Best Mac System Monitor Apps in 2026: 5 Compared
iStat Menus, iGlance, eul, Vitals and Notchy compared on CPU, memory and network readouts — what each costs, what it shows, and how much menu bar it eats.
By Vishva Variya · Published
Activity Monitor is fine when you already suspect something. A system monitor is for the moment before that: the fans spin up, and you want to know why without opening anything. Four dedicated tools and one notch app cover this, and the split is almost entirely free versus paid.
1. Notchy — stats without a menu bar icon (free)
Notchy's system monitor puts live CPU, memory and network one tap from the notch. The point is what it does not do: it adds no menu bar item, which matters on a notched MacBook where the bar is already short. Free, macOS 13 Ventura and up, and it shares an install with temperature, disk space and battery health.
2. iStat Menus — the one everyone compares against
iStat Menus is the category benchmark and has been for over a decade: every sensor, every graph, deeply configurable menu bar dropdowns. Bjango does not publish a price on its product page, and it is on Setapp at $9.99/month. It needs macOS 11 or later. If you want the most complete readout available on macOS, this is still it.
3. iGlance — free and open source
iGlance is a free, open-source menu bar monitor covering CPU, memory, network and fans. The vendor does not state a minimum macOS. It is the closest free thing to the iStat Menus shape, with a rougher interface and slower release cadence — a fair trade at the price.
4. eul — the good-looking free one (macOS 10.15+)
eul is free, open source, built in SwiftUI, and needs macOS 10.15 or later. It looks considerably better than most free monitors and covers the standard set of readouts. Choose it over iGlance largely on taste.
5. Vitals — the narrow, useful one
Vitals is free and open source, with no macOS minimum stated by the vendor. It is not a general monitor at all — it tells you what is preventing your Mac from sleeping. That is a small job, but when you need it no general-purpose monitor answers it as directly.
The comparison
| Notchy | iStat Menus | iGlance | eul | Vitals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Paid; $9.99/mo on Setapp | Free (OSS) | Free (OSS) | Free (OSS) |
| Minimum macOS | 13 Ventura | 11 | Not stated | 10.15 | Not stated |
| Lives in | The notch | Menu bar | Menu bar | Menu bar | Menu bar |
| Scope | CPU, memory, network, disk, battery | Everything | CPU, memory, network, fans | Standard readouts | Sleep blockers only |
| Also gets you | Music, clipboard, timers, HUDs | — | — | — | — |
Bottom line
Most complete, and worth paying for: iStat Menus. Free and close enough: iGlance or eul, on looks. Sleep problems specifically: Vitals. If the menu bar is the constraint rather than the budget, Notchy keeps the same readouts in the notch for free.
Mac system monitor FAQs
What is the best free system monitor for Mac?
For a dedicated menu bar tool, iGlance and eul are both free and open source, and Vitals is free if you mainly care about what is keeping the Mac awake. Notchy is free too and shows CPU, memory and network from the notch rather than the menu bar.
How much does iStat Menus cost?
Bjango does not display the figure on its own product page, so treat any number you read elsewhere as unverified. It is also available through Setapp at $9.99/month, which is the price we can actually source. It requires macOS 11 or later.
Do system monitors slow down your Mac?
A well-built one costs very little, but the sampling interval matters more than the app. Anything polling every second and drawing a live graph in the menu bar will show up in Activity Monitor. Check the monitor's own CPU column after a few minutes of idle — that is the number that runs all day.
Can I monitor CPU temperature on Apple Silicon?
Some tools read the sensors on Apple Silicon and some do not, and support varies by chip generation. Verify against the vendor's current notes for your specific Mac rather than assuming a tool that worked on Intel still reports temperatures.
Do I need a system monitor at all?
Activity Monitor ships with macOS and answers the question when you go looking. A menu bar or notch monitor is for the other case — noticing that something is wrong before you thought to check.