---
title: "How to Track Your Day's Progress on a Mac: Menu Bar Apps and Dock Timers"
url: https://moorapp.com/blog/time-progress-widget-mac-dock
publisher: Moor by Bayou Applications LLC (https://moorapp.com/)
published: 2026-11-02
updated: 2026-11-02
---

# How to Track Your Day's Progress on a Mac: Menu Bar Apps and Dock Timers

Apple's widget help covers widgets on the desktop and in Notification Center, not in the Dock. Moor's widgets include time progress, which shows how much of the day has passed (for example "Day 54%"). With Moor's Mast part it can sit in the menu bar as a one-line value, while Clock, Countdown and Focus Timer go in a Moor dock. Menu bar apps like Day Progress, YearBar and Progress Bar are alternatives.

## What macOS gives you for day progress

A clock tells you it's 2:40. A progress bar tells you more than half your day is already gone. That second number is the useful one when you're pacing a long task or a launch, or just trying to get through the afternoon's list.

Apple's widget help describes two places for widgets on a Mac: the desktop and Notification Center. On the desktop, you can [click a widget in the gallery or drag it anywhere you like](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/add-and-customize-widgets-mchl52be5da5/mac). For Notification Center, you [click Edit Widgets at the bottom of Notification Center and add widgets from there](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/add-and-customize-widgets-mchl52be5da5/mac). That page doesn't describe putting widgets in the Dock.

So the practical answer comes in two parts:

- **For how much of the day has passed**, use Moor's time progress widget, which shows a value like "Day 54%" and can sit in the menu bar as a one-line value through Mast. If you'd rather use a dedicated app, or want week, month or year progress, a menu bar app built for that job works too.
- **For time cues in the dock**, put a clock, a countdown and a focus timer in a Moor dock, next to your apps.

Plenty of people use both together.

## Option 1: a dedicated progress app in the menu bar

These apps sit in the menu bar, not the Dock, and each does one job. The sources below come from different years, so the date of each is noted.

| App | What it shows | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Day Progress | The day, as a [pie chart or progress bar, with a percentage or the hours and minutes left](https://9to5mac.com/2023/06/20/day-progress-mac-app/) (9to5Mac, 2023) | The developer's page (2024) describes [custom start and end times for each day, even past midnight](https://sindresorhus.com/day-progress). The third-party download site Softpedia lists [version 2.1.1, updated May 29, 2026, for macOS 26.0 or later](https://mac.softpedia.com/get/Utilities/Day-Progress.shtml) |
| YearBar | [Year, month and week progress](https://yearbar.sahiwl.me/) | [No Dock icon or window, Launch at Login, needs macOS 13 or later](https://yearbar.sahiwl.me/) |
| Progress Bar | [Life, year, month and day progress](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/progress-bar/id1441939775?mt=12) | The Mac App Store listing (2019) says it was [inspired by the @year_progress tweets](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/progress-bar/id1441939775?mt=12) |

The apps differ by period. Day Progress focuses on the day, and its developer's page says you can set your own hours instead of midnight to midnight. YearBar and Progress Bar cover weeks, months and years. Because these details come from articles and pages of different ages, check each app's own page for current settings and macOS 26 support before you install.

One distinction to keep in mind: Day Progress's own FAQ calls it [a general day progress indicator, not a task timer](https://sindresorhus.com/day-progress), and points people to Pomodoro apps for timing sessions. That's a good way to split the jobs in your setup too.

## Option 2: time widgets in a Moor dock

Moor is a Dock replacement for macOS 26 (Tahoe) or later on Apple silicon, and its docks can hold live widgets. Its time widgets include time progress, which shows how much of the day has passed (for example "Day 54%"), plus the rest of pacing: the time now, how long until a deadline, and how long this work session has left.

1. Press **Control-Option-E**, or choose **Edit Docks** from Moor's menu bar icon (the little boat). The icons wiggle, a toolbar appears and the **Add to your docks** panel opens.
2. Click **Widgets** at the top of the panel to show only widgets. Each one comes with a live picture.
3. Type a widget's name in the search field, such as "Clock", "Countdown" or "Focus Timer".
4. Click a widget to add it to the dock you touched last, or drag it into any dock and drop it where you want it.
5. If a widget shows **Set Up**, click it and make the choice it asks for.
6. Drag the widgets along the dock until they sit together, then press **Done** (or Control-Option-E again).

| Widget | What it answers | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Time progress | How much of the day has passed? | Pacing a long day at a glance |
| Clock | What time is it? | Everyone, especially if you hide the menu bar clock |
| Countdown | How long until a set moment? | Launches, deadlines, a sale ending |
| Focus Timer | How long is this session? | Working in short blocks |
| World Clock | What time is it for them? | Remote teams and overseas customers |

To change a widget later, open **Settings → Docks**, pick the dock and select it under **Items**. Remove one by mistake and **Command-Z** or **Put back** returns it to its old spot with its settings. The [Widgets docs](/docs/widgets/) cover how widgets behave: a click does the widget's job, and the details are one chevron away. For more on these widgets, see [adding a focus timer, countdown and world clock to your dock](/blog/mac-dock-countdown-timer-widget) and [showing your next meeting in the dock](/blog/join-meeting-from-mac-dock).

### Keep the time widgets together

- **Use a Divider.** Add a **Divider** from the **Tiles** section of the panel to separate your time widgets from your apps.
- **Try the Islands theme.** Islands splits the dock into separate pods at each divider, so your time widgets get their own island.
- **Tune the text.** In **Settings → Themes**, pick a theme, choose **Duplicate to Edit** and change **Widget text size** (75 to 150%) if the numbers are hard to read.

