Surtees Studios recently announced it has released a public beta of Bartender 3 for testing on macOS High Sierra and macOS Sierra. It's a free update available within Bartender 2, which costs $15 after a free four-week trial.

bartender 2
The popular tool for rearranging or hiding Mac menu bar items has been completely rewritten in Swift, according to the release notes.

Bartender 3 also no longer requires the Bartender Helper to be installed in menu bar apps in order to control them. As a result, Bartender is no longer able to display the Bartender Bar beneath the menu bar—only within it.

The change was necessary since, in macOS High Sierra, Apple has apparently tightened its System Integrity Protection security feature, preventing system items like Spotlight search from being controlled by Bartender 2.

iStat Menus 5 was also recently updated with improved support for macOS High Sierra and MacBook Pro, MacBook, and iMac models released in 2017.

istat menus 5 header cpu
The popular Mac system monitor also gained improved per-process network monitoring, improved per-process memory monitoring in OS X El Capitan and macOS Sierra, improved Bluetooth battery monitoring, and improved disk monitoring performance, plus a fix for an issue with the sun position in light map.

iStat Menus is built into the macOS menu bar, providing power users with convenient access to system information, such as CPU and GPU usage, memory stats, fan speeds, temperatures, disk usage, and battery life.

iStat Menus 5 is $18 on developer Bjango's website, with a free 14-day trial available. The latest update is version 5.32.

(Thanks, Neil T.!)

Related Forum: macOS High Sierra

Top Rated Comments

mixel Avatar
109 months ago
I need bartender. my menubar gets ridiculous without it.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bjango Avatar
109 months ago
This is great news, and we’re really happy to see Bartender working well on High Sierra.

iStat Menus 6 is coming.

https://twitter.com/bjango/status/900681265745076225
Yep, we’re in the middle of the beta, and things are going really well! Still a few more things to fix before we can release the update. It’s worth noting that anyone who buys iStat Menus 5 now will get iStat Menus 6 for free.

$18 for a single install still seems like way too much for iStat Menus, especially when I'd be fine with a free lite version.
The upgrade is heavily discounted for current iStat Menus customers (USD$9.99). We’ve been working on iStat Menus for over 10 years, and will continue to invest time and effort into making sure it’s the best system monitoring tool for macOS. Quite often, that means buying hardware for testing, especially for sensor support. This is our full time job, and we’re very grateful we can do it with the support of our customers.

iStat Mini might be a good option, if you don’t need all of iStat Menus’ features.
https://bjango.com/mac/istatmini/

Over the years there have been alternatives developed after iStat Menus went paid, like Menu Meters which I was using on OS X Mavericks, but unfortunately I'm not aware of any that work on Sierra or High Sierra.
Yep, feel free to use an alternative, or even stay on iStat Menus 5, if you want. If you like iStat Menus 5, I think you’re going to love iStat Menus 6.

Why... What could 6 offer over 5?

I love istat, but I'm not given a good reason to upgrade....
You can continue to use iStat Menus 5, if you like. iStat Menus 6 is a massive update though. We’ve been working on it for years.

When it comes out you can try it to see if you still feel that way, and make your choice. For me, I'm running the 6 betas, and I already paid them for the family pack upgrade.
Thank you! The feedback we’ve had during the beta has been amazing.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
swrobel Avatar
109 months ago
Anyone else getting sick of SIP?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
poi ran Avatar
109 months ago
$18 for a single install still seems like way too much for iStat Menus, especially when I'd be fine with a free lite version.

Over the years there have been alternatives developed after iStat Menus went paid, like Menu Meters which I was using on OS X Mavericks, but unfortunately I'm not aware of any that work on Sierra or High Sierra.
I'm using MenuMeters on Sierra, a fork from https://member.ipmu.jp/yuji.tachikawa/MenuMetersElCapitan/ , I have no idea about it working on High Sierra though. I use it in combo with HWMonitor (http://www.hwsensors.com/) , and see little use for iStat these days even if iStat is very "good looking" and probably safer to use than HWMonitor which I only run on a "hackintosh".

Attachment Image
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Starflyer Avatar
109 months ago
Love Bartender! Worth every penny to reduce desktop clutter.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pdaholic Avatar
109 months ago
Sorry for being dense — I'm not quite sure I follow this point. I've tried to install the beta of version 3 too see for myself but it won't let me... If anyone has installed it, can you explain/screenshot what this means?

