Live or Not
How to get Whatnot live alerts while you work on your Mac
Set up a focused Whatnot watchlist on your Mac, understand background checks, and open a detected show without keeping seller tabs open.
A watchlist that fits around your work
You do not need another browser tab competing for your attention all afternoon. If there are a few Whatnot creators whose shows you actually want to catch, a small watchlist is more useful than repeatedly checking the entire platform. Live or Not keeps that watchlist in your Mac menu bar and can notify you when it detects a live show.
The current release tracks your chosen Whatnot creators without a watchlist cap on an Apple silicon Mac running macOS 14 or later. It starts with an empty list. You choose the accounts; nobody else’s watchlist is included.
Set up your first creator
Open Live or Not, enable Whatnot alerts in Settings, and add a creator using their profile handle or link. Check the displayed name and picture against the profile you intended to follow. Similar handles are easy to confuse, particularly when a seller uses different names across platforms.
Allow notifications when macOS asks. Then leave the app running while you work. When a live show is detected, open the menu or click the notification to reach the stream. You do not need Stream Deck hardware to use the Mac app.
Know what the check interval means
Live or Not checks your watchlist regularly while your Mac is awake and online. It waits about two minutes between rounds, and larger lists take longer to check. Open the menu to request a refresh. Alerts may arrive after a show has started, especially if your connection is interrupted.
A sleeping or disconnected Mac cannot keep checking. After returning to your computer, open the menu to refresh rather than treating an older status as a current observation. A connection message means the app could not confirm the latest state; it does not prove a creator is offline.
Use the trial for a real routine
Try the 14-day, no-card trial with creators you already follow. Keep your usual notifications enabled, and see whether a Mac alert helps you catch more of the shows you care about.
Whatnot support is experimental. Checks can be delayed or missed, and platform changes can affect availability. The practical benefit is an additional way to catch a show while working on your Mac, with one-click access when a live show is detected.