iStat Menus 6 Released for Mac With Notifications, Weather, Hotkeys, and Improved Customization - MacRumors
Skip to Content

iStat Menus 6 Released for Mac With Notifications, Weather, Hotkeys, and Improved Customization

by

A major new version of iStat Menus, a popular Mac system monitor for power users, has been released today for macOS High Sierra.

istat menus 6
One of the biggest new features in iStat Menus 6 is configurable notifications for a wide range of events, based on CPU, GPU, memory, storage disks, networking, sensors, battery, power, and weather.

iStat Menus now has a Notification Center widget for CPU usage, memory, top CPU and memory processes, load averages, disk space, and uptime.

istat menus 6 notification center
You can be notified, for instance, when your public IP has changed, if your internet connection is down, if CPU usage is above 60 percent for more than 10 seconds, or even of daylight saving time changes.

iStat Menus 6 features an all-new weather menu with the current temperature and conditions, hourly and weekly forecasts, notifications, and more. Weather-related notifications can be configured.

istat menus 6 weather plus notifications
The update also introduces new ways to color and style the menu bar icons, dropdown menus, and graphs, including light and dark backgrounds.

istat menus 6 customization
Another key feature is hotkeys support for opening and closing dropdown menus using your keyboard, including time, CPU, GPU, memory, storage disks, networking, sensors, battery, power, and more.

Other changes include improved accessibility, localization, AirPods battery level support, dropdown menu reordering, automatic fan set switching based on events, and many other new features outlined in the version history.

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 6 menu bar
iStat Menus 6 is available now for $18 on developer Bjango's website. Existing users with version 3.0 or later can upgrade for $9.99.

macOS High Sierra was publicly released on the Mac App Store today. iStat Menus 6 is also compatible with OS X El Capitan and macOS Sierra.

Top Rated Comments

119 months ago
The app says "Powered by Weather Underground". How do you know the weather subscription uses Dark Sky?
I wish Weather Underground allowed people who own personal weather stations price breaks on things their partners do. I run a pretty advanced PWS and it feels weird paying for my own data via a 3rd party.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bjango Avatar
119 months ago
Thank you. This worked for me.
Great to hear! Thanks for letting me know.

Great app, keep up the good work. This is just a personal preference.
Yep! I’d love to hear your preferences. We have some options to control how the weather menubar items and dropdowns behave, and we will continue to improve and refine them. This is just our first pass at it.

Of course I can turn it off, and not pay for the data, and I assume this is well written software so unused modules aren't a burden on resources-- so why am I calling out this module in particular?
I’d rather you thought it was so awesome that you kept it on. Feedback is welcome.

And yes, you’re right — turning off items in iStat Menus does save resources. We also don’t fetch some info until the dropdown menu is opened, which also helps. We do our best to keep things lean, given it’s an app people have running all the time.

Weather feels unrelated to the iStat Menu's purpose. "One of these things is not like the others. One of these things doesn't belong."
Yep, it is a bit outside the main scope of the app. But, so are time, calendar and calendar events. The time item is probably my most used aspect of iStat Menus. We do need to be very careful about what is added though.

I know you need to keep the business going, so I don't mean to be critical of your decision making. Just expressing my personal preferences.
Please be critical! The feedback is good, and the discussion is welcome. Thank you.

if the app goes to subscription, I walk.
We have no plans to move to subscription, and I am speaking more for myself (@marcedwards ('https://twitter.com/marcedwards')) than Bjango when I say this: But I completely agree with you. I do not want all my apps to become subscription, and I think in many or even most cases, switching to subscription is a terrible idea for customers, for the product, and for the businesses that do it.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bjango Avatar
119 months ago
They posted this a few hours ago, i've always been impressed with this app, big improvements.
Thanks! Almost every aspect of the app got a rework in this version.

Not really upset about that, but rather the fact that they sold it as a full product and made ZERO mention of a subscription based model for part of that same application I paid for.
iStat Menus 6 includes a 14-day free trial, and 6 months of weather data is included in the initial purchase. We use premium data sources, and we have to pay for usage every time weather is fetched. There really isn’t an alternative in terms of weather data sources, if you’re after something free, high quality, global, and with a license that allows commercial use.

