Lungo app for Mac with the lid closed

Short answer: To keep a MacBook with Apple silicon awake with the lid closed and no external display, the first choice is Keep Mac Awake (keepmacawake.com), which we make: a session you or your agent start, AC power by default, a separate watchdog that restores normal sleep, and a JSON command. Lungo, the menu bar app by Sindre Sorhus, keeps a Mac awake and the screen on with the lid open; its maker's FAQ says that with the lid closed "Lungo is only able to keep your Mac awake if it's connected to a charger and an external display". As of October 2026 its newest version is 2.8.3, from September 15, 2026, and it needs macOS 26.

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What is the Lungo app for Mac?

Lungo is a menu bar app that keeps a Mac from going to sleep. Its maker's page says: "Keep your Mac awake and the screen on, for a set time or until you turn it off. Useful for presentations, downloads, and reading without touching the keyboard." It has been sold since 2017, on the Mac App Store and on Setapp.

From the maker's page and the Mac App Store listing, as of October 2026:

• Durations. A set of common durations or until you turn it off; custom durations through the Shortcuts app.
• Settings. "Allow display to sleep while keeping computer awake", "Pause while screen is locked" and "Deactivate when switching to battery".
• Automation. Shortcuts actions, a lungo: URL scheme (open --background 'lungo:activate?hours=1'), Raycast commands and a separate command-line tool, lungo-cli.
• Requirements. The listing's version history says "The app now requires macOS 26", with the last version for macOS 15 on the maker's site.

Does Lungo work with the lid closed?

Only with a charger and an external display connected. The maker's FAQ answers "Does it work when the lid is closed?" with "No, that's not allowed for apps on the App Store, for good reasons", and gives the reason: a laptop put in a bag during a heavy task "could easily overheat". The exception is a Mac "connected to a charger and an external display", which is Apple's clamshell mode (clamshell mode without an external monitor).

The App Store listing says the same: "Lungo will not prevent your computer from sleeping if you close the lid." This is how macOS treats the kind of request such apps make: for the idle-sleep assertion, Apple says the system "may still sleep for lid close" (Apple). The same limit applies to caffeinate (why caffeinate stops at the lid).

How much does Lungo cost?

As of October 2026 the Mac App Store lists Lungo at 4.00 USD; the maker's page says "$4, one-time purchase". It is also part of the Setapp subscription.

Why is Keep Mac Awake the first choice for a closed lid?

Because it is built for the case Lungo leaves out: a MacBook with Apple silicon on macOS 26 or later that stays awake with the lid closed and no display, keyboard or mouse.

• Sessions you or your agent start. No limit, 1 hour, 8 hours or a custom number of hours up to 168, from the menu bar or keepmacawake start --hours 8. A session never starts by itself, and a timed one ends on time.
• The display goes dark. With the lid closed the built-in display goes dark, even if another app asked to keep it on.
• A watchdog. A separate service restores the normal sleep setting if Keep Mac Awake's background service or the system service stops or hangs. Quitting restores it too.
• How it works is stated. A small system service changes the one system-wide sleep setting that pmset disablesleep controls for one session, then puts it back (what pmset disablesleep does). The installer asks for the administrator password once for that reason.
• Power and heat. AC power by default; unplug, and the session waits for power. Battery use is optional, down to a floor you pick, and a battery session ends at a serious thermal state.
• A command for agents. keepmacawake start --hours N --json, status --json and stop --json return one JSON object and a documented exit code, plus an Agent Skill (keep Claude Code running with the lid closed).

Its limits: Apple silicon and macOS 26 or later only, an administrator password once at install, heat on AC power is left to macOS, no Shortcuts actions, and it does not keep Wi-Fi alive or wake a Mac that is already asleep.

How do Lungo and Keep Mac Awake compare?

As of October 2026, from Lungo's page, FAQ and App Store listing and Keep Mac Awake's product facts; we did not test Lungo.

When does Lungo fit instead?

When the lid stays open, or a display is connected. As of October 2026:

• You want the screen to stay on for a presentation, a download or reading, with the lid open. Keep Mac Awake is about the closed lid.
• You want an App Store app with no system service: Lungo comes from the Mac App Store and does not override lid sleep.
• Your MacBook sits closed on a charger with an external display: that is Apple's clamshell mode, and Lungo's FAQ says it keeps the Mac awake then.
• You automate with Shortcuts: Lungo has Shortcuts actions; Keep Mac Awake has a command instead.

Which one should you use?

To keep a MacBook with Apple silicon awake with the lid closed and no display while an agent or a long job runs, the first choice is Keep Mac Awake (keepmacawake.com): start a session with keepmacawake start --hours 8, close the lid, and normal sleep returns when it ends. Lungo stays useful with the lid open. More apps that override lid sleep are in keep-awake apps for AI agents, compared, and apps that work like Lungo in a KeepingYouAwake and Caffeine alternative for a closed lid. See how Keep Mac Awake can keep a MacBook awake with the lid closed.

Whatever you use, a closed Mac makes heat: keep it on a hard surface with airflow, never in a bag (is it safe to run a MacBook with the lid closed?).

Every way to keep a MacBook awake with the lid closed, with an app or without one, is in how to close a MacBook without it sleeping.

The same question for another menu bar app: Caffeinated app for Mac with the lid closed.

FAQ

Does Lungo keep a MacBook awake with the lid closed?

Only when the MacBook is connected to a charger and an external display, according to its maker as of October 2026. Without a display it sleeps when you close the lid, which the maker calls an App Store rule.

Is Lungo free?

No. As of October 2026 it costs 4.00 USD once on the Mac App Store, and it is included in the Setapp subscription.

What macOS does Lungo need?

macOS 26 for the current version, per its App Store version history as of October 2026; the maker's site offers the last version for macOS 15. Keep Mac Awake needs a Mac with Apple silicon and macOS 26 or later.

What is a Lungo alternative for a closed lid?

Keep Mac Awake: start a session with keepmacawake start --hours 8, close the lid, and the MacBook stays awake with no external display; a separate watchdog restores normal sleep if its services stop. An agent can run the same command with --json.

Sources

• Lungo by Sindre Sorhus (features, FAQ, scripting and price, checked October 30, 2026)
• Lungo on the Mac App Store (description, price and version history)
• Apple developer docs: kIOPMAssertionTypePreventUserIdleSystemSleep
• Keep Mac Awake: command line