Gemini CLI · macOS

Gemini CLI Notifications: Know When Your Session Finishes

Gemini CLI sessions can run long, and the CLI finishes quietly in a terminal you've tabbed away from. This guide covers how to get a sound and visual notification on your Mac when Gemini CLI finishes or needs attention — via its experimental built-in setting or the zero-configuration way with AI Done Now.

The zero-config way: AI Done Now

AI Done Now is a native macOS menu bar app that delivers a sound and a clickable notification banner whenever Gemini CLI needs you:

  • Gemini CLI sends a notification event

  1. 1. Get the app

    One-time purchase, all future updates included. No data leaves your Mac except your license key for activation.

    Buy Now

  2. 2. Install & activate

    Download the app, open it, and enter your license key. You're ready in under a minute.

  3. 3. Start monitoring Gemini CLI

    Open AI Done Now from your menu bar and click Start next to Gemini CLI. Nothing else to configure.

Sound + banner

See the alert even with your volume off.

Click-to-focus

Clicking the notification jumps back to your tool.

All four tools

One app for Claude Code, Cursor, Codex and Gemini CLI.

The built-in way: Gemini CLI's experimental notifications

Gemini CLI has an experimental notifications feature you can toggle from inside an interactive session.

  1. 1. Open the settings dialog

    In an interactive Gemini CLI session, type /settings.

  2. 2. Enable notifications

    Navigate to the General category and toggle "Enable Notifications" on. On macOS it plays Pop.aiff when a session completes.

Where the manual setup falls short

  • -The feature is experimental and the sound is fixed — no native banner you can click to jump back to your terminal.
  • -No alert when Gemini CLI is waiting for a permission prompt unless you add a separate extension.
  • -It only covers Gemini CLI — Claude Code, Cursor and Codex need their own setups.

Frequently asked questions

Does Gemini CLI have notifications?

Gemini CLI has an experimental notifications setting (type /settings in a session and enable it under General), which plays a sound on session completion on macOS. For a native clickable banner plus sound, install AI Done Now and click Start next to Gemini CLI in the menu bar.

How do I get a sound alert when Gemini CLI finishes on Mac?

Enable the experimental notifications in /settings for the built-in Pop.aiff sound, or use AI Done Now for a sound plus a visible macOS notification banner — with no configuration at all.

Can one app cover Gemini CLI, Claude Code, Cursor and Codex?

Yes. AI Done Now monitors all four from one menu bar app — click Start next to each tool you use and get native macOS notifications, instead of maintaining four separate notification setups.

Using other AI coding tools?

Claude Code notifications

Get notified when Claude Code finishes.

Cursor notifications

Get notified when Cursor finishes.

Codex notifications

Get notified when Codex finishes.

Full setup and troubleshooting in the documentation.