We have some more info on the topic here: https://bjango.com/help/istatmenus6/weather/

I'm guessing it was required to license the Dark Sky data? But yeah, pretty bizarre (and all the more reason to add other providers).
We’ll definitely consider adding other providers in the future. We’re using Weather Underground for some locations.

Yes, I went with the upgrade as I've bought every prior iStat version. I've just got a personal preference not to purchase subscription based software. They should of made it clear that part of the application requires a subscription and I'd of gladly stayed quiet and stayed with the current version.
I don’t like subscription software either. We pay for weather data fetching based on each request, so we wanted something that aligned with how we get charged. Please note that weather in iStat Menus is sold as data packs that cover 12 months — they never auto-renew and there is nothing to cancel, if you decide you do not want it any more. It’s a subtle difference, but I think it is an important one.

No sooner do I type, another email comes in with the serial. Whew!
Great to hear. :) Thanks for your patience. There’s been some delays in the second emails (the important one with the license in it!).

I was using 5.X on macOS 10.12.6 and it automatically installed 6.0 (in truth, it probably asked me to update and I probably just said go ahead thinking it was just bug fixes).
The exact window you would have seen can be found here: https://bjango.com/help/istatmenus6/update/

However, then it popped up a window saying it needed to install "some components" but that fails every time with the helpful message "an error occurred". So I had to download and re-install 5.X. Turned off automatic update check.
Please redownload the latest build: http://download.bjango.com/istatmenus/

If that does not work, please get in contact via private message here, or via our website, or via Twitter (public or DM). Thanks!

Upgraded. I use it on all my machines-- $10 to keep the developer going is a pittance.
Thank you! It is appreciated. As long as people keep buying it, we’ll keep making it.

I wish they hadn't included the weather module though. I guess they feel they need to keep adding features to justify the upgrade price, but weather requires pretty specialized presentation. So far, I find ForcastBar has the best presentation, but the actual weather accuracy is crap so it's pretty-but-wrong.
What don’t you like about the way iStat Menus displays weather info? We’re always open to feedback, and want iStat Menus to be the best.

Does anyone have iStat Menu 6 reporting higher RAM usage than iStat Menu 5?
This is very likely due to the settings. Memory pressure vs traditional UNIX memory reporting, or “Hide inactive memory”. We added the ability to control what’s shown in the menubar per item. Here’s where the settings are now:



Attachment Image
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
119 months ago
Did they ever fix MenuMeters? It broke a WHILE ago and the developer seemed to have abandoned it.
That's how it can be so light on resources. It doesn't run at all!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
shareef777 Avatar
119 months ago
The company issued me a refund and is very fast and responsive. While I personally don't like subscriptions I wish them the best.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
119 months ago
The article says the upgrade is $9.99 but it's showing as $11.99 for me?

VAT maybe? It was $9.99 for me in the US.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

apple pro tell logo

Apple Launching Two More New Products This Friday

Monday November 9, 2026 4:22 am PST by
The Apple launches keep coming! The company is set to release two new products on Friday, November 13: the all-new Apple HomeView and the fourth-generation Apple TV 4K, both of which have been available to pre-order since mid-October. Apple HomeView: Apple's new smart home display, powered by Apple Intelligence with Siri AI, for entertainment and managing the home. Available in tabletop and...
imac video apple feature

November 20 to Mark the End of an Era at Apple

Wednesday November 11, 2026 7:51 am PST by
Apple has announced that the long-running Apple Support Community discussion forums for user-to-user tech support will be permanently closing on Friday, November 20. The forums have existed in some form for nearly 30 years, so it is the end of an era. Effectively immediately, the Apple Support Community forums are in a read-only state, with new posts no longer being accepted. The final...
iOS 28 AI

