What is draining the battery, and what keeps the Mac awake.

The Battery tab lists the apps using the most energy, the apps holding sleep off and what each one claims to be doing, and the battery's own health, cycles and temperature, so a laptop that was full at nine and flat at one has an answer.

Get Vitals for $15 All features
Ask AI ChatGPT Claude Perplexity AI Mode Grok Markdown
Memory by Type
82%
in use
App 22.15 GB
Wired 5.67 GB
Compressed 24.54 GB
Cached 10.32 GB
Free 1.32 GB
Memory by App
59.25 GB
all apps
Google Chrome 21.23 GB
VS Code 8.17 GB
Terminal 3.86 GB
Safari 2.69 GB
Other 23.30 GB
Power by App
1.7 W
all apps
GitHub Desktop 427 mW
Google Chrome 367 mW
Zoom 145 mW
Terminal 86 mW
Other 650 mW
Now
27 %
Average today36%
Load3.41
User
19%
Your apps
System
8%
macOS
Cores
12
8 P4 E
Top App
Google Chrome
18.2%
AppCPU
Google Chrome
96 processes
–
Terminal
49 processes
–
Safari
16 processes
–
Docker
9 processes
–
Visual Studio Code
63 processes
–
Slack
13 processes
–
Figma
14 processes
–
Zoom
8 processes
–
In use of 64 GB
52.63 GB
Normal
Free11.37 GB
Swap0 MB
App
23.43 GB
Wired
5.37 GB
Compressed
23.82 GB
Top App
Google Chrome
20.59 GB
AppMemory
Google Chrome
96 processes
–
Visual Studio Code
63 processes
–
Terminal
49 processes
–
Safari
16 processes
–
Docker
9 processes
–
Slack
13 processes
–
Figma
14 processes
–
Zoom
8 processes
–
Free of 994.66 GB
479.72 GB
Used514.94 GB
Written today38.9 GB
Reading
737 kB/s
Writing
195 kB/s
Volumes
2
Macintosh HDBackup
Top App
Photos
121 kB/s
AppWriting
Photos
6 processes
–
Google Chrome
96 processes
–
Docker
9 processes
–
Visual Studio Code
63 processes
–
Xcode
22 processes
–
Mail
4 processes
–
Slack
13 processes
–
Music
5 processes
–
Downloading
12 kB/s
Today4.4 GB
Last 30 days212 GB
Uploading
419 kB/s
Last 7 Days
48.3 GB
Interface
Wi-Fi
en0
Top App
Safari
8 kB/s
AppDownloading
Safari
16 processes
–
Google Chrome
96 processes
–
Slack
13 processes
–
Zoom
8 processes
–
Music
5 processes
–
Mail
4 processes
–
Docker
9 processes
–
Notion
6 processes
–
Apple M2 Max
60 %
Average32%
Peak95%
Memory
1.69 GB
Average
32%
Peak
95%
Top App
Figma
35%
AppGPU
Figma
14 processes
–
Google Chrome
96 processes
–
Safari
16 processes
–
Zoom
8 processes
–
Visual Studio Code
63 processes
–
Xcode
22 processes
–
Slack
13 processes
–
Notion
6 processes
–
16-core Neural Engine
2 %
Average3%
Peak16%
Memory Traffic
79.9 MB/s
Average
3%
Peak
16%
Top App
Photos
3 connections
AppNeural Engine
Photos
6 processes
–
Xcode
22 processes
–
Safari
16 processes
–
Zoom
8 processes
–
Mail
4 processes
–
Notion
6 processes
–
Google Chrome
96 processes
–
On battery
64 %
Remaining2h 46m
Cycles412
Power Draw
12.6 W
Health
76%
Temperature
31°
Top App
Google Chrome
4.3 W
AppPower
Google Chrome
96 processes
–
Zoom
8 processes
–
Figma
14 processes
–
Slack
13 processes
–
Safari
16 processes
–
Visual Studio Code
63 processes
–
Docker
9 processes
–
Music
5 processes
–
Output
MacBook Pro Speakers
64%
AppStatusVolumeLevel
Music Playing 100%
Zoom Playing 80%
Google Chrome Playing 35%
Slack Silent Muted
Safari Silent 100%
Figma Silent 100%
Notion Silent 100%
Mail Silent 100%
3 connected
Lowest battery: AirPods Pro, left, 42%. Beats Fit Pro is paired but away.
42% Bluetooth Settings
DeviceKindBatteryLevel
AirPods Pro Headphones
Left 42%
Right 58%
Case 80%
Magic Trackpad Trackpad 67%
Magic Keyboard Keyboard 91%
4 dev servers are running but idle
Stopping them frees 1.37 GB and ports 3000, 4321, 4322, 8000.
Stop All…
storefront
9 processes
working
1.18 GB
storefront-web
node
4322 up 3 days, barely used
458 MB
scraper-api
python
8000 up 4 days, barely used
412 MB
marketing-site
node
4321 idle 2 hours
296 MB
billing-api
node
30009229 idle 45 min
204 MB
docs
node
5173
188 MB
ml-notebooks
python
8888
164 MB
design-tokens
node
6006 idle 20 min
121 MB
infra
3 processes
96 MB
auth-service
go
8080
74 MB
email-templates
node
3030 idle 3 hours
58 MB
0%
Claude
This week
On pace · 10% to spare
0%
Codex
5-hour session
Resets in 3h 12m
0%
GitHub Copilot
Premium requests
Runs out in 4d at this rate
0%
Cursor
This billing cycle
Resets in 12d 5h
Checkout flow tests Working Waiting for you
Claude Code · storefront · running 48 min
410 MB
Started · 4 Quit Session…
vitest command · 61% CPU 520 MB
node server · port 3,001 240 MB
Google Chrome for Testing browser 310 MB
mcp-server-fetch tool server 64 MB
Codex idle 48 min
docs · in Terminal · Nothing started
290 MB
4 containers in Docker
674MB
Lowest592.3 MB
Peak674 MB
By Container
postgres312 MB46%
rabbitmq206 MB31%
minio142 MB21%
redis14 MB2%
CPU
3.0%
most in postgres
Closest to Its Limit
rabbitmq
86% of 240 MB
Network
9kB/s
↓ 6 kB/s · ↑ 3 kB/s
Published Ports
6
5433567263799000+2
storefront 2 containers
Started together by Docker Compose · 2 ports · 2 running
1.9% 326 MB
postgres postgres:16
Up 5 hours
5433
1.6% 312 MB
redis redis:7-alpine
Up 5 hours
6379
0.3% 14 MB
api 1 container
Started together by Docker Compose · 2 ports · 1 running
0.9% 206 MB
rabbitmq rabbitmq:3-management
Up 3 hours
567215672 86% of 240 MB
0.9% 206 MB
minio minio/minio
Up 26 hours
90009001
0.2% 142 MB

