Manage notifications from Messages on Mac
You can choose to get notifications for every new message, each time your name is mentioned, or when you receive a message from an unknown person. You can also turn notifications off altogether.
Manage notifications by conversation
Go to the Messages app on your Mac.
Select a conversation.
Click in the top-right corner, then do either of the following:
Hide Alerts: Select to stop notifications; to get message notifications again, deselect Hide Alerts.
If you have a trackpad or a Magic Mouse, you can also swipe left with two fingers on the conversation in the sidebar, then click .
Tip: You can also hide alerts for several conversations at the same time. Select the conversations in the sidebar, Control-click, then choose Hide Alerts.
Share Focus Status: When you’re in an individual conversation, select to let the person know that you have notifications silenced because you turned on a Focus. The person can still choose to notify you if necessary.
Manage other notifications in Messages
Go to the Messages app on your Mac.
Choose Messages > Settings, then click General.
Do any of the following:
Notify me about messages from unknown contacts: Select if you want to be notified when you receive a message from someone who doesn’t have a contact card in the Contacts app (even if Hide Alerts is turned on for the conversation).
Notify me when my name is mentioned: Select if you want to be notified when your name is mentioned (even if Hide Alerts is turned on for the conversation).
Play sound effects: Select to hear the default sound effect when either of the above events occur or you receive a new message.
Choose the default sound from the “Message received sound” pop-up menu.
Change or turn off all notifications from Messages
On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Notifications in the sidebar. (You may need to scroll down.)
Go to Application Notifications on the right, click Messages, then do one of the following:
Change notifications: Set options, such as the style of notifications or where to show them. To learn about the options, click at the bottom of the window.
Turn off all notifications from Messages: Turn off “Allow notifications.”