Network Monitoring

OtterStat monitors your network activity and displays connection information.

Menu Bar Display

The Network indicator supports multiple display modes (configurable in Settings → Menu Bar):

• Text Only - Download/upload speeds
• Graph Only - Mini live chart
• Text + Graph - Speeds with chart
• Bar - Vertical or horizontal bar
• Graph + Label - Chart with "NET" label

Network Popover

Click the Network indicator to open the detailed view.

Transfer Speeds

• Download - Current download speed
• Upload - Current upload speed
• Historical chart - Network activity over time with 1h / 24h / 7d / 30d / All selectors

IP Addresses

• Local IP - Your device's IP on the local network
• Public IP - Your external IP address (if available)

Network Interfaces

The Network popover lists all active network interfaces with:

• Interface type classification (Wi-Fi, Ethernet, VPN, etc.)
• Local IP address per interface

Speed Units

You can configure speed units in Settings → Menu Bar:

• Auto (Bytes) - Automatically switches between KB/s and MB/s
• Auto (Bits) - Automatically switches between Kbps and Mbps
• KB/s - Kilobytes per second
• MB/s - Megabytes per second
• Kbps - Kilobits per second
• Mbps - Megabits per second

The Auto options are recommended — they switch units dynamically based on current speed.

Understanding Network Activity

High download activity might indicate:

• Active downloads or updates
• Streaming video or audio
• Cloud sync in progress
• Background app updates

High upload activity might indicate:

• Cloud backup in progress
• File sharing or uploads
• Video calls
• Cloud sync

Tips

• Unexpected network activity could indicate unwanted background processes
• The Auto unit mode keeps the display readable at any speed
• Use the multi-interface view to see which connection is active