The numbers are simulated: a web page cannot read your Mac, and should not.

01Awake

Why your Mac would not sleep in your bag.

The Battery tab lists every app holding sleep off, the reason it gave, such as Playing video or Downloading, how long it has been doing it, and whether it is keeping the screen on. Quit it right there if it should not be.

  • Each app holding sleep off
  • The reason it gave
  • How long, and whether the screen stays on
  • Quit it from the list
Keeping This Mac Awake
ZoomPlaying video · screen on2 h 14 mQuit
MusicPreventing idle sleep48 mQuit
Terminalcaffeinate3 h 02 mQuit
The reason it gave How long, and whether the screen stays on
02Energy

What is using the battery, and how the battery is doing.

Power per app with helpers counted, so Chrome's tabs count as Chrome, plus the battery's own numbers: charge, time remaining, cycles, Maximum Capacity against when it was new, and temperature.

  • Power per app, helpers counted
  • Charge, time remaining, and whether it is charging
  • Cycles and Maximum Capacity
  • Temperature
63%On battery
4 h 19 m remaining412cycles97%Maximum Capacity31°temperature
Power, right now
Google Chrome3.3 W
Zoom1.9 W
Figma1.5 W
Slack0.6 W
Against when it was new Helpers counted
03Wake ups

The apps that never rest.

An Idle Wake Ups column shows how often each app wakes the processor while it looks idle. Click the heading to sort and the apps burning battery while doing nothing you can see come to the top, which is usually the answer to a battery that drains overnight.

  • How often each app wakes the processor
  • Sorted, the restless ones first
  • The usual cause of a battery that drains overnight
  • Turn App Nap off for an app that should not nap
AppPowerIdle Wake Ups ↓
Slack0.6 W312/s
Google Chrome3.3 W180/s
Zoom1.9 W96/s
Figma1.5 W24/s
VS Code0.8 W6/s
Click the heading to sort Restless while it looks idle
04Menu bar

Red at 20%, a bolt while it charges.

