WireStat Support
WireStat is built to be self-explanatory, but here’s everything in one place — how it works, and how to reach me if something’s off.
How to use WireStat
WireStat runs entirely from your menu bar — there’s no main window and no Dock icon to manage.
- Find it in the menu bar. After launch, WireStat appears in the menu bar at the top of your screen with a compact live readout (by default, your up/down throughput).
- Click it for the full picture. A popover opens showing your connection type, live download and upload speeds, and a ping section.
-
Run a ping when you want one. Type a host into
the ping field (it starts at
8.8.8.8) and click Ping. WireStat reports the average latency in milliseconds. The ping is on demand — it doesn’t run constantly. - Open settings with the gear. Use Settings… at the bottom of the popover to turn on launch at login and choose what the menu bar shows. Quit is right next to it.
Settings
WireStat keeps settings deliberately short:
- Launch at login — start WireStat automatically when you log in. (macOS may ask you to approve it once in System Settings → General → Login Items.)
- Menu Bar Display — choose what the menu bar item shows: Throughput (up/down speeds), Connection only (a connection-type glyph and label), or Both.
Common questions
WireStat isn’t showing up after I launch it
It lives in the menu bar, not the Dock. If the menu bar is crowded, macOS may hide overflow items — hold ⌘ and drag to rearrange. On a Mac with a notch, a very full menu bar can hide items behind the notch; removing one or two usually helps.
The numbers look different from a speed-test site
WireStat reports the live throughput your Mac is actually using right now — not a maximum-capacity burst like a dedicated speed test. They measure different things, so some difference is normal. Speeds are shown in bits per second (Kbps / Mbps / Gbps), the same units your ISP plan uses.
A ping says “refused”, “unreachable”, or “timed out”
WireStat measures latency by opening a TCP connection and timing the
handshake, on port 443 by default. A host that doesn’t accept
connections on that port can’t be timed that way — try a host that
does (for example 8.8.8.8 or 1.1.1.1), or
specify a port with host:port. This is a connect-time
measurement, not an ICMP echo.
Does WireStat collect any data about me?
No. WireStat has no analytics and sends nothing off your device. The only network request it makes is the ping you trigger. See the privacy policy for the full details.
Contact
Still stuck, found a bug, or have a feature request? Email me — I read every message myself.
I usually reply within a couple of business days. Including your macOS version helps me sort things out faster. WireStat requires macOS 13 Ventura or later.