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Actions#

Actions are what ExtraBar executes when you click an item or press its shortcut. Every app in your bar has a menu of actions — open, quit, run a script, open a deep link, and more.

Adding an action#

  1. Open ExtraBar and click Manage on a preset
  2. Click the app settings icon (⚙) on any item
  3. Click + Add to open the Action Library
  4. Choose an action type

The library has three sections: app-specific actions (when the app has a built-in preset), Special Items (a Divider or a Folder submenu), and All Actions. Use the search field to filter them.

When you add an app that has a built-in preset, its menu starts with that preset's actions. Apps without one start with Open Application, New Window, and Quit Application; folders start with Open Folder, Show in Finder, Open in Terminal, and Duplicate Folder. The app-specific section of the library then offers the preset's deep links and other configurable actions, and IDEs such as VS Code, Cursor, Zed, Xcode, Nova, Sublime Text, Android Studio, and the JetBrains apps also get an Open with IDE action.

Action types#

ExtraBar provides 18 action types. Here is every action and what it does. Fifteen of them are offered in the library's All Actions section; New Window and Duplicate come with the default app and folder menus, and API Call is available to connected AI assistants and in imported configurations.

Basic

  • Open — Opens the application or folder.
  • Quit — Quits the running application. Only available for apps.
  • Force Quit — Force quits the application. Use when an app is unresponsive.
  • Show in Finder — Reveals the item in Finder.
  • Copy Path — Copies the file path to the clipboard.

Window Management

  • New Window — Opens a new window for the application on your current Space. ExtraBar presses the app's own File → New Window menu item when Accessibility access is granted, and falls back to scripting otherwise. The app is brought forward only once the new window has appeared on the current Space, so ExtraBar never switches you to another Space.
  • Hide — Hides the running application.
  • Show — Shows a previously hidden application.
  • Close All Windows — Closes all windows but keeps the app running.

Open With

  • Open Item With — Opens the item with a specific application. Choose the target app with Browse Applications.
  • Open Using App — Opens a specific file or folder using this application. Pick the target with the Folder or File button. Useful for IDEs — for example, open a project folder with VS Code.
  • Open In Terminal — Opens the folder in Terminal. Works with folders and applications (opens the app's parent directory).

Deep Links

  • Deep Link — Opens a deep link URL in the target application. Enter a template URL with {placeholders} and click Detect Parameters to list them. Fill in default values, or leave a value empty to be prompted for it when the action runs. See the Deep Links section for details on supported apps and URL formats.

Automation

  • Run Script — Executes a custom script on your Mac, independently of the app the menu belongs to. Supports AppleScript, shell scripts, and any installed interpreter such as Python or Node.js. You can provide a script file or write the script inline. Configure the language, shell environment, source, arguments, and output window. See Scripts.
  • API Call — Sends an HTTP request. Configure the URL, the method (GET, POST, PUT, or DELETE), and optional JSON headers and body.
  • Run Shortcut — Runs a macOS Shortcut. Click Load Shortcuts to list the shortcuts on your Mac, then search and pick one.
  • Keyboard Shortcut — Simulates pressing a keyboard shortcut in the target application. Configure the key (a character or a named key such as space, return, or f1), the modifiers (⌘, ⇧, ⌥, ⌃, fn), and Restore App Focus, which returns focus to the app you were using before the shortcut is sent.

File Operations

  • Duplicate — Duplicates the file or folder.

Which actions are available#

Not every action works with every item type:

  • Apps — All actions are available
  • Folders — Everything except the app-only actions: Quit, Force Quit, Hide, Show, Close All Windows, and New Window
  • Widgets — Actions depend on the widget type

Some actions require parameters before they can run. The Action Library marks these and guides you through configuration.

Editing the menu#

Each action row in the menu editor has buttons to hide it from the menu (it stays in the configuration), duplicate it, configure it, or remove it. The More options menu and the row's right-click menu add:

  • Set as Primary Click — Clicking the bar item runs this action directly instead of opening its menu. Only one visible action can be primary; choose Clear Primary Click to go back to the menu.
  • Copy to Bar/Folder — Copy the action to another app, folder, or widget
  • Copy Action Deep Link — Copy an extrabar:// link that triggers the action

Use Select mode to move, copy, or delete several items at once. The toolbar also offers Export Configuration and Import Configuration for a single app's menu — see Presets.

Menu search#

Menus with many actions can be made searchable — turn on Enable Search in the Menu Items header to get a search field at the top of the action menu.

Trigger actions from outside ExtraBar#

Any configured action can be copied as an extrabar:// deep link with Copy Action Deep Link in its context menu and triggered from other tools — see Deep Links for details.