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Mac notification guide

Give Signal its own notification sound on your Mac

So a private message reaches you as a sound you recognize — without a banner that shows the whole room who wrote and what they said.

Pick Signal’s color and flash in TrillMark; even a “you have a new message” banner is enough to give it a distinct sound.
Pick Signal’s color and flash in TrillMark; even a “you have a new message” banner is enough to give it a distinct sound.

Why Signal is hard to tell apart on a Mac

Signal is built to keep messages private, so its notifications can be set to hide the sender and the message — you might see only “Signal” or “You have a new message.” That’s good for privacy, but it means the banner carries little to tell apart, and on a Mac it uses the same single alert sound as everything else.

macOS only lets you switch Signal’s sound on or off, so a private message you care about sounds exactly like a newsletter.

What you can do without TrillMark

How TrillMark makes Signal recognizable

TrillMark reacts to Signal’s banner. Even when the banner hides who and what, TrillMark can give Signal its own sound and a labeled flash, so you know a private message arrived without the screen showing anyone the content.

If you keep sender names visible, you can go further with a rule that gives a specific person a louder, distinct sound.

Crucially, TrillMark reads whatever the banner shows only on your Mac, only to decide how to react, and never sends it anywhere — the same principle Signal is built on. And if the banner hides content, there’s nothing to read at all.

Set it up in about a minute

  1. Open TrillMark and add Signal.
  2. Give it a sound you’ll know by ear and a color; TrillMark labels the flash “Signal.”
  3. Optional: if you keep sender names visible, add a rule for one person with a louder sound.
  4. Turn off the system sound for Signal in Notification settings so you hear only the sound you chose.

TrillMark is launching soon

Give Signal its own sound and a colored, labeled flash. Leave your email and I'll let you know the moment it's ready.

Questions about Signal

Can I give Signal a custom sound on Mac even with notifications hidden?

Yes. TrillMark keys off the fact that it’s Signal at all, so even a content-hidden “you have a new message” banner can get its own sound and a labeled flash — no message content needed.

Does TrillMark see my Signal messages?

It reads only the notification banner, only on your Mac, only to decide how to react — and never sends it anywhere. If you set Signal to hide content, there’s nothing in the banner to read.

Can I still get a special alert for one person?

Only if you keep sender names visible in Signal’s notification settings. Then you can add a TrillMark rule that matches that name and gives it a louder, distinct sound.