SSD Fan is an open-source fan speed controller, which gives you the overall control of your Mac computer’s fan speed. It features a daemon that runs in the background, and it makes speed configuration and temperature monitoring easy. Fan Control Software for Other Platforms. CAM is a free PC monitoring software created by NZXT for PC enthusiasts and gamers.
Your computer is equipped with a lot of sensors so that the system can keep an eye on the health of the hardware. macOS has a built-in system monitoring utility called Activity Monitor, which may be unfamiliar to most casual Mac users. And even fewer understand how to properly use Activity Monitor to manage memory usage, fix slow apps, and troubleshoot various many other issues.
Activity Monitor's advantage over all third party Mac monitoring apps is its ability to inspect and even kill a process that requires too many hardware resources. This is something no third party app has the permission to do, despite having access to all the sensor information data and displaying it in an easy-to-read design.
iStat Menus
Available as a separate purchase or via Setapp, Bjango's iStat Menus is one of the best Mac monitoring apps available. You may already be familiar with the iStat Pro widget from the same developer, which displays the same data in the dashboard. One of the best things about iStat Menus is that there is a quick view for the essential data right in the menu bar. If you want more data and visuals, just click on the desired item. Customize the data by turning on the monitoring only for what you want it to keep an eye on. That's a nice advantage over the competing apps, even Bjango's own iStat widget which only displays all the information in one window.
iStat Menus, however, lets you monitor only the CPU, GPU, memory, disks, network, sensors, battery, power, time, or any combinations of these. Bjango's iStat Menus can be trialed for 14 days for free, but after that you'll need to purchase a license for $18 or upgrade for $9.99 if you already happen to own version 3 or 4. The Family Pack allows iStat Menus to be used on up to five Macs within the same household.
TG Pro
Short for Temperature Gauge Pro, this tool could become a Mac monitoring utility that you become attached to. While iStat Menus only displays information, TG Pro goes one step further and offers an option to control your Mac's fans, along with offering an overview of the sensor data that macOS gives access to. That's a very important feature if you want the computer to deliver optimal performance. In addition, TG Pro offers a color-coded visual explanation of what is happening with the computer's internals: green means that you can relax, orange that the hardware is approaching its limits, and red represents that it is very close to the thermal limit.
What TG Pro does is provide control over the fan speed to cool down your Mac's hardware, which is especially useful on hot summer days when Macs tend to overheat. This Mac monitoring app will display quick temperature info in the menu bar, but to gain access to all the information available you’ll need to either click on the TG Pro item to see a quick overview of the data or launch the app and get visual information for the targeted segment. While the TG Pro trial gives 10 days of free testing, it unfortunately limits the data it displays and therefore pushes users to purchase a license for $18.
XRG
Available as an open-source system monitor for Macs, XRG allows you to monitor CPU and GPU activity, memory usage, battery status, machine temperature, network activity, disk I/O, current weather, and stock market data. Just like the iStat Pro widget, it gives users a helpful overview of what is happening on your Mac, peppered with some handy visuals. In terms of the graphical user interface, XRG’s cannot be compared to that of iStat Menus or TG Pro but if you want a free app to have access to such data then XRG is a good option to choose.
Any one of these above apps will be useful to you if you are looking to optimize your Mac's performance. They each allow you to see – at a glance – the resource hogs that can be eliminated as well as all the data that your Mac’s sensors are collecting. That, combined with the use of Mac optimization apps such as CleanMyMac, CCleaner or MacKeeper, will create a computer that works optimally to perform all the tasks it is given.
Mac temperature monitor is an essential way to keep an eye on the heat of your CPU low and extend the overall work life. A good temperature monitor allows logging of all those times when the processor is beyond the optimum level of temperature and is quite dangerous for the life of Mac.
When tasks, like running a virtual machine, rendering videos, playing games, etc., are being performed over the Mac, CPU is being used at a higher rate. And this is where Mac CPU temperature monitors the process and informs you for further action.
Now there erupts a question, Is Mac’s in-built Activity Monitor good enough for Mac temperature?
Mac OS has an in-built Activity Monitor that shows all the current activities running in the system. It shows all the tasks in detail, and you can even force quit any task from here.
It is good enough to show you the necessary details but might not be best if you want to customize the way you want. Moreover, there are many more things running inside your Mac, but they are not revealed completely with Mac’s own temperature monitor.
If you want to go ahead with more customization, do not want the activity monitor to take over the whole screen or aware of the impact of tasks on Mac’s CPU, you can go for a smart tool that monitors CPU temperature of Mac.
10 Best Mac Temperature Monitor
1. TG Pro
Why wouldn’t you want to know what’s going inside the center of your Mac? Yes, you want it, and TG Pro is your one-stop solution, and it is capable of providing the information of Mac’s health in detail. Interestingly, its clean interface is very appealing while providing all the vitals.
You get to check CPU, GPU, Logic board or hard drive temperatures, battery health, and other hardware details. Though you can manually boost the power of fans, TG Pro is capable of doing so automatically. So keep your Mac clean, cool and use this powerful Mac temperature monitor.