Apple Taking New Approach to Developing iOS 28 and macOS 28

Sunday November 8, 2026 7:42 am PST by
Apple has made a change to its development process for iOS 28, macOS 28, and corresponding software updates, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, he said Apple separates development of each year's new operating systems into three major stages. Typically, he said each stage consists of four weeks of coding followed by a four-week "convergence" period where...
Latest Stories
Apple Support Community Deserved a Proper Goodbye
Apple Support Community Deserved a Proper Goodbye
5 hours ago
Apple on Fatal Vehicle Crash Near Apple Park: 'Our Hearts Are Broken'
Apple on Fatal Vehicle Crash Near Apple Park: 'Our Hearts Are Broken'
12 hours ago
Apple Invites App Updated With Two New Features
Apple Invites App Updated With Two New Features
13 hours ago
Google Says Gemini App Rolling Out on Apple CarPlay Starting Today
Google Says Gemini App Rolling Out on Apple CarPlay Starting Today
14 hours ago
Is It Worth Buying a Ceramic Apple Watch?
Is It Worth Buying a Ceramic Apple Watch?
17 hours ago
Samsung Early Black Friday Event Brings Major Sales to Frame TVs and More
Samsung Early Black Friday Event Brings Major Sales to Frame TVs and More
18 hours ago
iPhone 18 Pro Max Wins Battery Test Involving 32 Smartphones
iPhone 18 Pro Max Wins Battery Test Involving 32 Smartphones
19 hours ago
AirTag 2 4-Pack Hits Record Low $69.99 Price Ahead of Black Friday
AirTag 2 4-Pack Hits Record Low $69.99 Price Ahead of Black Friday
20 hours ago
Rumored Apple Smart Glasses Mentioned in Supplier's Earnings Briefing
Rumored Apple Smart Glasses Mentioned in Supplier's Earnings Briefing
20 hours ago
Make Apple Watch Listen for Sounds Like the Doorbell
Make Apple Watch Listen for Sounds Like the Doorbell
1 day ago
Apple Chip Supplier TSMC Approves $1 Billion AI Investment
Apple Chip Supplier TSMC Approves $1 Billion AI Investment
1 day ago
'Apple Support Community' Permanently Closing on November 20
'Apple Support Community' Permanently Closing on November 20
1 day ago
Apple's Holiday Gift Guide Highlights iPhone Duo and More
Apple's Holiday Gift Guide Highlights iPhone Duo and More
1 day ago
Three Workers Die at Tata iPhone Parts Plant in India
Three Workers Die at Tata iPhone Parts Plant in India
1 day ago
iCloud Mail, Calendar, Contacts and More Experiencing Outage [Updated]
iCloud Mail, Calendar, Contacts and More Experiencing Outage [Updated]
1 day ago
Apple's Claris Testing 'Harbor' App for Local AI on Macs
Apple's Claris Testing 'Harbor' App for Local AI on Macs
1 day ago
iFixit's PROLED MacBook Pro Teardown Reveals Logo LEDs
iFixit's PROLED MacBook Pro Teardown Reveals Logo LEDs
2 days ago
10 Free iPhone Duo Apps Worth Downloading
10 Free iPhone Duo Apps Worth Downloading
2 days ago
Apple Releases New AirPods Firmware
Apple Releases New AirPods Firmware
2 days ago
Amazon Begins Early Black Friday Sale, Featuring Sitewide Discounts on Tech and Decor
Amazon Begins Early Black Friday Sale, Featuring Sitewide Discounts on Tech and Decor
2 days ago
Apple Announces Swift Student Challenge Ahead of WWDC 2027
Apple Announces Swift Student Challenge Ahead of WWDC 2027
2 days ago
Next iPad Air Likely to Have These 10 New Features
Next iPad Air Likely to Have These 10 New Features
2 days ago
iPad Mini 2021 vs. 2026 Buyer's Guide: Is It Worth Upgrading?
iPad Mini 2021 vs. 2026 Buyer's Guide: Is It Worth Upgrading?
2 days ago
New Apple TV Sign Language Feature Announced
New Apple TV Sign Language Feature Announced
2 days ago
Disable Touch on MacBook Pro PROLED XDR and When Using Sidecar
Disable Touch on MacBook Pro PROLED XDR and When Using Sidecar
2 days ago
Anker's Early Black Friday Sale Surprises With Mystery Boxes and Big Discounts
Anker's Early Black Friday Sale Surprises With Mystery Boxes and Big Discounts
2 days ago
Apple Arcade Adding These Four Games in December
Apple Arcade Adding These Four Games in December
2 days ago
OLED iPad Air Rumored to Launch in Two Sizes in Early 2027
OLED iPad Air Rumored to Launch in Two Sizes in Early 2027
2 days ago
The Original iPod Went on Sale 25 Years Ago Today
The Original iPod Went on Sale 25 Years Ago Today
2 days ago
Apple Maps Could Factor Parking Into Your Arrival Time
Apple Maps Could Factor Parking Into Your Arrival Time
2 days ago