Knowing which Apps or Processes are running on your Mac is important, because some of these Apps could be slowing down your Mac. You will find below 4 different ways to show All the Running Apps and Processes on your Mac.
May 25, 2015 Intermediate: List Every Application on the Mac from System Information. Going beyond what applications are stored within the /Applications/ folder, Mac users can also use the System Information app to list every app residing in OS X. This is intermediate to advanced, because this list does not just show end-user apps.
Why to See All Running Apps and Processes on Mac
In case you are coming from a Windows computer, you must be used to opening the Task Manager on your Windows computer, in order to take a look at all the running apps and processes on your computer.
2 days ago Contrary to popular belief, MacOS is still susceptible to malware. We list the best free antivirus for Mac so you can stay safe without forking over big bucks. Sep 11, 2018 Mac users get iWork out of the box, which is a great way to get started on documents, spreadsheets or presentations. On the Windows side, some of our writers swear by LibreOffice. The power of Mac. Taken further. Dedicated apps for music, TV, and podcasts. Smart new features like Sidecar, powerful technologies for developers, and your favorite iPad apps, now on Mac. MacOS is the operating system that powers every Mac. It lets you do things you simply can’t with other computers. This brings us to the end of our essential Mac apps list. Other than these apps, you may also have to install apps specific to your work. For example, if you’re a photographer, you’re likely to use Photoshop too. Tell us if you find the list helpful, and if there are other mentionable apps that we might have missed, in the comments below.
In the case of a Mac, there are multiple ways to see all the Running Apps and Programs, ranging from the simple option of using the Dock to using the Terminal command.
In general, the purpose of taking a look at All the Running Apps and Programs on your Mac is to get an idea of which programs are actively running on your Mac, what resources they are using and also to rule out the possibility of any unnecessary programs running in the background and using up resources on your computer.
Show All Running Apps and Processes On Mac Using the Activity Monitor on Mac
Activity Monitor can be described as the Mac equivalent of a Task Manager in a Windows computer. The Activity Monitor provides a very good view of the App and processes running on your Mac and the amount of resources being uses by these Apps and Processes.
1. Click on the Finder icon located in the left corner of the Dock (See image below)
2. On the next screen, click on Applications in the left sidebar menu and then click on the Utilities folder.
3. In the Utilities folder, click on Activity Monitor which should be the first item in Utilities Folder (See image below)
4. Once Activity Monitor opens, you will be able see a list of All the Processes or Applications currently running on your Mac (See image below)
As you can see in the above image, there are 5 different tabs in the Activity Monitor -> CPU, Memory, Energy, Disk and Network.
Clicking on each tab will show you more details, for example, clicking on the Memory Tab will show you how much memory each process is using. Similarly, clicking on the CPU tab will show you the amount of CPU being used by each of these Apps and Processes running on your Mac.
5. To view more info about a specific Process or Application, simply click on the Application/Process and then click on the i icon button located at the top left Corner of the screen (See image below).
6. To force quit an application or process through Activity Monitor, simply click on the application you would like to force quit and then click on the x button, located at the top left side of your screen (See image below)
Show All Running Apps On Mac Using Force Quit Applications Manager
Another method to check all the Running apps and programs on your Mac is through the Force Quit applications manager on Mac.
1. Click on the Apple icon in the top menu bar of your Mac and then click on Force Quit Application in the drop-down menu (See image below).
2. This will open the Force Quit Applications manager which will show you all running apps on your Mac
3. To force quit one of these applications, simply click on the application from the list and click on the Force Quit button.
Show Running Apps and Processes On Mac using the Terminal Command
The Terminal also shows you a detailed view of which applications and processes are running on your Mac, along with the percentage of CPU used by each of these applications/processes.
1. To open Terminal on your Mac, do a spotlight search for the Terminal by pressing the Command + Space keys on your Mac keyboard and searching for Terminal in Spotlight Search. (See image below)
2. Next double click on the Terminal option or press the enter key on your Mac’s keyboard to open up Terminal
3. In the terminal type in top –o cpu and press the enter key on your keyboard
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This will show you a list of all running apps and processes with the apps consuming the most CPU at the top of the list.
4. To reorganize this list close the Terminal and reopen it. Once Terminal reopens type in top –o rsize and press the enter key on your keyboard.
Now applications or processes which are using the most memory will be listed at the top of the list and the application or processes using the least memory will be listed at the bottom of the list.
Show Running Apps Through Dock
The easiest way to view running apps on your Mac is by simply taking a look at your dock.
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All running applications will have a black dot underneath the applications icon (See image below)
While this method is easy to follow, it sometimes will not show you all apps running in the background and does not even show you which processes are running in the background.
This method also does not give you much detail, like how much memory each application is using or how much CPU is being used by each application.
The bundled software that comes pre-installed on every Mac is usually enough to help you get started straight out of the box. Even so, there are useful third party apps that enhance the usability and experience of OS X on your Mac. In this article, we’ll list down some of the essential third party apps that help you to get more out of your Mac.
1Password
Must Have Apps For Mac
Apple already has Keychain for securely storing and managing your account credentials. But you won’t be able to take the full advantage of Keychain syncing if you’re using non-Apple devices along with Mac.