What is Claude Pulse?

Claude Pulse is a free macOS app that lives in your MacBook notch. It monitors every Claude Code session running on your Mac and lets you approve tool calls, handle permission prompts, and track usage in two seconds — without switching away from what you're doing.

Is Claude Pulse free?

Yes, completely free. No subscription, no trial, no account. Download the DMG, drag to Applications, launch.

How is Claude Pulse different from other Claude Code notch apps?

Three things. Safety-aware batch approval: rm -rf, DROP TABLE, and force-push always require manual confirmation even in batch mode. Focus-aware expansion: identity is captured at the hook source inside the terminal tab, so the notch bounces instead of expanding when you're already looking at the session. And live Anthropic usage with no second login — Claude Pulse reads the Claude CLI's existing Keychain credentials.

Which terminals does Claude Pulse support?

Ghostty, iTerm2, Terminal.app, WezTerm, Kitty, Warp, Alacritty, Hyper, and Tabby. tmux is supported directly — approvals are routed to the right pane by PID or working directory.

What macOS version do I need?

macOS 15 (Sequoia) or later, on a MacBook with a notch (2021 MacBook Pro or newer). Apple Silicon required.

Does Claude Pulse send my session data to the cloud?

No. Claude Pulse runs entirely on your local machine. Session data, tool approval history, and configuration never leave your device. Plan usage data is read from the Claude CLI's existing Keychain credentials — Claude Pulse is a read-only consumer; it doesn't talk to Anthropic itself.

Does Claude Pulse work with Docker, Lima, or remote containers?

No. The Claude Code hook socket lives on the host filesystem and isn't reachable from inside a container namespace, so Claude Code sessions launched inside Docker, Lima, distrobox, or similar will not appear in Claude Pulse. Native host sessions and tmux are fully supported.

How do I install Claude Pulse?

Download the notarized DMG from claudepulse.app/download, drag Claude Pulse to Applications, and launch it. On first run, grant Accessibility and Automation permissions in System Settings. Setup takes about 30 seconds.

Blog — Claude Pulse

Blog

From the workshop.

Thoughts on Claude Code workflows, multi-session productivity, and building developer tools that stay out of your way.

May 22, 20265 min read

Claude Code on tmux: How to Manage Sessions Across Panes

Running Claude Code in tmux means juggling approvals across panes you can't see. Here's why standard notification approaches break down — and how Claude Pulse routes approvals to the right pane by PID.

claude-codetmuxterminalworkflowmulti-session

April 22, 20266 min read

How Claude Pulse Tracks Your Claude Usage Without Making You Log In Again

The first prototype had a login button. I tore it out. Here's why Claude Pulse reads the CLI's existing Keychain credentials instead of asking you to authenticate twice.

claude-pulseclaude-codeusage-trackingmacoskeychaindesign

April 14, 20265 min read

Managing Multiple Claude Code Sessions Without Losing Your Mind

Running 3-6 Claude Code sessions? Here's how the context-switching tax kills your flow and what you can do about it.

claude-codeworkflowproductivitymulti-session

April 12, 20265 min read

The Hidden Cost of Missed Claude Code Approvals

Every missed approval costs ~10 minutes. With multiple sessions, that's hours per day. Here's the math and how safety-aware batch approval fixes it.

claude-codeapprovalstool-callssafetypermissions

April 10, 20266 min read

Why We Built Claude Pulse: A MacBook Notch App for Claude Code

The MacBook notch is the most underused screen real estate on your computer. We turned it into a control center for Claude Code.

claude-pulsemacosnotch-appdeveloper-toolsdesign