About PaceBar

The person and the principles behind the app

PaceBar is made by Charbel Rami, an independent developer.

PaceBar started from a simple observation: modern work, especially work that runs several threads in parallel with AI tools, makes it easy to push harder than intended without noticing. The signals are there, in how often you switch contexts and how long you stay locked in, but nothing quiet was surfacing them.

PaceBar is the answer: a small macOS menu bar app that reads only the timing of interaction events through standard, unprivileged macOS APIs, models your working rhythm locally, and shows a simple pace score. When a session gets heavy, it nudges you to step away briefly. When you have headroom, it stays out of the way.

Principles

• Local by design: everything is computed on your Mac. No accounts, no telemetry, no cloud processing.
• Quiet by default: a glanceable readout and small prompts, not dashboards and streaks.
• Minimal access: no Accessibility or Screen Recording permission, and never the contents of what you type or see.

Facts

• Developer: Charbel Rami
• Product: PaceBar for macOS 15 or later
• Price: $7.99 one-time purchase on the Mac App Store
• Support: support@pacebar.app
• Website: https://pacebar.app