macOS 15.0+ · One payment, no subscription
Every setting your displays have. In one menu.
Brightness, colour, resolution and refresh rate for the built-in screen and for external monitors. Including the monitors macOS gives you no slider for.
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Requires macOS 15 or later. Apple Silicon and Intel.
The reason most people look for this
macOS shows no brightness slider for your monitor. DisplayHud does.
Open System Settings on a Mac with an external monitor and the brightness slider is usually missing. macOS shows it only for displays it can address itself, and for most third-party monitors that means not at all. Your monitor can do it, though: the buttons on its back set the backlight, and they use a channel called DDC/CI that runs through the same cable as the picture.
DisplayHud talks over that channel. The slider in the menu bar moves the real backlight instead of laying a grey veil over the picture. If a monitor stays silent, the app says so and falls back to dimming the image, which is the only thing left at that point.
OLED protection, live
It dims when nothing happens. Not when you are watching.
After a while without input, DisplayHud takes the picture down gradually, over the gamma curve. That is why it never shows up in a screenshot or a recording. Any key or any movement brings it straight back.
- Only on the displays you switch it on for.
- Never to black: the lowest setting still leaves a readable picture.
- Gradually rather than in one step, because a jump is what makes dimming feel broken.
- Any input brings the brightness straight back.
What it does
Seven features built natively for macOS.
Feature 1 of 7
OLED protection
Dims the screen gradually after a while without input, over the gamma curve. That is why it never shows up in screenshots or recordings. You switch it on per display. Everything it cannot do is listed further down.
Feature 2 of 7
Brightness everywhere
Per display, including external monitors over DDC/CI. All screens on the same value if you want that. Below the system minimum it uses the gamma curve, with no black window sitting on top of everything.
Feature 3 of 7
HDR: what the display can really do
Shows the measured EDR peak brightness of your display instead of the number from the spec sheet. HDR itself can only be switched in System Settings. DisplayHud gives you a button that takes you there and does not claim it can do it.
Feature 4 of 7
Colour
Colour temperature through the gamma curve and contrast over DDC/CI, per display. You only get the contrast slider on monitors that answer contrast commands.
Feature 5 of 7
Resolution and refresh rate
Including the modes macOS hides, with a warning on anything a monitor reports but cannot display cleanly. After every change you have fifteen seconds to confirm. See nothing? The app switches back on its own.
Feature 6 of 7
Profiles
Named sets, switched by keyboard shortcut, time of day, active app, or which displays are connected.
Feature 7 of 7
Keyboard shortcuts, without a blanket permission
Brightness, colour and profiles from the keyboard, for the display under the pointer. Each combination is registered with the system on its own, so DisplayHud never gets to see anything else you type and needs no Accessibility permission.
Questions
Is this a subscription?
No. One payment, and the version you bought keeps working.
How many Macs does a licence cover?
As many as you buy it for: one, two or three. You can free a Mac up again at any time by choosing “Remove licence” on it.
Does it work without an internet connection?
Yes. The licence is checked when you activate it and occasionally afterwards. If the server cannot be reached, DisplayHud keeps working for a week before it asks again.
Why is it not in the Mac App Store?
Controlling external monitors needs interfaces the App Store does not allow. DisplayHud is notarised by Apple and updates itself.
Which monitors work over DDC/CI?
Most external monitors connected over HDMI, DisplayPort or USB-C. The app asks your monitor and shows you the answer. If it stays silent, the app dims the image instead. If your monitor unexpectedly doesn't respond, our support is happy to help.
My monitor has a DDC/CI switch. Does it matter?
Yes. Some monitors ship with DDC/CI turned off, and on some gaming monitors the switch can only be changed while variable refresh rate (Adaptive Sync, FreeSync) is off. Turn VRR off, enable DDC/CI, then turn VRR back on. We measured this on an ASUS ROG Strix OLED: brightness control and Adaptive Sync then work at the same time.
Every setting your displays have. In one menu.
Requires macOS 15 or later. Apple Silicon and Intel.
Buy