bottom is a customizable system monitor with a graphical interface that runs in the terminal on Linux, macOS, and Windows. It graphs CPU use over time for each core and as an average, as well as RAM and swap use. Network and disk I/O appear as graphs, and you can zoom the displayed time interval. The process widget displays, sorts, and searches process information, and supports kill signals and tree mode. Other widgets show disk capacity and use, temperature sensors, and battery use. Command-line options or a configuration file let you adjust themes, layout, filtering, and widget behavior. The app includes an htop-inspired basic mode and can expand a selected widget to fill the terminal. A read-only option blocks system-changing actions such as stopping processes. Installation is documented through package managers, Cargo, and pre-built release binaries. Official support covers macOS, Linux, and Windows, though architecture support varies by system. Android and some other systems may work unofficially, with limited testing and support. The project is free, with no price or usage limits stated on the pages.
Who it is for
bottom suits users who want to monitor processes and system activity from a terminal. It may work well for people who want to tailor the display or prevent process-control actions with read-only mode.
What is good
- Graphs CPU, memory, network, and disk activity over time.
- Process widget supports searching and tree mode.
- Themes and layout are configurable.
- Read-only mode blocks actions such as stopping processes.
- Free, with no price or usage limits stated.
What to know first
- Architecture support varies by system.
- Android support is unofficial and limited.
- Process controls can send kill signals unless read-only mode is used.
Verdict
bottom offers detailed system and process views in a terminal, with several display controls and an option to block system-changing actions. Confirm architecture support for your system, and note that Android support is unofficial.
bottom (btm) plans and pricing
All plansCompared on process monitoring software
- Free plan
- Yes
- Supported platforms
- Linux, macOS, Windows
- Process controls
- Yes