At the moment I have the Bartender icon hidden completely and access it via keyboard shortcut, is that still an option?
Instead of the bartender menu popping up under the toolbar, it becomes the right side of the toolbar. Select the bartender icon again and it goes back to the toolbar.

If you are on high sierra, make sure you go to the bartender creator's blog and select the link to sign up for the beta. Then just hit update on the bartender menu and it will update.

Not sure about the keyboard shortcut but I can't imagine that would be gone. I can check later.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iphone 17 models

No iPhone 18 Launch This Year, Reports Suggest

Thursday January 1, 2026 8:43 am PST by
Apple is not expected to release a standard iPhone 18 model this year, according to a growing number of reports that suggest the company is planning a significant change to its long-standing annual iPhone launch cycle. Despite the immense success of the iPhone 17 in 2025, the iPhone 18 is not expected to arrive until the spring of 2027, leaving the iPhone 17 in the lineup as the latest...
Clicks Communicator Feature

'Clicks Communicator' Unveiled — Will You Carry This With Your iPhone?

Friday January 2, 2026 6:35 am PST by
The company behind the BlackBerry-like Clicks Keyboard accessory for the iPhone today unveiled a new Android 16 smartphone called the Clicks Communicator. The purpose-built device is designed to be used as a second phone alongside your iPhone, with the intended focus being communication over content consumption. It runs a custom Android launcher that offers a curated selection of messaging...
duolingo ad live activity

Duolingo Used iPhone's Dynamic Island to Display Ads, Violating Apple Design Guidelines

Friday January 2, 2026 1:36 pm PST by
Language learning app Duolingo has apparently been using the iPhone's Live Activity feature to display ads on the Lock Screen and the Dynamic Island, which violates Apple's design guidelines. According to multiple reports on Reddit, the Duolingo app has been displaying an ad for a "Super offer," which is Duolingo's paid subscription option. Apple's guidelines for Live Activity state that...
apple intelligence black

Report: Apple's AI Strategy Could Finally Pay Off in 2026

Tuesday December 30, 2025 9:01 am PST by
Apple's restrained artificial intelligence strategy may pay off in 2026 amid the arrival of a revamped Siri and concerns around the AI market "bubble" bursting, The Information argues. The speculative report notes that Apple has taken a restrained approach with AI innovations compared with peers such as OpenAI, Google, and Meta, which are investing hundreds of billions of dollars in data...
apple fitness 2026 1

Apple Teases 'Something Big' Coming Soon to Apple Fitness+

Tuesday December 30, 2025 2:11 pm PST by
The Apple Fitness+ Instagram account today teased that the service has "big plans" for 2026. In a video, several Apple Fitness+ trainers are shown holding up newspapers with headlines related to Apple Fitness+. What's Apple Fitness+ Planning for the New Year? Something Big is Coming to Apple Fitness+ The Countdown Begins. Apple Fitness+ 2026 is Almost Here 2026 Plans Still Under ...
Mac Pro Feature Blue

What's Happening With the Mac Pro?

Wednesday December 31, 2025 9:59 am PST by
Apple hasn't updated the Mac Pro since 2023, and according to recent rumors, there's no update coming in the near future. In fact, Apple might be finished with the Mac Pro. Bloomberg recently said that the Mac Pro is "on the back burner" and has been "largely written off" by Apple. Apple apparently views the more compact Mac Studio as the ideal high-end pro-level desktop, and it has almost...
macbook air march 2020

Apple Says Final Intel MacBook Air and Apple Watch Series 5 Now 'Vintage'

Wednesday December 31, 2025 8:39 am PST by
Apple today added the final 13-inch MacBook Air powered by Intel processors, the Apple Watch Series 5, and additional products to its vintage products list. The iPhone 11 Pro was also added to the list after the iPhone 11 Pro Max was added back in September. The full list of products added to Apple's vintage and obsolete list today: MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2020) iPhone 8 Plus 128GB ...
Apple Fitness Plus hero

Apple Announces New Fitness+ Workout Programs, Strava Challenge, and More

Friday January 2, 2026 6:43 am PST by
Apple today announced a number of updates to Apple Fitness+ and activity with the Apple Watch. The key announcements include: New Year limited-edition award: Users can win the award by closing all three Activity Rings for seven days in a row in January. "Quit Quitting" Strava challenge: Available in Strava throughout January, users who log 12 workouts anytime in the month will win an ...