, no iPhone app and no images in notes — if you need any of those, see the roundup of Mac sticky notes apps, where Noticky and Tot both sync.
Option 4: Park an always-on-top note window on a second monitor
Sometimes you don't want a note on demand — you want it permanently visible on the second screen while you work on the first. That needs a floating, always-on-top window rather than a desktop window that other apps can cover.
In Perch this is the pop-out note: open a note, pop it out into its own resizable window, drag it to the monitor you want, and it stays above other windows there. Pop-out windows are part of the paid unlock. Noticky and SideNotes offer their own versions of an always-visible notes window if you'd rather compare.
The four approaches, compared
| Approach | Same note on every display? | Survives fullscreen? | Cost | Catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mirror displays | Yes | No | Free | You lose the second desktop entirely |
| Duplicate notes in Stickies | A copy on each | No | Free | Copies drift out of sync |
| Drag the window across | No | No | Free | Manual, every time |
| Menu bar notes app | Yes — one click on any screen | Yes | $5–$20 one-time, varies | Nothing on screen until you click |
Frequently asked questions
Can Mac sticky notes show on all monitors at once?
Not with the built-in Stickies app. A Stickies note is an ordinary window, and a macOS window exists on exactly one display at a time, so the same note cannot appear on two monitors simultaneously unless you mirror the displays. The workarounds are to mirror your screens, to keep a duplicate note on each display, or to use a menu bar notes app such as Perch, which opens the note on whichever display your cursor is on because macOS draws the menu bar on every connected display.
Why does my Mac sticky note only appear on one screen?
Because a sticky note in Apple Stickies is a window. On macOS, every window belongs to one display and one desktop Space. Moving to another monitor, switching Spaces, or opening a fullscreen app leaves the note behind on the screen where you dropped it. The note is not lost — bringing the Stickies app to the front will show it again on its own display.
How do I make a note visible on every display on a Mac?
Use a notes app that opens from the menu bar rather than one that leaves windows on the desktop, because macOS draws the menu bar across the top of every connected display. Perch does this: clicking its menu bar icon, or pressing ⌥ Space, opens your notes on the display the cursor is currently on. The alternative is to mirror your displays in System Settings, which shows the same desktop, and therefore the same note, on every screen.
Does "Assign to All Desktops" make Stickies appear on all monitors?
No. Right-clicking Stickies in the Dock and choosing Options › All Desktops makes its windows follow you between desktop Spaces on the display they are on. It does not copy a note onto other monitors — Spaces and displays are different things in macOS.
Can I keep a different note on each monitor on a Mac?
Yes. With Apple Stickies you simply drag each note window to the screen you want it on and leave it there, though it will be hidden by fullscreen apps. Perch supports this directly: each note can be set to follow the cursor between displays or pinned to one specific display, and paid users can pop a note out into a resizable always-on-top window parked on a second monitor.
Do sticky notes survive fullscreen apps on a second monitor?
A Stickies note does not: a fullscreen app takes over its Space and covers ordinary desktop windows. Notes opened from the menu bar do, because the menu bar remains reachable while a fullscreen app is in front. Perch's pop-out note windows are always-on-top, so they stay visible above other windows too.