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

adamjackson Avatar
96 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
96 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)
santaliqueur Avatar
96 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)
Bjango Avatar
96 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)
Cougarcat Avatar
96 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)
shareef777 Avatar
96 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)

Popular Stories

oppo find n5 fingers

World's Thinnest Foldable Phone Launches Next Week

Monday February 10, 2025 3:05 am PST by
Oppo has confirmed a February 20 global launch for its Find N5, which the company claims is the world's thinnest device in the foldable phone category. The phone is expected to be re-branded as the OnePlus Open 2 in the US. The Chinese vendor has been teasing the device in the last few weeks, touting its waterproofing and nearly invisible display crease, and highlighting its thinness by compa...
2007 iPhone

Apple Discontinuing This 18-Year-Old iPhone Feature

Saturday February 8, 2025 3:51 pm PST by
The end of an 18-year era is on the horizon for the iPhone. Apple reportedly plans to announce a new iPhone SE as soon as next week, and the device is expected to feature a full-screen design with Face ID, instead of a Touch ID home button. That means Apple will no longer sell any new iPhone models with a home button, for the first time since the original iPhone launched. The home button...
m2 macbook air blue

M4 MacBook Air Release Continues to Appear Imminent

Monday February 10, 2025 10:56 am PST by
There continue to be signs of a new MacBook Air with an M4 chip, indicating that we could see the machine launch in the not too distant future. A private account on X today shared the identifiers that the MacBook Air will use, and those identifiers correspond to the M4 chip. According to the source, both the 13-inch MacBook Air and the 15-inch MacBook Air will be equipped with Apple's...
watchOS 11 Thumb 2 1

Apple Releases watchOS 11.3.1

Monday February 10, 2025 10:04 am PST by
Apple today released watchOS 11.3.1, a minor update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.3.1 is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2. watchOS 11.3.1 can be downloaded by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software, the Apple Watch needs to...
sequoia

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.3.1

Monday February 10, 2025 10:11 am PST by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.3.1, a minor update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that came out last September. macOS 15.3.1 comes a few weeks after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3. Mac users can download the ‌‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. Apple has also released macOS 13.7.4 and macOS 14.7.4 for those who are...
iPhone SE 4 Thumb 1

'New' iPhone SE Product Listing Appears on French Website

Wednesday February 12, 2025 6:49 am PST by
As the wait continues for Apple's long-rumored, fourth-generation iPhone SE, French electronics retailer Boulanger has prematurely published a product listing for a "new" model of the iPhone SE. The placeholder page says the device is "coming soon," but it offers no further information, and the price shown is obviously not real. The listing was spotted by a reader of the French technology...
Powerbeats Pro 2 Orange

Powerbeats Pro 2 Given to Customer Early, Expected to Debut Tomorrow

Monday February 10, 2025 7:42 am PST by
Apple's long-awaited Powerbeats Pro 2 are finally expected to be announced this Tuesday. Ahead of time, one lucky Walmart customer was able to get their hands on the earbuds early, according to a since-deleted Reddit post over the weekend. A leaked image of the Powerbeats Pro 2 in Electric Orange "My local Walmart had them in the cage," the Reddit user explained. "I asked if I can buy them...
iOS 18

Apple Releases iOS 18.3.1 With Bug Fixes

Monday February 10, 2025 10:09 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 18.3.1 and iPadOS 18.3.1, minor updates for the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.3.1 comes two weeks after Apple released iOS 18.3. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Apple has also released iPadOS 17.7.5 for those still running...
apple silicon mac lineup 2024 feature purple

Apple Increases Mac Trade-In Values for a Limited Time

Sunday February 9, 2025 3:53 pm PST by
Apple today increased its estimated trade-in values for select Mac models in the United States, with the full changes outlined below. Apple says the extra trade-in credit for select Macs is available with the purchase of an eligible new Apple device through April 2. The trade-in values increased by between $10 and $50. Model New Value Old Value MacBook Pro Up to $925 ...