btop

btop [options]

btop++ (btop) is a resource monitor written in C++ showing CPU, memory, disks, network, and processes with a visually polished terminal UI. It's the successor to bashtop and bpytop, offering better performance and more features.
The tool provides comprehensive system monitoring with GPU support, mouse interaction, and extensive customization.

-p, --preset 0-9

Start with a preset layout

Set initial update rate in milliseconds

Set initial process filter

Force tty mode

256 colors only (no true color)

Path to config file

Debug mode

Show version

Show help

~/.config/btop/btop.conf

Main configuration file for settings like update interval, theme, and layout.

Directory for custom color themes.

- CPU usage per core with graphs
- Memory and swap monitoring
- Disk I/O and usage
- Network bandwidth
- Process management
- GPU monitoring (NVIDIA, AMD)
- Mouse support
- Vim-like keybindings
- Customizable themes
- Process filtering and tree view
- Battery monitoring

- q - Quit
- ESC/m - Menu
- f - Filter processes
- t - Tree view
- k - Kill process
- +/- - Adjust update interval
- Arrow keys - Navigate
- Mouse - Click to interact

CPU

Per-core usage, temperature, frequency

RAM, swap, cache with graphs

I/O activity, space usage

Bandwidth by interface

Detailed sortable list

Requires modern terminal with true color support. GPU monitoring needs appropriate drivers. Higher resource usage than minimal tools like top. Some features platform-specific.

btop++ was created by Jakob P. Liljenberg (aristocratos) in 2021 as a C++ rewrite of bpytop, providing significantly better performance and additional features.

htop(1), bpytop(1), top(1)