Screen Sharing on Zoom: How to Hide Your Notes

You're sharing your screen on Zoom. Your slides look great. Your demo is ready. Then you realize — your notes are visible to everyone.

Maybe it's a sticky note app in the corner. Maybe it's your script in a text editor. Maybe it's browser tabs you forgot to close. Whatever it is, your audience can see it.

This guide covers every method to keep your notes visible to you and invisible to everyone else during screen sharing.

Why This Is Harder Than It Should Be

Zoom's screen sharing wasn't designed with presenters in mind. It was designed for collaboration — showing exactly what's on your screen.

When you click "Share Screen," Zoom captures everything. Your notes, your other apps, your browser tabs, your desktop icons. If it's visible on your screen, it's visible to your audience.

The standard workarounds all have problems:

• Share a specific window — Works until you need to switch between apps
• Second monitor — Your eyes visibly move when you look at it
• Memorize everything — Good luck with that 45-minute presentation
• Print notes on paper — You'll be looking down constantly

None of these solve the core problem: how do you read your notes while sharing your screen without anyone knowing?

Method 1: Share a Specific Window (Basic)

Instead of sharing your entire screen, share only the window you want others to see.

How to do it:

1. Click "Share Screen" in Zoom
2. Select the specific window (PowerPoint, Chrome, etc.) instead of "Desktop" or "Screen"
3. Click "Share"

Pros:

• Your notes in other windows stay hidden
• Simple, no extra tools needed

Cons:

• You can only show that one window
• Switching to another app requires stopping and restarting screen share
• If you accidentally click your notes window, it won't show — but you also can't reference it easily
• Your eyes still move away from the camera when reading notes on another part of your screen

Best for: Simple presentations where you only need to show one app.

Method 2: Use Zoom's Built-In Speaker Notes (PowerPoint/Keynote)

If you're presenting slides, Zoom can show your speaker notes to you while showing only slides to your audience.

How to do it in Zoom:

1. Click "Share Screen"
2. Go to the "Advanced" tab
3. Select "PowerPoint as Virtual Background" or "Slides as Virtual Background"
4. Your notes appear at the bottom of your screen, invisible to viewers

Alternative — Presenter View:

1. In PowerPoint/Keynote, start Presenter View
2. Share only the slideshow window, not the presenter view window

Pros:

• Built into Zoom, no extra software
• Speaker notes stay completely hidden

Cons:

• Only works with slides — useless for demos, browser walkthroughs, or anything else
• Limited formatting in speaker notes
• Your eyes still move to read notes at the bottom of your screen

Best for: Slide-heavy presentations where you don't need to show anything except PowerPoint/Keynote.

Method 3: Dual Monitor Setup

Put your presentation on one screen (shared) and your notes on another screen (not shared).

How to do it:

1. Connect a second monitor
2. Move your presentation to the external monitor
3. Keep your notes on your laptop screen
4. Share only the external monitor

Pros:

• Plenty of space for detailed notes
• Can have multiple reference documents open

Cons:

• Requires extra hardware
• Your eye movement is obvious — you're clearly looking at something else
• Not portable — doesn't work when traveling with just a laptop
• Still doesn't solve the "looking away from camera" problem

Best for: Office setups where eye contact matters less than having comprehensive notes available.

Method 4: Phone or Tablet as Teleprompter

Position your phone below your webcam with notes displayed.

How to do it:

1. Open your notes on your phone (Google Docs, Notes app, teleprompter app)
2. Prop the phone just below your laptop camera
3. Share your laptop screen
4. Read from your phone

Pros:

• Phone screen isn't captured by Zoom
• Positions notes closer to your camera than a second monitor

Cons:

• Small screen — hard to read detailed notes
• Need a stand or something to prop it up
• Scrolling requires touching your phone (distracting)
• Still not directly below your camera — eye movement is visible

Best for: Quick calls where you need a few bullet points, not detailed scripts.

Method 5: Invisible Teleprompter App (Best Solution)

Some Mac apps use a special window level that Zoom's screen capture doesn't see. Your notes are on screen, but completely invisible when you share.

Notchie is built specifically for this. It sits in your MacBook notch area — directly below the camera — and stays invisible during screen sharing.

How to do it:

1. Download Notchie from notchie.app
2. Paste your script or talking points
3. Position the prompter in your notch area
4. Share your entire screen on Zoom — Notchie won't appear
5. Read your notes while presenting

Why it works:

Notchie uses a macOS window level that screen capture APIs ignore. Zoom, Meet, Teams, OBS — none of them can see it. You see your notes. Your audience sees only your presentation.

