Blipcal vs Dot
The two closest menu bar calendars for Mac, both one-time purchases with a 14-day trial, compared on features, price, Macs per license and feel.
These are the two closest apps in the category. Dot, launched on 25 January 2026, has more features today, costs $14.99 and covers three Macs. Blipcal costs $19 and covers 2, and differs in how it does time zones, in the month grid that stays free after the trial, in settings export, and in being the sibling of ClipLedge. Try both; both trials are 14 days.
Facts checked 6 November 2026: trydot.app and its download page.
Blipcal vs Dot at a glance
| Blipcal | Dot | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $19 once | $14.99 once ($9.99 with code LAUNCH) |
| Macs per license | 2 | 3 |
| Minimum macOS | 14 | 13 |
| Intel Macs | No | Yes |
| Edit events and quick add | Yes | Yes |
| Next event with a countdown | Yes | Yes |
| Time zones | A strip with a scrub slider | World clock, 8,000 cities |
| Week view | Planned for 1.1 | Yes |
| Event search | Later | Yes |
| Floating or fullscreen meeting alerts | Later | Yes |
| Camera preview and meeting prep | No | Yes |
| Reminders | Yes | Yes |
| Settings export and import | Yes | Not checked |
| After the trial | The month grid stays free | Asks for a license key, with a 24-hour grace period |
| Checkout | Stripe | Lemon Squeezy |
| Homebrew cask | Later | Yes |
Dot 2.4.3, $14.99 one-time, up to 3 Macs at a time, 14-day trial, macOS 13 or later on Apple silicon or Intel, as published on trydot.app on 6 November 2026. "Later" means on the Blipcal roadmap. "Not checked" and "Not stated" mean exactly that.
Where Dot is ahead, and where Blipcal differs from Dot
Where Dot is ahead
- A week view, event search, date markers and a progress line
- Floating and fullscreen meeting alerts, camera preview and meeting prep
- Three Macs per license, Intel support, and a lower price
- Press from The Verge, MacStories, Digital Trends and MacSources
- A longer changelog: shipping since January 2026
Where Blipcal differs
- A time-zone strip under the grid with a scrub slider that moves every clock together
- The month grid, today's date and the keyboard stay free after the trial
- Settings export and import, and a menu bar text that keeps a stable width
- Offline licensing that never drops a license when you are away from a connection
- 2 Macs per key with deactivate-to-move, and the same license, update and privacy model as ClipLedge
Try both
Both trials are 14 days with every feature and no card.
Install both
Download Blipcal and Dot. They read the same calendars and do not interfere.
Keep the one you reach for
Use each for a week. Buy the one you kept opening.
Dot questions, answered
Is Dot cheaper?
Which runs on older Macs?
Does either need an account?
Can they share calendars?
Start the 14-day trial
Today's date and your next meeting in the menu bar, a month grid and agenda one click away, and events you can add and edit in place. Pay once if you keep it.
- macOS 14 or later
- 14-day free trial
- Both can run at once