How to Fix Push Notifications in macOS 13 Ventura

Push notification failures in macOS 13 Ventura can disrupt communication and workflow, often stemming from misconfigured Focus modes, incorrect system permissions, network blocks, or corrupted notification daemon processes. This guide provides a direct, step-by-step troubleshooting path to diagnose and fix notification delivery issues on your Mac.

1. Verify App Notification Permissions

macOS 13 redesigned the system interface, moving notification controls under the centralized System Settings menu. Ensure the affected app has explicit permission to send alerts.

  1. Click the Apple menu () in the top-left corner and select System Settings.
  2. Click Notifications in the sidebar.
  3. Scroll through the Application Notifications list and select the problematic app.
  4. Toggle on Allow notifications.
  5. Ensure the alert style is set to Banners or Alerts, and toggle on Show notifications on lock screen and Show in Notification Center.

2. Disable Focus and Do Not Disturb

A scheduled or active Focus mode is one of the most common reasons push notifications fail to appear.

  1. Open System Settings > Focus.
  2. Select Do Not Disturb (and any other active custom Focus profiles).
  3. Check the Allowed Notifications section to see if the app is excluded. Either add the app to the allowed list or toggle the Focus profile off.
  4. Check Set a Schedule to ensure an automated rule is not silencing your notifications unexpectedly.
  5. If you use multiple Apple devices, check whether Share across devices is enabled, as turning on Focus on an iPhone or iPad will silence macOS 13 as well.

3. Restart the Notification Center Daemon

If settings are correct but alerts still do not trigger, the background process managing notifications may have frozen. Restarting it resolves transient system glitches.

  1. Open Terminal (located in /Applications/Utilities/).

  2. Type the following command and press Enter:

    killall NotificationCenter

  3. The process will quit and automatically relaunch within seconds. Test whether notifications resume.

4. Check Network, VPN, and Firewall Configurations

Push notifications rely on the Apple Push Notification service (APNs). If your network blocks persistent connections to Apple servers, notifications will fail.

  1. Disconnect VPNs and Proxies: Third-party security tools or VPN profiles frequently block ports required by APNs (TCP ports 5223 and 443). Temporarily disable them to test connectivity.
  2. Review Firewall Settings: Go to System Settings > Network > Firewall. If enabled, ensure it is not set to "Block all incoming connections."

5. Reinstall or Re-authenticate the Affected App

Web browsers and third-party communication tools (such as Slack, Teams, or WhatsApp) store unique push tokens that can become invalidated.

  1. Open the app’s internal settings and verify that in-app notification toggles are active.
  2. For web apps, open your browser (e.g., Safari or Chrome), go to site settings, remove notification permissions for the site, and reload the page to prompt a fresh permission request.
  3. For desktop applications, log out of the account, quit the app completely, relaunch it, and log back in to force a token refresh with APNs.
  4. If issues persist, delete the application from /Applications, empty the Trash, and download the latest compatible release from the Mac App Store or vendor website.

6. Update macOS 13

Operating system bugs can lead to notification delivery failures. Check for point updates to macOS Ventura to ensure known system bugs are patched.

  1. Open System Settings > General.
  2. Click Software Update.
  3. Install any available updates for macOS 13.