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For most Windows users, HWiNFO is the best free hardware monitoring program for detailed diagnostics and logging. Choose HWMonitor if you want a simpler overview, MSI Afterburner with RivaTuner Statistics Server (RTSS) for a gaming overlay, and Libre Hardware Monitor if you prefer an open-source Windows option. For drive health, add CrystalDiskInfo; for Linux, start with lm-sensors. No single tool can read every sensor on every PC, so the right choice depends on your hardware and what you need to check.
Quick picks
| Program | Best for | Platform | What it does well | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HWiNFO | Detailed system diagnostics | Windows | Broad sensor inventory, current/minimum/maximum/average readings, logging, installer and portable editions | Can overwhelm beginners; free edition is for non-commercial use |
| HWMonitor | Simple sensor overview | Windows | Compact readings for temperatures, fans, clocks, power, drives, and batteries | Less diagnostic context and customization than HWiNFO |
| MSI Afterburner + RTSS | In-game monitoring overlay | Windows | Customizable on-screen metrics and GPU controls | Not a complete all-system diagnostic tool; tuning controls can change hardware behavior |
| Libre Hardware Monitor | Open-source Windows monitoring | Windows | Open-source tool for supported temperature, fan, voltage, load, and clock sensors | Coverage depends on the specific hardware and firmware |
| Core Temp | CPU temperature checks | Windows | Focused CPU temperature display; standalone downloads are available | Does not replace a system-wide monitor |
| GPU-Z | GPU identification and sensor checks | Windows | GPU specifications, BIOS details, clocks, memory, and sensors | GPU-focused, not a full system monitor |
| CrystalDiskInfo | SSD and HDD health | Windows | Reads available S.M.A.R.T. and temperature information from supported drives | Not a complete hardware monitor or a guarantee against drive failure |
| lm-sensors | Linux hardware sensors | Linux | Reads supported hardware-monitoring chips through the Linux sensor stack | Support and setup depend on the kernel, drivers, and hardware |
Version details change frequently. The official pages listed HWiNFO 8.50, HWMonitor 1.67, and CrystalDiskInfo 9.9.2 on August 18, 2026; check each project’s download page for the latest release.
What hardware monitoring software can—and cannot—tell you
A hardware monitor gathers readings made available by a component, firmware, controller, driver, or operating system. Depending on the PC, it may show CPU core and package temperatures, effective clocks, power and utilization; GPU temperature, hotspot or junction temperature, fan speed, memory use, and board power; motherboard or memory-module sensors; fan and pump RPM; drive temperature and S.M.A.R.T. indicators; or laptop battery data.
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Access varies. A missing value or a sensor named differently than expected does not prove that the component has no sensor, nor does it mean the component is faulty. A laptop maker may hide readings, a motherboard controller may not be supported, or a drive enclosure may not pass S.M.A.R.T. data through. Monitors report what the platform exposes; they do not independently verify every measurement.
#1 Best Overall
Best overall for Windows: HWiNFO
HWiNFO is the strongest first choice when you need more than a glance at CPU temperature. It exposes a large set of available sensors, tracks current, minimum, maximum, and average readings, and can log data for later review. The official download page offers installer and portable editions for Windows, including x64 and ARM64 builds. Its listed Windows 64-bit and ARM64 freeware is restricted to non-commercial use, so businesses and repair services should review the license and download information before using it in that setting.
For a live check, launch HWiNFO in Sensors-only mode. You do not need to interpret every row. Start with CPU package temperature, CPU effective clock, thermal-throttling status, GPU temperature and hotspot/junction if available, GPU utilization and power, fan or pump RPM, and SSD temperature. Run the workload that reproduces the issue, then compare current, maximum, and average values. If the problem is intermittent, enable logging and save the log before closing the sensor window.
The trade-off is density: HWiNFO can show far more data than a beginner needs. It is also a sensor reader, not a verdict on whether a temperature is safe. Limits vary by chip, firmware, workload, cooler, ambient temperature, and sensor type. Its documented add-ons can feed readings to tools such as RTSS, Rainmeter, Stream Deck, and Prometheus/Grafana, but those integrations are optional.
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HWMonitor is a better starting point if you want a compact window rather than a deep diagnostic inventory. CPUID lists readings for voltages, temperatures, power, current, fan speed, utilization, and clocks, along with supported CPU and GPU sensors, memory thermal sensors, S.M.A.R.T. drives, and batteries. Its official page offers Windows builds and a portable ZIP option.
