We make Multimeter. We put Sensei on this page because people search for both, and we tried to say plainly where Sensei is the better choice.
Side by side
| Multimeter | Sensei | iStat Menus | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $19.99 one-time | $59 one-time or $29 a year | $11.99 one-time |
| Open source | No | No | No |
| CPU, memory, disk, network | Yes (no per-app lists) | CPU, GPU, storage (memory and network not on its page) | Yes, with per-app CPU, memory and bandwidth |
| Temperature sensors and GPU | Thermal pressure only, no temperatures or GPU | CPU and GPU temperatures | Yes, temperatures, voltages, GPU |
| Fan speed | Speed (read only) | Speed | Speed and fan control |
| Battery and Bluetooth accessory batteries | Yes, keyboards, mice and trackpads | Mac battery health and cycles | Yes, AirPods and Magic accessories |
| Power draw in watts | Yes, on laptops | Not on its page | Yes (sensors: power) |
| Timers, countdowns, day progress | Yes | No | Clocks, world clocks, calendar |
| Your own numbers (script, web address, file, link) | All four | Not on its page | Not on its feature page |
| Custom looks you can build yourself | 35 built in, build your own | Monitor editor and themes | Colors, layouts, combined item |
| Runs on | macOS 13+ | macOS 14+ | macOS 13.5+ |
| Latest release | 1.0.0, October 2026 | 2.1.3, Sep 2026 | 7.5 |
Sensei: A Mac maintenance suite with a menu bar monitor: cleaner, uninstaller, disk and battery health, thermal dashboard and a customizable status bar. $59 one-time license (up to 3 Macs, updates through version 2) or $29 a year. Runs on macOS 14 Sonoma or later (from the current download). Latest release: 2.1.3 (download dated September 2026).
Multimeter: Live meters for anything in the Mac menu bar, each drawn by a face you pick or build yourself. $19.99 one-time, no subscription. Runs on macOS 13 Ventura or later.
Where Sensei is better
- A whole toolkit, not just meters: a cleaner for caches and logs, a disk scanner, an uninstaller, S.M.A.R.T. drive health, a disk benchmark and an SSD Trim switch.
- A thermal dashboard with CPU and GPU temperatures and fan speeds.
- Battery health with cycle count and capacity, which Multimeter doesn’t report.
- A monitor editor and themes for its status bar widgets, dropdown panel and dashboard.
- One license covers up to 3 Macs.
Where Multimeter is different
- Multimeter does one thing: live meters. At $19.99 one-time it costs about a third of Sensei’s license, with no subscription option to weigh.
- Your own numbers from scripts, JSON web addresses, files and multimeter:// links, next to the system ones.
- Power draw in watts, Bluetooth keyboard, mouse and trackpad batteries, network speed, timers, countdowns and day progress.
- Faces you can build from scratch and share as files, on top of the 35 built in. Runs on macOS 13 Ventura.
Which one to pick
Choose Sensei if you want to clean up, check drive and battery health and watch temperatures, all in one app. Multimeter doesn’t clean or uninstall anything.
Choose Multimeter if you want a handful of numbers drawn the way you like them, including ones that aren’t about hardware: a build status, a countdown, a number from a JSON API, or the output of a script. Browse the 35 built-in faces to see what they look like.
Using Multimeter next to Sensei
- Keep Sensei for cleaning, uninstalling, drive health and temperatures. Multimeter does none of those.
- Add Multimeter meters for the numbers you glance at all day: CPU, Memory, Network, Disk Space, Battery, Power Draw.
- Pick a face for each, and set warning and critical levels with notifications where they matter.
- Turn off the Sensei status bar items Multimeter now covers, so nothing is measured twice.
More detail in switching to Multimeter from another menu bar monitor.
Questions
How much does Sensei cost compared with Multimeter?
As of October 2026 Cindori’s store lists Sensei at $59 one-time (up to 3 Macs, updates through version 2) or $29 a year. Multimeter is $19.99 one-time.
Does Multimeter clean or speed up my Mac?
No. Multimeter only shows numbers. It doesn’t delete files, uninstall apps or change settings.
Can Multimeter show battery health and cycle count like Sensei?
Not in its built-in faces. The battery data every face receives includes cycle count and health, so a face you build can show them. Built in, the battery meter shows percent, charging, time left and time until full, and a separate meter shows power draw in watts.
Which runs on older macOS?
Multimeter runs on macOS 13 Ventura or later. The current Sensei download (2.1.3) needs macOS 14 Sonoma or later; Cindori offers an older version for older systems.
How we checked
We make Multimeter, so read this with that in mind. Competitor facts come from each maker’s own site, README or store listing, checked on October 25 to 30, 2026, and are linked below. "Not on its feature page" means we looked and didn’t find it, not that it can’t be done. Multimeter’s numbers are measured on our own Macs. Spot something out of date? Email hello@greatwork.company and we’ll fix it.
- Sensei: cindori.com/sensei (features)
- Sensei: cindori.com/store/sensei (prices, license terms)
- Sensei: Sensei download (version and minimum macOS in the app bundle)
- iStat Menus: bjango.com/mac/istatmenus (features, version, macOS)
- iStat Menus: Bjango’s Paddle checkout prices (US, before tax)
- iStat Menus: Weather data packs help page
- iStat Menus: Mac App Store listing ($11.99 US)