Additional benefits:

• Voice-synced scrolling — text follows your speaking pace, no manual control needed
• Notch positioning — read notes while looking directly at your camera
• Works with any content — slides, demos, browser, desktop, anything

Pros:

• Truly invisible during screen share
• Notes positioned at camera level
• Works with any app you're sharing
• Voice control means hands-free operation

Cons:

• Mac only (Windows version coming)
• Costs $29.99 (one-time)

Best for: Anyone who regularly presents on Zoom and needs to read notes without anyone knowing.

Method 6: Zoom's "Portion of Screen" Feature

Share only a specific area of your screen, keeping the rest hidden.

How to do it:

1. Click "Share Screen"
2. Go to "Advanced" tab
3. Select "Portion of Screen"
4. Drag the green border to select what area to share
5. Keep your notes outside the green border

Pros:

• Built into Zoom
• Can show any app within the bordered area

Cons:

• Awkward to set up mid-call
• Limited flexibility — you're locked to that portion
• If your notes are outside the border, you're looking away from what you're sharing
• Doesn't work well for full-screen presentations

Best for: Specific use cases where you only need to show part of an app.

Comparison: Which Method Should You Use?

If maintaining eye contact matters, the invisible teleprompter approach is the only method that solves both problems — hiding your notes AND keeping them at camera level.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Forgetting to test before the call

Always do a dry run. Start a solo Zoom meeting, share your screen, and verify your notes aren't visible. Check the Zoom preview before you start sharing.

❌ Using browser-based teleprompters

Web-based teleprompter tools run inside your browser. When you share your screen, they're visible. Some claim to be "invisible" but aren't — they just run in a separate window.

❌ Sharing "Desktop" instead of a specific screen

If you have multiple monitors and share "Desktop," Zoom might capture all screens or switch between them unpredictably. Be explicit about which screen you're sharing.

❌ Leaving notification popups enabled

Nothing ruins a presentation like a Slack message or email notification popping up. Enable Do Not Disturb before presenting.

On Mac: Click the Control Center icon → Focus → Do Not Disturb Or: Hold Option and click the date/time in menu bar

❌ Not checking your desktop background and icons

When you share your screen, your desktop might be visible briefly when switching apps. Clean it up — or at least make sure there's nothing embarrassing.

Quick Setup Checklist

Before your next Zoom presentation:

• Decide which screen sharing method you'll use
• Test that your notes are actually invisible (solo Zoom meeting)
• Position notes as close to your camera as possible
• Enable Do Not Disturb
• Close unnecessary apps and browser tabs
• Clean up your desktop
• Do a 2-minute dry run

FAQ

Can Zoom detect if I'm using an invisible teleprompter?

No. Zoom has no way to detect other apps running on your computer. An invisible teleprompter like Notchie simply uses a window level that Zoom's screen capture doesn't see — it's not hidden through any hackery, it's just on a different rendering layer.

Will my notes show up in Zoom recordings?

If your notes are truly invisible (using an app like Notchie), they won't appear in local or cloud recordings. The recording captures the same thing your audience sees.

Does this work for Google Meet and Microsoft Teams?

Yes. The invisible window level approach works with any screen sharing app on macOS — Zoom, Meet, Teams, Webex, OBS, and others. They all use the same screen capture APIs.

What if I need to share my notes with someone?

These methods are specifically for hiding notes. If you want to share notes collaboratively, use screen share normally or a shared document tool like Google Docs or Notion.

Can I use an invisible teleprompter on Windows?

Currently, most invisible teleprompter apps (including Notchie) are Mac-only because they rely on macOS-specific window levels. Windows versions are in development for some apps.

Conclusion

Hiding your notes during Zoom screen sharing comes down to one question: do you just need them hidden, or do you also need to maintain eye contact?

If you just need notes hidden:

• Share a specific window
• Use dual monitors
• Use Zoom's speaker notes feature

If you need notes hidden AND natural eye contact:

• Use an invisible teleprompter positioned near your camera

Notchie is the simplest solution for the second case. It sits in your MacBook notch, scrolls with your voice, and stays completely invisible during screen sharing.

Your audience sees your presentation. You see your talking points. Nobody knows the difference.

Last updated: January 2025