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HWMonitor is useful for checking whether a temperature rises under load, whether a fan is reporting RPM, or whether a drive exposes health data. It is not as flexible for deeper analysis and logging as HWiNFO. CPUID also offers HWMonitor PRO separately; the basic product and the PRO edition are not the same thing.
Best gaming overlay: MSI Afterburner with RTSS
For an in-game display of frame rate, GPU temperature, usage, clocks, or power, use MSI Afterburner with RivaTuner Statistics Server. Afterburner is aimed primarily at GPU monitoring and tuning, not full-system diagnosis. MSI’s page listed 4.6.6 as the final release and 4.6.7 as a beta on August 18, 2026; check the official MSI page for current availability.
- Download Afterburner from MSI or its recognized distribution channel, Guru3D. MSI warns that fake Afterburner sites exist; avoid search-ad download buttons, repackaged installers, and driver-updater portals.
- During installation, include or enable RTSS if offered. RTSS supplies the on-screen display component.
- Open Afterburner, select Settings, and go to Monitoring.
- Select each metric you want—such as GPU temperature, GPU usage, GPU clock, GPU power, CPU temperature, CPU usage, RAM use, or frame rate—and enable Show in On-Screen Display for it.
- Assign a hotkey in the On-Screen Display settings, launch a game, and confirm the overlay appears.
Monitoring is different from tuning. Afterburner also exposes controls that can change GPU clocks, voltage, power limits, and fan behavior. Leave those alone if your goal is simply to observe temperatures. Changing them without understanding how to revert the settings and test stability can cause crashes or other problems. Some games or anti-cheat systems may also block overlays.
Best open-source Windows option: Libre Hardware Monitor
Libre Hardware Monitor is a Windows project whose stated sensor coverage includes supported temperatures, fan speeds, voltages, loads, and clock speeds. It is a reasonable choice for readers who want an open-source alternative to proprietary monitoring utilities. The project is a better starting point than treating the older Open Hardware Monitor as interchangeable: compare current maintenance and your hardware’s compatibility rather than assuming identical coverage.
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As with other sensor readers, support varies by motherboard, laptop, GPU, drivers, and firmware. If a particular fan speed or temperature is absent, another program may not be able to expose it either.
Useful focused companions
Core Temp for CPU temperatures
Core Temp is for readers who specifically want a CPU-temperature display. Its official page offers standalone 32-bit and 64-bit ZIP downloads and lists SHA-256 and MD5 hashes. It is not the right tool for GPU, storage, VRM, or full-system diagnosis.
GPU-Z for GPU details
GPU-Z is useful for identifying a graphics card and checking its specifications, BIOS details, clocks, memory, and available sensors. Use it as a GPU-focused companion, not as your sole monitor for CPU temperatures, drive health, or case fans.
CrystalDiskInfo for storage health
CrystalDiskInfo specializes in drive information, including available S.M.A.R.T. attributes and temperature. Its official description lists support for some USB devices, Intel RAID, and NVMe; compatibility depends on the drive, controller, enclosure, and operating system. The page listed version 9.9.2 on July 25, 2026, with Windows support through Windows 11 and Windows Server 2025; NVMe support requires Windows 10 or Server 2016 and later.
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A “Good,” “Caution,” or “Bad” status reflects the attributes the drive reports and the utility’s interpretation; it is not a prediction with certainty. USB enclosures and RAID controllers can hide individual-drive data. A “Good” result is not a backup. If important files are on a drive that reports a warning—or if you suspect failure—back up the data before running tests or troubleshooting.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Linux: start with lm-sensors
Windows monitoring programs are not universal Linux solutions. lm-sensors is the foundational project for reading supported hardware-monitoring chips on Linux. Once installed and configured for your distribution and hardware, these commands are useful:
sensors
watch -n 1 sensorssensors prints readings available through lm-sensors; watch -n 1 sensors refreshes them once a second. You can use sensors-detect to help identify supported sensor modules, but review its prompts rather than automatically accepting every recommendation: it may suggest loading kernel modules or changing configuration.
