Stickies User Guide
for macOS Big Sur
Keep notes, lists and even pictures in sticky notes on your desktop. You see the notes whenever the Stickies app on your Mac is open.
Important: If you upgraded to macOS Big Sur from macOS 10.14 or earlier, follow the onscreen instructions when you first open Stickies to import any sticky notes you may have had in the Stickies widget in Dashboard.
Create a note
In the Stickies app
on your Mac, choose File > New Note.Enter text. To add a picture or PDF, drag a file to your note.
Your content is saved automatically. The first line of the note is shown in the title bar when you collapse the note.
To customise your note, do any of the following:
Change the note colour: Choose a colour from the Colour menu.
Change text formatting: Choose Font > Show Fonts. Select text, then use the Fonts window to format it.
Make the note semi-transparent: Choose Window > Translucent.
Keep the note in front of other windows: Choose Window > Float on Top.
Tip: If you like how you formatted and customised a note, you can use it as a default template. Select the note, then choose Window > Use as Default.
Add a list to a note
In the Stickies app on your Mac, do any of the following:
Add a list: Press Option-Tab, enter your first item, then press Return.
End a list (and add a regular paragraph): Click at the end of the last list item, then press Return twice.
Increase list level: Click at the beginning of a line in the list, then press Tab.
Decrease list level: Click a line in the list, then press Shift-Tab.
Find text in notes
In the Stickies app
on your Mac, choose Edit > Find > Find, then type text in the Find field.You can also select text, then choose Edit > Find > Use Selection for Find.
To refine your search, you can:
Select the current note or all notes.
Deselect Ignore Case to find text that exactly matches the capitalisation of your search term.
Press Return to start the search.
Click Previous or Next to move to another match.
Note: You can also find and replace text. Enter the text in the Replace With field, then choose one of the Replace options.
View notes
In the Stickies app on your Mac, do any of the following:
Arrange a note manually: Click the top of a note and drag the note where you want it.
Group multiple notes: Choose Window > Arrange By, then choose an option.
Keep a note in front of other windows: Choose Window > Float on Top.
Make a note semi-transparent: Choose Window > Translucent.
Collapse or expand a note: Double-click the title bar.
Change the size of a note: Drag the note’s edge (top, bottom or sides). To maximise the note, click the triangle in the top-right corner. Click it again to reduce the note to its original size.
See note information: Hold the pointer over a collapsed note — you see when the note was created and last edited.
If you don’t see your note, verify that the Stickies app is still open. When Stickies is closed, notes don’t appear on your desktop.
Import or export notes
You can import a text file as a single note into Stickies or export a note from Stickies as a text file. You can also export all your notes from the Stickies app and import them into the Notes app, where you can write and organise notes in a single window and see your notes on all your devices.
In the Stickies app on your Mac, do any of the following:
Import or export a single note: Choose File > Import Text or File > Export Text.
You can import and export notes in common formats such as plain text, RTF and RTFD (includes graphics). When you export text, you can choose where to save the file.
Export all notes from Stickies to Notes: Choose File > Export All to Notes, then click Export All.
All your notes are imported into Notes in the Imported Notes folder, which contains subfolders for each colour of note. (Your notes also remain in Stickies.)
Delete a note
Click the box in the top-left corner, then click Delete Note.