Real-time internet speed & bandwidth usage · VPN country flag detection · Data usage tracking · Interface lock · Zero dependencies
Install · Screenshots · Features · Compare · FAQ
Install in 30 seconds — macOS 13+ (Ventura), Intel & Apple Silicon, under 500 KB, no special permissions:
brew tap mh-sudo/netbar https://github.com/mh-sudo/NetBar && \
brew trust mh-sudo/netbar && \
brew install --cask netbarFeatured in The Best macOS Bandwidth Monitor Apps · No telemetry — the only network request is the IP lookup for the flag
NetBar is a lightweight macOS menu bar app that shows your real-time internet speed — upload and download bandwidth — and the country flag of your current IP address. It doubles as a bandwidth monitor: track your data usage across hours, days, weeks, and months with built-in 12-month history.
Activity Monitor can show network throughput, but it takes a full window and a click into the Network tab. NetBar puts your speed directly in the menu bar, always visible:
- Uploading a file? Watch the number climb in real time.
- Download stalled? See it flatline instantly.
- Just connected to a VPN? The country flag updates in under a second so you know if you're routing through the right region.
- Tracking VPN data separately? Lock monitoring to your
utuninterface so only tunnel traffic counts. - On sketchy hotel or airport Wi-Fi? Check throughput before joining a call.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Live speed display | Upload and download speed refreshes every second, right in the menu bar |
| Country flag detection | See which country your IP resolves to for an instant VPN sanity check |
| Bandwidth & data usage tracking | See how much data you've used in the last hour, day, week, or month. 12-month history with monthly breakdown |
| Interface lock | Lock monitoring to a single network interface (e.g. your VPN tunnel) to track specific traffic separately |
| Triple-layer VPN detection | Combines SCDynamicStore, NWPathMonitor, and interface polling to catch VPN/network transitions other menu bar apps miss |
| Customizable layout | Single-line, dual-line, upload-only, or download-only display |
| Launch at login | Set it once and forget it's there |
| 100% open source | MIT licensed. Read the code, fork it, audit it yourself |
| No telemetry | The only network requests NetBar makes are the IP lookup for the flag. No analytics, no tracking, no accounts |
Live speed display in the menu bar with country flag
Data usage dashboard: 1H, 1D, 1W, 1M views with 12-month history
Settings panel: toggle country flag, arrows, single-line mode, launch at login, refresh rate, and interface lock
Interface lock: monitor Wi-Fi only, VPN only, or all traffic
Copy the whole block, paste into Terminal, hit enter:
brew tap mh-sudo/netbar https://github.com/mh-sudo/NetBar && \
brew trust mh-sudo/netbar && \
brew install --cask netbarHomebrew 6.0+ requires third-party taps to be explicitly trusted before running their code. This is a supply-chain security feature, normal for any non-official tap.
-
Download the latest
.zipfrom Releases -
Drag
NetBar.appinto/Applications -
Since NetBar is ad-hoc signed (not notarized, no Apple Developer Program fee for a free open-source tool), macOS Gatekeeper will block it on first launch. Fix it once:
xattr -cr /Applications/NetBar.app
Homebrew handles it cleanly, including leftover config files:
brew uninstall --cask netbar && brew untap mh-sudo/netbarInstalled manually? Quit NetBar, delete /Applications/NetBar.app, and optionally remove leftovers:
rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/NetBar ~/Library/Preferences/com.netbar.app.plist ~/Library/Caches/com.netbar.app- Developers: Is
npm installactually downloading, or did it hang? Is your deploy sending data? Check without opening a terminal. - VPN users: Switch servers and confirm you're routed correctly in under a second. Lock monitoring to a VPN interface to track only tunnel traffic — great for metered or capped VPN services.
- Remote workers: Check real throughput before joining a video call on unfamiliar Wi-Fi.
- Anyone on a metered connection: Tethering from your phone? Watch exactly how much data is moving.