A battery item with the charge or the time remaining. It turns red at 20% and under on battery power, shows a bolt while charging, and opens a dropdown with the apps behind the drain.

  • The charge, or the time remaining
  • Red at 20% and under, on battery
  • A bolt while it charges
  • The apps behind the drain in the dropdown
FinderFile 27%18% 14:02
82%On battery
18%20% and under
64%Charging
The charge, or the time remaining The apps behind the drain, a click away
Why it matters

Battery, before and after

The battery menu in macOS lists the apps Using Significant Energy, and Activity Monitor's Energy tab adds Energy Impact and 12 hr Power. Both are right now or the last half day, per process, and neither says why the Mac would not sleep in your bag.

The battery questions are about time and cause: what used it between nine and one, what is holding sleep off and since when, how often an app wakes the processor while it looks idle.

The Battery tab lists energy by app with helpers counted, the apps keeping the Mac awake with the reason each gave and for how long, Idle Wake Ups per app, and the battery itself: charge, time remaining, cycles, maximum capacity and temperature. The menu bar battery turns red at 20% on battery and shows a bolt while charging, and the history keeps energy by app for the day and beyond.

How to use it

Where it is in Vitals

The tab, the menu bar item and the setting, in the order you would reach for them.

  1. 01

    Open the Battery tab

    Power per app, highest first, with the helpers counted under their apps. The Idle Wake Ups column shows how often each app wakes the processor while it looks idle; click the heading and the apps that are not resting come to the top.

  2. 02

    See what is keeping the Mac awake

    Keeping This Mac Awake lists each app with the reason it gave, such as Playing video or Downloading, how long it has held sleep off, and whether it keeps the screen on. Quit it from the list if it should not be.

  3. 03

    Read the battery itself

    Charge, time remaining, whether it is charging, cycles, Maximum Capacity against when it was new, and temperature. In the menu bar, the battery turns red at 20% on battery and shows a bolt while it charges.

  4. 04

    Look back

    Over Time keeps energy by app, and the Peaks card the highest power and when. On a desktop Mac, and on Intel Macs, power still shows, as an estimate on Intel.

Compared

Battery: Activity Monitor and Vitals

The whole comparison is row by row. These are the rows about battery.

Activity Monitor Vitals
Energy by app
Activity MonitorEnergy Impact, per process
VitalsPer app, helpers counted
Keeping the Mac awake
Activity MonitorA Preventing Sleep column
VitalsThe reason each app gave, and for how long
Idle wake ups
Activity MonitorA column
VitalsA column, sorted so the apps that are not resting come first
The battery itself
Activity MonitorSystem Settings → Battery
VitalsOn the tab: cycles, capacity, temperature
Over time
Activity Monitor12 hr Power
VitalsEnergy by app, by the hour, for up to a year

The words behind it

What the numbers mean, from the Activity Monitor glossary.

Questions

The ones people ask about battery before they buy.

How do I find what is draining my Mac's battery?

The Battery tab lists the apps using the most energy, now and today. The battery guide walks through the usual causes.

Why won't my Mac sleep?

Something is holding sleep off. The Battery tab lists the apps doing it, what each one said it is doing, and for how long.

Why does Vitals show a different maximum capacity from System Settings?

Both read the same gauge in the battery. Vitals shows today's reading, which moves a little with temperature; macOS works its number out less often and holds a new battery at 100% for a while.

Does it show Bluetooth device batteries?

Yes, on the Bluetooth tab and in the dropdown, lowest first.

Does the menu bar battery warn me?

It turns red at 20% and under on battery power, and shows a bolt while it charges.

What are Idle Wake Ups?

How often an app wakes the processor while it looks idle. An app that wakes it hundreds of times a second uses battery while doing nothing you can see. The column sorts, so those come to the top.

Can Vitals stop an app from keeping the Mac awake?

Quit it from the list, after a confirmation. If it is a setting rather than an app, the sleep guide walks through the ones that hold a Mac awake.

Does it show power on a desktop Mac?

Yes. Macs without a battery show power, and Intel Macs show an estimate per app.

Read on

Guides that use this, and how Vitals compares with the apps people buy for it.

More of Vitals

All features

GPU and Neural Engine

How hard the GPU and the Neural Engine are working, which apps are using them, and a chart of the last minutes.

Apps, not processes

Every helper under its app, so "what is using my memory?" gets a one-line answer.

Coding agents

Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI and the rest: each session with its project, what it is doing, and what it started.

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