How to see Caps Lock and your keyboard layout on a Mac

By Ege Mert Balçık · Last updated 3 November 2026 · Disclosure: I make Ledge, one of the apps compared

Built into macOS

1. The Input menu. Apple describes it as an icon on the right side of the menu bar "containing letters or characters that represent the current input source". It appears by itself once you add a second input source. If it is missing, open System Settings > Keyboard, go to Text Input, click Edit and turn on "Show Input menu in menu bar." Its Show Keyboard Viewer item draws the keyboard for the layout that is selected now.
2. The indicator at the text cursor. In macOS Sonoma Apple added what its WWDC23 AppKit session calls "a cursor accessory below the insertion indicator that displays key information, like input mode, dictation state, and caps lock state." It follows the insertion point as you type. When you switch with the keyboard, macOS also shows your input sources "close to where you're typing": hold Control and press Space, or press Fn or Globe once that key is set to Change Input Source.
3. The light on the key. The Caps Lock key has an indicator light. Apple's troubleshooting page notes the key has a slight delay to stop accidental presses, so hold it until the light comes on. The light sits on the keyboard, so you only see it if you look down.
4. Shortcuts to switch. Control-Space selects the input source you used last and Control-Option-Space selects the next one in the Input menu. If you add a non-Latin source such as Chinese or Korean, Text Input offers "Use the Caps Lock key to switch to and from" your last Latin source. With that on, the Caps Lock key changes layout as well.

Apps that make it more visible

I found no mention of Caps Lock or the keyboard layout on the sites or changelogs of Alcove, NotchNook, Droppy, boring.notch or MediaMate when I checked in November 2026.

What Ledge shows

Ledge 1.2.5 has two cards for this, both on by default and both silent until something changes.

• Keyboard Layout. When the selected input source changes, the notch peeks briefly with a keyboard symbol and a two-letter code. The code comes from the first language the input source reports, cut to its first part: Turkish shows TR while ABC, U.S. and British all show EN. A layout that reports no language gets the initials of its name. The card itself carries the name System Settings uses, such as "ABC". It needs no permission. It does not announce the layout you already had when Ledge starts. Re-selecting the same layout shows nothing either.
• Caps Lock. Each toggle shows the Caps Lock symbol with a green ON badge or a grey OFF badge. Pressing it several times in a row restarts the same peek with the new state rather than queueing them up. In 1.2.5 this card needs the Accessibility permission, so it stays dark until you grant it.

Ledge only tells you at the moment of the change. There is no standing badge for the current layout, so if you want to see it at any time, the Input menu, ShowyEdge or Input Source Pro do that better. Ledge also needs a notched MacBook (14- or 16-inch MacBook Pro from 2021, MacBook Air from 2022) on macOS 26 or later and does not draw on an external display.

Which to choose

• You only check now and then: the Input menu and the indicator at the text cursor are enough.
• Always visible, free: ShowyEdge. You learn which colour means which layout.
• Indicator near the cursor plus per-app layouts: Input Source Pro.
• Just a Caps Lock warning: CapsLocker or Cap Cap.
• In the notch: Ledge on macOS 26 for both layout and Caps Lock, Atoll on macOS 14 and later for Caps Lock.
• External display or no notch: any of the non-notch apps above. Ledge cannot help there.

FAQ

How do I know if Caps Lock is on on a Mac?

The light on the Caps Lock key comes on. Since macOS Sonoma a small indicator below the text cursor also shows the Caps Lock state while you type. For a notice on screen every time it changes, use Input Source Pro, CapsLocker or Cap Cap, or a notch app such as Ledge or Atoll.

How do I see which keyboard layout is active on a Mac?

Look at the Input menu on the right side of the menu bar. Its icon shows letters or characters for the current input source. If it is missing, open System Settings > Keyboard, go to Text Input, click Edit and turn on "Show Input menu in menu bar."

Is there an app that shows the current input source all the time?

ShowyEdge is free and draws a colour bar along the top edge of the screen that changes with the input source, even over full-screen apps. Input Source Pro is free and open source. It shows an on-screen indicator and can also pick a layout for each app or website.

Can the MacBook notch show Caps Lock or the keyboard layout?

With a notch app. Ledge shows both: a two-letter code when the layout switches and an ON or OFF badge when Caps Lock toggles. Atoll has a Caps Lock live activity.

Related

• Best notch apps for MacBook in 2026
• How to get a Dynamic Island on a MacBook
• Ledge vs Atoll
• Ledge: a free, open-source notch app for MacBook

Sources

• Apple Mac User Guide, Input menu, Write in another language on Mac, Change Input Sources settings and If your Mac doesn't respond to key presses
• Apple Developer, What's new in AppKit (WWDC23), on the cursor accessory
• ShowyEdge site and repository; Input Source Pro site, changelog and README
• CapsLocker App Store listing; Cap Cap App Store listing
• Atoll README and release notes (Caps Lock live activity, 1.3.0-beta; Caps Lock indicator fix, 2.0.1)
• Alcove site and changelog feed (api.tryalcove.com/changelog); NotchNook site; Droppy site; boring.notch README; MediaMate site
• Ledge README and source, version 1.2.5