Recommended Free Tools
For NVIDIA GPUs, nvidia-smi can report information such as utilization, temperature, power, memory, and processes when the NVIDIA driver and utility are installed. GPU support and available fields depend on the hardware and driver. btop is a useful terminal dashboard for general CPU, memory, process, disk, and network activity, but it is not a replacement for motherboard-specific sensor diagnostics. Linux sensor labels, permissions, kernel modules, and device support vary by distribution and system.
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How to interpret readings
- Compare like with like. CPU package temperature, individual core temperature, GPU edge temperature, and GPU hotspot/junction temperature are different measurements. Two programs can both be working correctly while displaying different sensor sources.
- Use more than a peak. A brief maximum is not automatically a fault. Check whether temperature stays high under the actual workload, whether clocks fall, whether a thermal-throttling flag is set, and whether cooling responds.
- Distinguish effective clocks from advertised clocks. A rated or requested clock is not necessarily the sustained operating clock. Effective clock and performance under load give more useful context when diagnosing throttling.
- Read utilization and power together. High utilization with high power and temperature can be normal for a demanding workload. A performance drop with low utilization or falling clocks may point to a different bottleneck.
- Check fans and pumps in context. RPM readings help only if the fan or pump is connected to a controller the monitor can read. Zero may mean no exposed reading, a stopped fan, or a sensor-label issue; confirm before drawing a conclusion.
- Use model-specific limits. There is no universal safe temperature threshold for all CPUs and GPUs. Consult the manufacturer’s specifications for the exact component and interpret the reading alongside throttling, clocks, workload, cooling, and ambient temperature.
Troubleshooting common problems
CPU temperature rises sharply
Reproduce the workload and check CPU package temperature, effective clocks, thermal-throttling status, and fan or pump RPM together. A high reading alone does not establish a fault. If temperature remains elevated, clocks throttle, or cooling appears not to respond, check airflow, dust, fan connections, cooler mounting, and the system’s firmware or cooling profile. Use model-specific temperature guidance rather than a universal cutoff.
GPU temperature looks normal, but performance drops
Watch GPU hotspot/junction temperature if available, utilization, power, clocks, and any throttling indicators. A displayed edge temperature may not represent the hottest point on the GPU. Also consider whether a CPU, memory, or game-specific bottleneck is limiting performance.
A laptop fan runs constantly
Log temperature and utilization during the period when the fan runs. Background work can keep a CPU or discrete GPU active; firmware may also use a conservative fan profile. If you are checking idle battery life, exit the monitoring utility or disable polling: on some devices, sensor polling can keep a discrete GPU, USB device, or embedded controller active.
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Update the monitor from its official source, close other monitoring or vendor-control utilities, reboot, and check whether BIOS/UEFI reports the reading. Sensor access can depend on firmware, drivers, the motherboard controller, or laptop design. Avoid treating an absent value as proof that the component is either overheating or healthy.
Two monitoring apps disagree
Compare the exact sensor labels and sources first. One app may show package temperature while another shows a core, edge, hotspot, or junction value; they may also differ in polling interval, smoothing, units, or scaling. Run one primary sensor reader at a time if you suspect a conflict.
An overlay does not appear
Confirm RTSS is installed and running, that the desired metrics have Show in On-Screen Display enabled in Afterburner’s Monitoring tab, and that the hotkey is assigned. Try another game or display mode if the title blocks overlays. Anti-cheat software may prevent an overlay from working, so do not try to bypass a game’s security controls.
Download and licensing checklist
- Use the official vendor or project page linked in this article. Avoid unofficial mirrors, cracked installers, and bundled “driver updater” downloads.
- Check the license before commercial use. In particular, HWiNFO’s listed 64-bit and ARM64 freeware is for non-commercial use.
- Distinguish free software from paid tiers: HWMonitor PRO is a separate product; open-source status and commercial permissions are not interchangeable claims.
- Install only the tools you need. Several resident utilities that poll the same embedded controller or device can conflict with fan-control, RGB, AIO, motherboard, or GPU software.
- For storage warnings, prioritize a backup. Monitoring reports available indicators; it cannot guarantee that a drive will not fail.
What about macOS?
This is a Windows- and Linux-focused selection. HWiNFO, HWMonitor, Afterburner, Core Temp, and CrystalDiskInfo are not interchangeable macOS recommendations. Mac hardware and sensor access require Mac-specific tools and a separate compatibility check; do not assume a Windows utility will work on a Mac.
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