How to check data usage on a Mac

Updated October 23, 2026

Short answer

macOS doesn’t show a running total of your data. Activity Monitor’s Network tab shows how much data has been used since you last restarted, for all networks combined. To see daily and monthly usage for each Wi‑Fi network and hotspot, use a free menu bar app like Byter.

If you pay for data by the gigabyte, whether that’s a phone hotspot, a prepaid data pack, a travel eSIM, roaming abroad, 5G home internet or a capped broadband or satellite plan, knowing how much your Mac uses is the difference between your data lasting the month and running out in the first week. iPhones and Android phones show mobile data usage in Settings. Macs don’t. Here are the ways to find it.

1. Check data usage with Activity Monitor (built in)

Open Activity Monitor (press Command + Space and type “Activity Monitor”).
Click the Network tab at the top.
At the bottom, Data received and Data sent show the total since your Mac was last restarted. Add them together for your usage.
The Rcvd Bytes column shows which apps are using the most. Click it to sort.

The catch: the numbers reset every time you restart, they mix every network together (your free office Wi‑Fi and your paid hotspot look the same), and there’s no history, so you can’t see yesterday, last week or this month.

2. Check your provider’s balance

Your mobile network or internet provider (Jio, Airtel, Vodafone, EE, O2, Three, Claro, Vivo, TIM, T‑Mobile, Verizon, Telkomsel, Globe, MTN and others) can tell you how much of your allowance is left, by app, text or USSD code. That shows what’s gone, but not what your Mac used compared with your phone, or when it happened.

3. Use Byter to track data usage automatically

Byter is a free Mac app that lives in your menu bar and counts every megabyte for you:

Usage per network: see how much you used on your home Wi‑Fi, office Wi‑Fi and phone hotspot separately.
History: the last 30 minutes, today, this week, this month, or a whole year.
Always visible: your usage sits in the menu bar, so you notice a big download before it eats your data allowance.
Private: Byter only counts how much data passes through. It never sees the websites you visit, and your history stays on your Mac.

It starts counting the moment it’s installed, with no account and no ads.

Why your Mac might be using more data than you think

macOS and your apps download things in the background: system updates, App Store updates, iCloud Photos, cloud drives and browser updates. Read why your laptop uses so much data and how to reduce data usage on a Mac.

Questions

Can I see data usage on a MacBook without an app?

Yes, partly. Activity Monitor’s Network tab shows data received and sent since the last restart, for all networks combined. It has no daily or monthly history and doesn’t separate Wi‑Fi from hotspot.

How do I see how much data my Mac used on my phone’s hotspot?

macOS can’t split usage by network. An app like Byter records usage for each network separately, so you can see exactly how much went through your hotspot.

Is Byter free?

Yes. Byter is free to download and use, with no ads and no account. It runs on macOS 14 Sonoma or later, on Apple silicon and Intel Macs.