Browse the docs
DocsThe desktop appFor everyone

Install on macOS

Download the signed, notarized Cadence app, drag it into Applications, and grant the one permission it needs to track window titles.

The macOS build of Cadence is a native app, signed and notarized by Apple, so it installs and opens like any other Mac application. There is one permission to grant on first run -- we walk through it below.

  1. Download the app
    Open the downloads page and choose the macOS build. You will get a disk image (a .dmg file) served straight from our releases.
  2. Drag Cadence into Applications
    Open the downloaded image and drag the Cadence icon onto the Applications folder shown beside it. Then eject the image. This is the whole install.
  3. Open it for the first time
    Launch Cadence from Applications or Spotlight. Because the app is signed and notarized, macOS opens it normally. You should not see a “cannot be opened” block.

The Screen Recording permission

Cadence groups your day by what you were actually working in, which means reading the title of the window in front of you (the document, the site, the project). On macOS the window title sits behind the Screen Recording permission, so Cadence asks for it the first time it needs to read titles. Cadence does not capture, store, or transmit your screen: it only reads the title text. See what Cadence tracks for the full picture.

  1. Open the permission settings
    When Cadence prompts you, choose to open System Settings. Otherwise go to System Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Screen Recording.
  2. Turn Cadence on
    Find Cadence in the list and switch it on. macOS may ask you to confirm with your password or Touch ID.
  3. Restart Cadence
    macOS only applies a newly granted Screen Recording permission after the app restarts. Quit Cadence fully and open it again, and window titles will start coming through.
Without this permission, titles are blank
If you skip it, Cadence still tracks how long apps are in front, but the per-window detail that makes entries useful will be empty. If titles stay blank after granting it, check you restarted the app, then see syncing and tracking.
Gatekeeper
Because the app is notarized, Gatekeeper lets it run without the usual right-click “Open” dance. If a future build is ever flagged, right-click Cadence in Applications and choose Open once to confirm it. You only do this the first time.

Installed? Next, sign in with the account you created in the app.