- Older Macs: Runs on macOS 13 (Ventura) and up, including Intel Macs. No need for the latest hardware.
vs. Stats — Stats is an excellent free, open-source monitor for your whole system (CPU, RAM, disk, battery, and more). Pick Stats if you want everything in one app. Pick NetBar if you want a tiny network-only tool that also gives you a VPN country-flag check, interface locking, and a 12-month bandwidth history.
vs. iStat Menus — The premium option ($). Beautiful and deep, but it's a full system suite. If you only watch your network, NetBar covers it for free in under 500 KB.
vs. Bandwidth+ — Free Mac App Store app focused on usage per Wi-Fi network. NetBar adds live speed always visible in the menu bar, VPN flag verification, interface lock, and a 12-month history — no App Store account required.
vs. MenuMeters — The classic open-source menu bar monitor. The original is no longer maintained on modern macOS. NetBar is a native Swift app built for macOS 13+.
| NetBar | Typical paid menu bar monitor | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, open source | $2.99+ |
| App size | Under 500 KB | 2–4 MB |
| macOS required | 13.0+ (Ventura) | Often latest only |
| Live menu bar speed | Yes | Yes |
| Country flag / VPN check | Yes, built in | Sometimes, as add-on |
| Data usage tracking | Yes, 1H/1D/1W/1M + 12-month history | Rarely, if ever |
| Instant VPN transition detection | Yes, triple layer | Usually single layer or none |
| Open source and auditable | Yes | No |
| Telemetry-free | Yes | Varies |
Speed measurement polls getifaddrs() system counters every second and calculates byte deltas across en* (Wi-Fi), utun* (VPN), and pdp_ip* (cellular) interfaces. Use interface lock in Settings to filter tracking to a single interface. No packet sniffing, no elevated permissions.
IP geolocation races five providers concurrently (ip-api.com, ipapi.co, country.is, ipinfo.io, ipwho.is); first response wins. Ephemeral lookups, zero caching, zero accounts.
Network change detection uses three independent layers (SCDynamicStore Darwin notifications, NWPathMonitor, and interface polling with 0.5s debounce) to reliably catch VPN transitions that single-layer detection often misses.
Data usage is tracked by sampling the same system counters every 3 minutes and storing cumulative snapshots on disk. The dashboard computes deltas on the fly for any time window and keeps a rolling 12-month archive.
The only outbound request NetBar ever makes is the IP lookup for the flag. No analytics SDKs, no crash reporters phoning home, no accounts.
Speeds stuck at 0 B/s? Make sure there's active traffic. Open a site or start a download. NetBar shows total interface throughput, so background apps count too.
"App is damaged" warning on first launch?
Run xattr -cr /Applications/NetBar.app. This happens because the app is ad-hoc signed rather than notarized through Apple's paid Developer Program.
Wrong country flag showing? Click "Refresh IP" in the dropdown. If you just switched VPN servers, give it a second. It updates automatically on network change.
- Lock monitoring to a specific network interface (track VPN traffic separately)
- Data usage tracking — hour, day, week, and month views with 12-month history
- Data cap alerts (usage threshold + notification)
- Wi-Fi SSID display in menu bar
Have an idea? Open an issue or send a PR. Contributions welcome.
Is there a free app that shows internet speed in the Mac menu bar?
Yes — that's exactly what NetBar is. Free, open source, and it shows live upload and download speed in your menu bar. Install it with Homebrew: brew install --cask netbar (after tapping the repo — see Install).
How do I show upload and download speed on my Mac? Install NetBar and it lives in your menu bar permanently — no window to open, no terminal to run. macOS 13 (Ventura) or newer, Intel or Apple Silicon.
Is NetBar a good free alternative to iStat Menus? If you only need network monitoring, yes. iStat Menus is a paid full-system suite; NetBar covers network speed, VPN flag verification, and bandwidth usage for free. If you need CPU, RAM, disk, and temperature monitoring too, look at Stats.
Does NetBar work on Intel Macs? Yes, macOS 13.0+, Intel or Apple Silicon.
Is there a subscription or in-app purchase? No. Free and open source, forever. No ads, no tracking.
Does it work with any VPN? Yes. NetBar detects network/VPN interface changes at the system level, so it works with any VPN client.
How is NetBar different from Activity Monitor? Activity Monitor requires opening a full app window and navigating to the Network tab. NetBar lives permanently in your menu bar with live numbers, plus it adds VPN country-flag verification that Activity Monitor doesn't offer.
Is my data safe? The only network request NetBar makes is an IP geolocation lookup to show the country flag. No telemetry, no analytics, no accounts. See Under the hood.
MIT. Use it, fork it, ship it.
If NetBar saves you a click, give it a star. It helps other people find it.