Alternatives
Task Manager for Mac: where it is and how to use it
Updated · 5 min read
Coming from Windows? The Mac's equivalent of Task Manager is called Activity Monitor, and the equivalent of Ctrl-Alt-Delete is the Force Quit window. Here's how to use both.
How to open Task Manager (Activity Monitor) on a Mac
- Press ⌘ Space to open Spotlight.
- Type "Activity Monitor" and press Return.
- Or open Finder › Applications › Utilities › Activity Monitor.
The Mac's Ctrl-Alt-Delete: Force Quit
Press ⌘ ⌥ Option Esc to open the Force Quit Applications window. Select the frozen app and click Force Quit. You can also choose › Force Quit from the menu bar.
Tip
Force quitting discards unsaved work in that app, so try a normal Quit (⌘Q) first.
What each part of Activity Monitor does
- CPU: which apps use the processor. Sort by % CPU.
- Memory: which apps use RAM, and the memory pressure graph.
- Energy: which apps drain your battery.
- Disk and Network: what reads, writes, sends and receives data.
How it differs from Windows Task Manager
- Apps often run as several processes (helpers), so one app can appear many times.
- CPU is measured per core, so an app can show more than 100%.
- "Memory used" looks high by design; check memory pressure instead (what is memory pressure?).
- Startup apps are managed in System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions, not in Activity Monitor.