Your Mac is telling you something.We translate it.
MacStats keeps the important signals in your menu bar, then explains what a spike, warning, or unfamiliar process actually means, in plain English.
Free monitoring · No account · Pro is one payment, not a subscription
- Everything at a glance CPU, memory, disk, network and battery in the menu bar, in the order you choose.
- An answer, not just a number Tap any process for a plain-English account of what it is and whether to worry.
- It stays on your Mac Monitoring and history are entirely local. Only an explanation sends anything.
Counter estimate until macOS reports a pressure event.
↓27.9 KB Network Live Activity
- 1Claude5.1%
- 2Claude Helper4.9%
- 3Google Chrome2.6%
- 4Claude Helper2.5%
- 5Google Helper1.6%
- 12.1.233501.8 MB
- 2Claude Helper484.8 MB
- 3Google Chrome452.2 MB
- 4WhatsApp403.2 MB
- 5Claude395.4 MB
MacBook Air · Apple M4 | 16 GB RAM | macOS 26.6.1
A number is useful.
An answer is better.
183%
A real reading, and a real dead end. You still have to work out whether something is wrong, whether it is your fault, and whether it is safe to do anything about it.
kernel_task is deliberately taking CPU away from other processes so the machine can cool down. Quitting apps will not help. Improving airflow will.
kernel_task
Your Mac is running hot, and this is macOS protecting it. kernel_task deliberately limits how much CPU other processes can use so the machine can cool down.
See why your Mac slowed down.
The slowdown you could not reproduce.
MacStats notices when your Mac stops behaving like itself and records what happened around it, so the answer is still there when you go looking an hour later.
- Which process was responsible, with its readings at the time
- Memory pressure and CPU across the whole incident window
- When it started, when it recovered, and how long it lasted
- Kept on your Mac, never uploaded anywhere
Memory pressure: 70% (warning level)
Total RAM: 16.0 GB
Action: Consider closing memory-intensive apps or adding more RAM.
WindowServer is using 1.7% CPU, which is low. Uptime is 01-05:55:12.
Thermal state: Serious
Action: macOS is limiting CPU to cool the Mac. Improve airflow rather than quitting apps.
Quiet when all is well.
Specific when it isn't.
Your menu bar, your choice
Pick the metrics you care about and the order they sit in. Collapse the bar to a single value and reveal the rest on hover when space is tight.
Every process, explained
Tap any process for a plain-English account of what it does, why it is busy, and whether you should touch it.
History that stays local
Trends over 24 hours, 7 days and 30 days, stored on your Mac and never uploaded.
Told once, not nagged
Alerts fire when something genuinely changes, with a cooldown so a single bad afternoon does not become fifty notifications.
Nothing leaves without you
Monitoring is entirely local. Only an AI explanation sends anything, and only the process name and coarse metrics, never file paths or documents.
Up and running in about a minute.
Download and launch
A normal Mac app, not an installer wizard. Open it and it starts monitoring straight away, with no account and no sign-up.
It lives in your menu bar
MacStats adds itself to the menu bar. CPU, memory, battery and network stay one glance away, in the order you choose.
Ask what anything means
See a process you do not recognise? Open MacStats, tap it, and get a plain-English explanation of what it is and whether to worry.
Requires macOS 13 Ventura or later on an Apple silicon Mac. Some readings need one system permission, which MacStats asks for the first time it is needed and explains on the permissions page.
Choose the monitor that fits your question.
| MacStats | Stats | iStat Menus | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plain-English AI explanations | Yes | No | No |
| Anomaly detection vs. your own baseline | Yes | No | No |
| Historical trends (24h/7d/30d) | Yes | Partial | Yes |
| Temperature & fan sensors | Thermal state only | Yes | Most comprehensive |
| Intel Mac support | No | Yes | Yes |
| Price | Free, Pro $14.99 once | Free | Paid |
These are the rows where the three genuinely differ, including the two where MacStats is not the right choice. If you need per-sensor temperatures and fan speeds, or you are on an Intel Mac, iStat Menus or Stats will serve you better. See the full comparison.
Monitor for free.
Pay once for answers.
Everything you need to watch your Mac properly.
- CPU, memory, disk, network and battery
- Per-process breakdown
- Memory pressure and history
- Menu bar layout you control
Adds the explanations, on up to 2 Macs.
- Everything in Free
- AI explanations, up to 500 a month
- Incident recording and review
- Use on 2 personal Macs
The same Pro features for a household or a small team.
- Everything in Pro Personal
- AI explanations, up to 500 a month
- Use on up to 5 Macs
- One licence key to share
Every plan is a one-time payment. There is no subscription, and the free tier does not expire. Full plan comparison.
The things people ask before buying.
Does the AI send my personal data to a server?
MacStats sends the selected process and the limited system diagnostics needed for the explanation. It never sends file paths, command-line arguments, documents, usernames, or Bluetooth device names. Monitoring itself is entirely local: nothing leaves your Mac unless you ask for an explanation.
Is it really a one-time purchase? No subscription?
Yes. You pay once for your major version and own it forever. The free tier does not expire, and there is no recurring fee.
Why is MacStats not on the Mac App Store?
MacStats needs low-level system access for accurate CPU, memory and per-process data. The App Store sandbox blocks that, so MacStats is a direct download instead.
How is MacStats different from the free Stats app?
Stats shows numbers. MacStats explains what the numbers mean. If you have ever searched the web for a process name to find out whether it was safe, that is the gap MacStats fills. Stats has broader hardware sensor coverage and supports Intel Macs; MacStats is Apple silicon only and reports thermal state rather than individual sensors.
How many Macs does one licence cover?
Pro Personal covers 2 Macs. The Family licence covers up to 5. Both include up to 500 AI explanations per month.
More detail on the full FAQ, or email support@macstats.app.
Stop staring at numbers.
Keep your Mac's important signals one glance away, and get a useful answer when something does not look right.
Download MacStats free