How to change Spark Mail's notification sound on Mac
Spark Mail gives you an on/off sound toggle on macOS and nothing more, so you cannot choose which sound it plays. To silence it, turn off “Play sound for notifications” for Spark Mail in System Settings → Notifications. To give it a different sound, or a different sound per channel, person, or keyword, you need a rule-based app such as Chirpy, which reads macOS notifications locally and plays the sound you assigned.
In Spark Mail
Head to Settings → Notifications inside Spark Mail. The sound options live there, and you can turn them off. That stops Spark Mail's own audio, but macOS will still play its default sound on top. See the universal approach below to silence that too.
How do I mute Spark Mail notifications on a Mac?
macOS lets you silence any app's sound without disabling its notifications. The full visual walkthrough lives on the universal macOS method page. The short version:
- Open System Settings → Notifications on your Mac.
- Scroll to Spark Mail in the application list and click it.
- Turn off “Play sound for notifications”.
- Spark Mail keeps showing banners and badges, with no audio.
How Chirpy fills the gap
Chirpy reads the notification title and matches it against your rules. That means you can do things Spark Mail can't on its own: different sounds per channel, per person, per keyword, per server. Three quick examples:
- Boss mentions only: a distinct chime when their name appears in any Spark Mail notification.
- Urgent channel: a louder sound when the notification contains
#urgentor#critical. - Silence everything else: a rule that matches all other Spark Mail notifications with no sound. Banners still appear, your day stays quiet.
Frequently asked questions
Can I change Spark Mail's notification sound on Mac?
Only partly. Spark Mail gives you basic on/off sound controls, but no way to pick a different sound and no way to vary it by sender or content. To assign a specific sound, mute Spark Mail at the macOS level and let a rule-based tool such as Chirpy play the sound instead.
How do I mute Spark Mail notifications on Mac without turning them off?
Open System Settings → Notifications, click Spark Mail in the list, and turn off “Play sound for notifications”. Spark Mail keeps showing banners and badges, so you stop hearing it without losing it.
Can I set a different sound for specific Spark Mail notifications?
Not with macOS or Spark Mail alone, because neither can read the content of a notification and act on it. Chirpy matches the notification text against rules you write, using a name, a channel, a keyword, or a combination with AND/OR, then plays the sound you assigned to that rule.
Does muting Spark Mail in System Settings also hide its banners?
No. “Play sound for notifications” only controls audio. Banners, the Notification Center list, and Dock badges are separate toggles on the same screen.
Want sounds that actually mean something?
Chirpy adds rule-based custom sounds on top of macOS notifications. One sound for Spark Mail mentions, another for your calendar, silence for the rest. It is a native menu bar app. $19.99 as a one-time purchase, requires macOS 13 or later, and runs entirely on your Mac.