# Guides Canonical page: https://vitalsmac.com/guides Which Mac app to use for which job, and what Activity Monitor's figures mean. Every price and feature comes from the maker's own site. ## Fix a problem What is wrong and how to find the cause, with the Mac's own tools first. - [Why is my Mac so slow? How to find the cause, and fix it](https://vitalsmac.com/why-is-my-mac-so-slow): Mac running slow? Find the cause in Activity Monitor: an app at high CPU, memory pressure, a full disk, heat or indexing, and the fix for each. - [What’s draining my Mac’s battery? How to find it, and what helps](https://vitalsmac.com/mac-battery-draining-fast): Mac battery draining fast? Find the app behind it with Activity Monitor’s Energy tab and the battery menu, check battery health, and fix the usual causes. - [How to check CPU and memory usage on a Mac, app by app](https://vitalsmac.com/check-cpu-memory-usage-mac): Check CPU and memory usage on a Mac, per app: Activity Monitor step by step, why % CPU passes 100%, and when high memory use is actually a problem. - [Why won’t my Mac sleep? How to find what is keeping it awake](https://vitalsmac.com/mac-wont-sleep): Mac won’t sleep? Find the app keeping it awake with one Terminal command or Activity Monitor, see why it wakes at night, and fix the settings behind it. - [Chrome using too much memory on a Mac? How to find the tab behind it](https://vitalsmac.com/chrome-using-too-much-memory-mac): Chrome using too much memory on your Mac? Find the tab or extension behind it with Chrome’s Task Manager, see when it matters, and what lowers it. - [Why are my Mac’s fans so loud? How to find what is heating it](https://vitalsmac.com/mac-fan-loud): Mac fan loud? Find the app heating your Mac in Activity Monitor, check airflow and temperatures, and learn when a loud fan is normal and when it is not. - [How to control fan speed on a Mac](https://vitalsmac.com/mac-fan-control): macOS has no fan speed setting. What Energy Mode changes, how to set a Mac’s fan speed with an app, and when a faster fan helps. - [How to free up RAM on a Mac, and when you don’t need to](https://vitalsmac.com/free-up-ram-mac): How to free up RAM on a Mac: find the app holding memory, what actually frees it, why memory cleaners don’t help, and when full memory is fine. - [Docker using too much memory on a Mac? How to find the container, and cap it](https://vitalsmac.com/docker-using-too-much-memory-mac): Docker using too much memory on your Mac? See which container is using it, cap the Docker VM’s memory, and get memory back when containers stop. - [How to stop Docker containers on a Mac, one or all of them](https://vitalsmac.com/stop-docker-containers-mac): Stop one Docker container or all of them on a Mac: docker stop, compose stop and down, stop versus kill, and why a container starts again. - [Mac volume mixer: how to change the volume of one app](https://vitalsmac.com/mac-volume-mixer): macOS has no volume mixer. How to turn down one app on a Mac with the controls you have, and how to get a volume slider for every app. ## Best apps, ranked Each app is labeled with the job it does best, with its pros and cons. Prices checked September 22, 2026. - [The 12 best Activity Monitor alternatives for Mac](https://vitalsmac.com/best-activity-monitor-alternatives) (12 apps): The best Activity Monitor alternatives for Mac, compared: Vitals, iStat Menus, Stats, btop and more, with prices, pros and cons checked in 2026. - [The 9 best iStat Menus alternatives for Mac](https://vitalsmac.com/best-istat-menus-alternatives) (9 apps): The best iStat Menus alternatives for Mac in 2026: Stats if you want it free, Vitals if you want to know which app is behind the figure, and seven more, with prices checked. - [The 9 best Stats alternatives for Mac](https://vitalsmac.com/best-stats-alternatives) (9 apps): The best Stats alternatives for Mac in 2026: Vitals if you want to know which app is behind the figure, iStat Menus for the most in the menu bar, and seven more, with prices checked. - [Task Manager for Mac: the built‑in one, and the 7 best apps](https://vitalsmac.com/task-manager-for-mac) (7 apps): The Mac's Task Manager is Activity Monitor. How to open it, how to force quit an app, and the 7 best Task Manager apps for Mac, with prices checked. - [The 10 best system monitors for Mac](https://vitalsmac.com/best-system-monitor-for-mac) (10 apps): The best system monitor apps for Mac in 2026: Vitals, iStat Menus, Stats, MacPulse and more, ranked on which app is behind the figure, with prices checked. - [The 8 best menu bar system monitors for Mac](https://vitalsmac.com/best-menu-bar-system-monitor-for-mac) (8 apps): The best menu bar system monitors for Mac in 2026: Vitals, iStat Menus, Stats and more, compared on what each puts in the menu bar, with prices checked. - [The 7 best volume mixers for Mac](https://vitalsmac.com/best-volume-mixer-for-mac) (7 apps): The best volume mixer apps for Mac in 2026: SoundSource, SoundDial, Vitals, FineTune and more, compared on per-app volume, routing and price. ## Vitals compared - [Vitals vs Activity Monitor](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/activity-monitor): Activity Monitor is the process monitor that comes with macOS. - [Vitals vs iStat Menus](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/istat-menus): iStat Menus is a menu bar monitor. - [Vitals vs Stats](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/stats): Stats is a free, open-source menu bar monitor. - [Vitals vs MacPulse](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/macpulse): MacPulse is a system monitor that explains performance in plain English. - [Vitals vs iStatistica Pro](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/istatistica): iStatistica Pro is a system monitor with widgets and a web dashboard. - [Vitals vs ProcXray](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/procxray): ProcXray is a process explorer for developers. - [Vitals vs Sensei](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/sensei): Sensei is a Mac performance monitor and cleaner. - [Vitals vs CleanMyMac Menu](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/cleanmymac): CleanMyMac Menu is the menu bar part of CleanMyMac. - [Vitals vs TK-mac](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/tk-mac): TK-mac is a Task Manager in the Windows style. - [Vitals vs ProcessSpy](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/processspy): ProcessSpy is a process explorer, in the mould of Windows Process Explorer. - [Vitals vs SoundSource](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/soundsource): SoundSource is Sound control for the Mac: per-app volume, routing and effects. - [Vitals vs SoundDial](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/sounddial): SoundDial is a per-app volume mixer for the menu bar. - [Vitals vs eqMac](https://vitalsmac.com/vs/eqmac): eqMac is a system-wide equalizer, with a per-app mixer in Pro. ## Activity Monitor glossary [55 terms](https://vitalsmac.com/glossary), in 5 groups: processes you will see, memory, cpu, gpu and energy, when something goes wrong, figures activity monitor leaves out.