## Put it all where your eyes already go

The menu bar and the dock widgets work well together. A few ways to arrange them:

- **Time progress in the menu bar.** Turn on Moor's **Mast** part in **Settings → Parts**, then choose **Add Widget to the Menu Bar**. The time, clocks, timers, the focus timer and time progress show as a one-line live value, such as "Day 54%". Click one to open the full widget.
- **Keep a progress app visible.** If you use a third-party progress app instead, note that Mast hides menu bar icons left of its divider. Hold Command and drag the app to the right of the divider so it stays in view.
- **A clock your way.** With **Moor Bar** on, the **Clock** section takes a preset or any date pattern, such as Fri 15 Jan 9:41, in the Leading, Centre or Trailing zone.
- **On the desktop.** **Deck** puts Moor's widgets on the desktop at full size, under every window. Choose **Add Widget…** in **Settings → Deck**.

On a single laptop screen, a good split is the day's progress in the menu bar and the clock and countdown in the dock. With several displays, give a side dock the time widgets and keep the main dock for apps. Moor docks go on any edge of any display.

## Tips and limits

- **On a crowded dock, widgets shrink.** If your pinned items are still too wide once icons reach their smallest normal size, widgets step down from extra wide to wide to icon size. See [what happens when the dock is full](/docs/full-dock/).
- **Keep pacing for work hours.** If you want the timers only during work, save two profiles: one dock setup with the countdown and focus timer, and one without (see the [Profiles docs](/docs/profiles/)). Once they're saved, Control-Option-1 to 9 switches between them.
- **Apple's widgets stay Apple's.** Desktop widgets from macOS keep their settings in [System Settings → Desktop & Dock → Widgets](https://setapp.com/how-to/widgets-on-mac), including [Dim widgets on desktop](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/add-and-customize-widgets-mchl52be5da5/mac). Moor doesn't change them.
- **Check macOS 26 support before you install a third-party app.** For Day Progress, Softpedia lists a [2026 build that runs on macOS 26.0 or later](https://mac.softpedia.com/get/Utilities/Day-Progress.shtml). It's a third-party listing, and the developer's page cited here doesn't confirm Tahoe support, so check there first. For YearBar and Progress Bar, the sources here don't confirm macOS 26 support, and the Progress Bar listing dates from 2019, so check each app's own page first.

## Next steps

- Turn on Mast in **Settings → Parts** and add time progress to your menu bar.
- Press Control-Option-E and put a Clock, Countdown and Focus Timer side by side in your dock.
- Read the [Widgets docs](/docs/widgets/) to see everything else a dock can show.

Moor has a free 14-day trial at [moorapp.com](https://moorapp.com/).

## Common questions

### Can Apple's Dock show how much of my day has passed?

Apple's widget help describes two places for widgets on a Mac, the desktop and Notification Center, and doesn't describe widgets in the Dock. Moor's widgets include time progress, which shows how much of the day has passed (for example "Day 54%"), and Moor's Mast part can show it in the menu bar as a one-line value. Menu bar apps such as Day Progress, YearBar or Progress Bar are alternatives.

### Which menu bar app shows week or year progress?

YearBar shows how much of the year, month and week has passed. It has no Dock icon or window and needs macOS 13 or later. Progress Bar's Mac App Store listing, from 2019, describes life, year, month and day progress. Day Progress sticks to the day, with a pie chart or progress bar and either a percentage or the time left, per a 2023 9to5Mac article.

### Does Day Progress work on macOS 26 Tahoe?

According to Softpedia, a third-party download site, Day Progress version 2.1.1, updated May 29, 2026, runs on macOS 26.0 or later. The developer's page cited here doesn't confirm Tahoe support, so check it before installing. For YearBar and Progress Bar, the sources used for this guide don't confirm macOS 26 support, so check each app's own page or App Store listing first.

### Do day progress apps support custom work hours?

Some do. The Day Progress developer's page by Sindre Sorhus describes setting the start and end of each day separately, even an end time past midnight like 2 AM, and chaining several time ranges one after another. That page dates from 2024, so confirm the current version still works this way. Its FAQ notes it's a progress indicator, not a task timer.

### What's the difference between day progress and a countdown widget?

A countdown counts down to one moment you set, like a launch or a deadline. A day progress indicator shows how much of the day has already passed, so it works as a general pacing cue. Put day progress in the menu bar, through Moor's time progress widget or a dedicated app, and Moor's Countdown widget in the dock for the deadline.

## Sources

1. [Add and customize widgets on Mac - Apple Support](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/add-and-customize-widgets-mchl52be5da5/mac)
2. [How to add widgets on Mac: 2026 Guide - Setapp](https://setapp.com/how-to/widgets-on-mac)
3. [Day Progress - Sindre Sorhus](https://sindresorhus.com/day-progress)
4. [This Mac app lets you keep track of your day's progress - 9to5Mac](https://9to5mac.com/2023/06/20/day-progress-mac-app/)
5. [Day Progress - Download (Mac) - Softpedia](https://mac.softpedia.com/get/Utilities/Day-Progress.shtml)
6. [YearBar - Know where your time went](https://yearbar.sahiwl.me/)
7. [Progress Bar on the Mac App Store](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/progress-bar/id1441939775?mt=12)