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2. iStats Menus 6
You can’t compare iStats Menus with anyone because of the abundance of features and robust customization options. Interestingly, you do not need to open a separate window to find what is running on the Mac, as it is displayed on the menu bar at the top.
When you open it for more details, CPU and GPU information are present with individual cores, history graphs, load averages, etc.
Another use of this Mac temperature monitor is real-time listings of hard drive temperature, fans, CPU frequency, voltage, current, and power. Apart from this, you can quickly look at current weather conditions, detailed hourly forecast, wind speed, wind direction, and much more than ever imagined.
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3. Menubar Stats 3
One another advanced system monitor is Menubar Stats 3, which comprises various modules like CPU, Disk, Network, Bluetooth, etc. Now these modules can be seen in the menu bar or notification center, which can be combined in one window or separate windows.
Mac CPU Monitor is a different level experience with Menubar Stats 3 that visually appeals to the user and gives swift access to all the information. You can even drag and drop all the required modules to expand the window. And in case, the window is full, automatic scrolling of the page begins. How cool it is to monitor CPU temperature on Mac!
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4. Fanny
Monitor how your Mac fans are doing using Fanny, which is indeed an amazing Mac temperature monitor. It is also a free notification widget with a pretty cool and compact design. This keeps a strong eye on CPU/GPU usage and system fans without cluttering the workspace or disturbance.
With Fanny, get quick information on current speed, target speed, minimum speed, maximum speed, number of fans and of course, temperature. All you need to do is open the Notification center, and find the status of fans.
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5. Temp Monitor
All the available sensors in your Mac are displayed well with this cool Mac CPU temperature monitor. It alerts you as the temperature is rising high, and your system is prone to any danger. Moreover, it also has a fan control feature that calms down Mac during the time of overheat.
Whatever it notes down, it displays on the screen through text and icons. Do not worry as this display pops up only when the Temp monitor feels its risky to let Mac run anymore without assistance. You can even view name, description, current value, history graph, and all the available sensors in Mac.
One can view the speed of every fan, control them and later check all the logged in details about all the sensors. For your ease, languages like English, French, German, Spanish and Vietnamese are supported.
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6. XRG
An open-source system monitor for Mac keeps you informed about CPU and GPU activities, memory usage, battery status, network activity, current weather, disk I/O, and even stock market data. Though you may find all the numbers a little cluttery when compared to other clean interfaces, it doesn’t intrude on your other work on Mac.
Also Read:How To Prevent Your Phone From Overheating
7. Monity
Another way to monitor CPU temperature on Mac is downloading Monity, which shows memory, network, disk usage, and battery status at a single glance. You can easily find memory usage, fan speeds, network activity, app usage statistics, and battery status of your Mac. Interestingly, it is a lightweight app and does not mess with your menu bar.
8. SMART Utility
SMART or Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology is a utility application to scan the hardware diagnostics system of hard drives. This tool not only indicates the individual attributes of the information but also uses an integral algorithm to detect the drive’s health.
It displays information in the menu bar, and more details are provided in separate windows. The tool supports scanning at the background, saving drive reports for a later checkup, printing drive reports, etc. Overall, it is another one-stop solution for the Mac temperature monitor.
9. iStatistica
When Mac’s health is presented to you nicely and in a detailed manner, you do not want to go for another Mac temperature monitor. Apart from getting all the statistics, enjoy the notification center widget, dark and light theme while keeping memory, storage and battery life active.
10. coconutBattery
Not precisely Mac temperature monitor, coconutBattery can tell you about current battery health and shows live information. Apart from battery details, it gives you the health of SSD. Now, you can save this status at present and check the changes with time. Comes with WiFi support and iOS advance viewer, coconutBattery is an amazing way to check the health of your Mac.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. What Is Normal Mac Temperature?
Normal Mac temperature ranges between 50 degrees to 90 degrees F (10-15 degrees C), according to Apple Support.
Q2. How Do I Monitor On Mac Temperature?
Apps For Mac
One way to monitor Mac temperature is by looking at Apple’s in-built Activity Monitor. However, if one wishes to expand the possibilities of tools, they can go for third party temperature monitors like iStats, TG Pro, etc.
Q3. How do I check CPU temp on MacBook Pro?
Mac OS has an in-built Activity Monitor that displays the activities running in the Mac and gives the idea of temperature. However, some temperature monitoring apps like iStats Menus 6, Fanny, Temp monitor, etc. are some great apps dedicated to find CPU temperature on MacBook Pro.
Q4. How do I know if my Mac is overheating?
Whenever you are uncomfortable handling the heat of a Macbook and feel that it is making weird noises, it might not be okay. However, if you are using the Mac for a longer duration and it is getting normally hot, it might not be the case of overheating.
Mac Fan Monitor App Windows 10
Q5. What temperature should my Mac CPU run at?
A normal Mac CPU runs at room temperature i.e. 22-25 degree celsius and may be considered as ideal temperature for Mac. However, you don’t need to worry about temperature rise if it goes 10 degrees above the normal range.
Wrap-Up
If you are willing to keep your eyes on Macbook for various purposes like temperature, disk usage, and many other internal things, any of the Mac temperature monitor mentioned above are a good source. If you ask us, TG Pro and iStats are pretty much neat and clean with abundant features in them.
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