Close the lid.
Keep your
agents running

Clamshell keeps your Mac awake and the work running while
the screen goes dark. Open the lid, it wakes clean.

Download free trial Compatibility
A MacBook closing its lid while the Mac stays awake and keeps working.
Hold the Option key

Hold Option.

Close the lid.

Keep your MacBook awake with the lid closed.

Stays awake on AC or battery.

No need to stay plugged in. It survives power transitions without dropping the session.

Clamshell keeps the Mac awake on AC power or on battery.

The screen goes fully dark.

The built-in display sleeps. Saves power, and hides your work when you walk into a room.

The built-in display goes fully dark while the Mac keeps running.

Wakes the instant you open it.

A clean wake every time. No relaunch, no hang, no black-screen guessing game.

The Mac wakes the instant the lid opens.

Free for 7 days.

One-time purchase
$9.99
Yours forever. One Mac per license.

Frequently asked questions.

Which Macs and macOS versions? +
Apple Silicon Mac laptops on macOS 14 or later. The Option-close gesture needs a lid angle sensor: MacBook Air M2 (2022) or later, or 14-inch / 16-inch MacBook Pro (2021) or later.
Will my agents and terminal sessions keep running? +
Yes. Closing the lid only turns the screen off: agents, terminal sessions, builds, and downloads keep running, and the Mac stays on the network for SSH and screen sharing. Running Claude Code or another coding agent overnight? There is a step-by-step guide.
Do I need an external display? +
No. macOS normally needs an external display attached before the lid can close; Clamshell removes that. No monitor, no dock, no HDMI dummy plug.
Is this the same as clamshell mode? +
Same idea, without the monitor. Clamshell mode is what macOS calls working with the lid closed, and macOS only allows it when an external display is attached. Clamshell removes that requirement: close the lid and the Mac keeps running on its own. Here is the full story on clamshell mode without an external display.
Why doesn't caffeinate or my keep-awake app work with the lid closed? +
Most keep-awake tools only prevent idle sleep. Closing the lid uses a different sleep path. The detailed guides explain why caffeinate does not override it and what pmset disablesleep changes. Clamshell switches exactly that lid behavior, needs no admin rights, and restores it the moment you disarm.
Will it drain the battery or overheat? +
Your Mac runs as it would with the lid open: idle work sips power, heavy work draws what it always draws. It works the same on battery, and Clamshell re-applies itself on every plug or unplug. An optional low-battery switch lets the Mac sleep if the charge drops below a level you choose, instead of running flat.
Does it need admin access? +
No. Clamshell is a normal menu bar app: no kernel extension, no driver, no privileged helper, no sudo.
What if I quit Clamshell or it crashes? +
Disarming or quitting retries restoration and warns you if macOS refuses it. The direct edition can also relaunch after an unexpected exit when its crash-recovery agent is permitted. The setting is never saved across a restart, so restarting always restores normal lid-close sleep.
Can I get a refund? +
Yes. Every purchase has a 14-day money-back guarantee, for any reason. The details are in the refund policy, or just email support.