Linux notification daemons: dunst, mako and more
GNOME and KDE show notifications themselves, but a standalone window manager needs a notification daemon: the program that receives messages from apps and draws the pop-ups. Only one daemon can own the notification service at a time, so installing a second one usually means stopping the first.
Some daemons only show pop-ups, like mako, fnott and dunst; others add a notification center with history and quick toggles, like SwayNotificationCenter on Wayland and Deadd on X11.
6 entries · each pinned to an exact upstream version · updated
All 6 entries, compared
Filter in the catalogue →| Setup | Works with | Difficulty | What it changes | Maintenance | Stars |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 dunstLightweight, highly configurable notification daemon. | Works with: Any desktop (Wayland & X11) | Moderate | Changes: 1 package | Active | Stars: 5.6k |
| Works with: Any desktop (Wayland) | Moderate | Changes: 1 package | Active | Stars: 3.3k | |
| Works with: Any desktop (Wayland) | Moderate | Changes: 1 package | Active | Stars: 2.6k | |
 Deadd Notification CenterNotification daemon with a slide-in notification center and quick toggles for X11. | Works with: Any desktop (X11) | Advanced | Changes: 1 package | Quiet | Stars: 1.0k |
 WiredNotification daemon in Rust with fully custom, layout-based notification blocks. | Works with: Any desktop (X11) | Advanced | Changes: 1 package | Active | Stars: 708 |
 fnottKeyboard-driven, lightweight notification daemon for wlroots compositors. | Works with: Any desktop (Wayland) | Moderate | Changes: 1 package | Active | Stars: 189 |
How to choose
- Match the display server: mako and fnott are Wayland-only, Deadd and Wired are X11-only, dunst handles both.
- Want history and toggles? Pick a notification center.
- Keep one daemon running at a time.
Questions
Why do notifications not appear on my window manager?
No notification daemon is running. Install one and start it from your window manager’s autostart.
Why do I get the wrong notification style?
Another daemon started first and took over the notification service. Remove it from autostart so only your chosen daemon runs.
dunst or mako?
Both are lightweight and configured with a text file. mako is Wayland-only; dunst runs on Wayland and X11.