# Install mactop with Homebrew, MacPorts, Nix

Apple Silicon Monitor Top written in Go Lang. Version 2.1.5 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-29. Also installable with nix: nix profile install nixpkgs#mactop.

## Install

```sh
sudo av install brew:mactop
```

Additional install commands:

### macOS

- Homebrew (100%):

```sh
brew install mactop
```

  Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata

- MacPorts (94%):

```sh
sudo port install mactop
```

  Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: sysutils/mactop/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1

### Linux

- Nix (92%):

```sh
nix profile install nixpkgs#mactop
```

  Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/ma/mactop/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1

## Package facts

- **Package key:** brew:mactop
- **Package manager:** Homebrew
- **Version:** 2.1.5
- **Source summary:** Apple Silicon Monitor Top written in Go Lang
- **Homepage:** <https://github.com/metaspartan/mactop>
- **Repository:** <https://github.com/metaspartan/mactop>
- **Last updated:** 2026-07-29T17:04:49+02:00
- **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00

## Executables

- mactop (alias)

## Install behavior

- Bottle: not available

## Freshness

- Page generated: 2026-08-03
- Package-manager version: 2.1.5
## Project history and usage

mactop is a terminal system monitor for Apple Silicon Macs. The project describes itself as a `top`-style monitor for real-time Apple Silicon CPU, GPU, ANE, DRAM, power, temperature, fan, process, and I/O metrics.

### Project history

The tool is written in Go with CGO and uses native Apple APIs such as SMC, IOReport, IOKit, and IOHIDEventSystemClient. Its official README frames it as Apple Silicon only, requiring macOS Monterey 12.3 or later.

### Adoption history

mactop became useful in the Apple Silicon era because many traditional Unix monitoring tools do not expose SoC-specific measurements such as efficiency and performance cores, GPU frequency, Neural Engine activity, and power telemetry. Its official repository shows Homebrew installation instructions and a public GitHub project with substantial stars and forks for a platform-specific system tool.

### How it is used

Users normally run `mactop` interactively for a terminal UI. The README also documents flags for update interval, foreground and background colors, headless JSON output, output formats such as YAML and CSV, Prometheus metrics, and optional menu bar mode.

### Why package nerds care

mactop matters to package and systems people because it fills a macOS-on-ARM observability gap from the command line. It is the kind of package developers install immediately after getting Apple Silicon hardware because it exposes metrics that `top`, `htop`, and cross-platform libraries often do not provide.

### Timeline

- Public repository: Official Git tags start at v0.0.1.
- Current README: Documents Homebrew installation, headless output, Prometheus metrics, menu bar mode, and support for all Apple Silicon models.

### Related projects

- mactop is related to traditional terminal monitors such as top and htop, but targets Apple Silicon-specific telemetry through macOS native APIs.

### Sources

- <https://github.com/metaspartan/mactop>
- source_facts.package-manager


## Security Notes

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

- **Geiger risk:** green / low
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

## Other Package-Manager Records

- Nix - mactop: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/ma/mactop/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
- MacPorts - mactop: normalized package name match | MacPorts ports tree: sysutils/mactop/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1


## Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/mactop.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/mactop.yml)


## Sources

- pkg.so package database
- Geiger risk classifier
- curated package history
- pkgdb category and tag curation
- external package-manager database matches
- cross-ecosystem install command graph