12 Best Free and Open Source GUI Tools for System Resources Monitoring in Linux

If you’re using a modern Linux desktop environment it’ll will come with a system monitor app to help you know how much CPU, RAM etc. your programs use. But there are lots of alternatives available.

The tools featured in this roundup are targeted at a desktop user who wants to monitor resources being used on their machine. They all sport an attractive graphical user interface.

For command-line system resources monitoring tools, we suggest you view our roundup looking at alternatives to the top utility. We don’t include here software offering a more holistic view and designed primarily for system administrators, as they are explored in a separate roundup.

Here’s our verdict captured in a legendary LinuxLinks-style ratings chart. Only free and open source software is eligible for inclusion here.

Let’s explore the 12 tools in more detail.

This article has been updated to reflect the changes outlined in our recent announcement.

Explore our carefully curated directory of recommended free and open source software, covering every major software category. The directory forms part of our extensive collection of articles for Linux enthusiasts. It includes hundreds of detailed reviews, together with free and open source alternatives to proprietary software from companies such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. LinuxLinks also covers interesting projects worth exploring, Linux-compatible hardware, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. Know a useful free and open source Linux application that we haven’t covered? Tell us about it using our submission form.