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ProcessSpy vs WhyFi
ProcessSpy monitors macOS processes, unrelated to Wi-Fi diagnostics.
Which to pick
Pick ProcessSpy if you want…
- In-depth macOS process monitoring
- A free plan to start with
- Integrations with macOS 14+, Homebrew or Setapp (on ProcessSpy's list, not WhyFi's)
Pick WhyFi if you want…
- Real-time Wi-Fi diagnostics on macOS
- Integrations with macOS, ChatGPT or Claude (on WhyFi's list, not ProcessSpy's)
Side by side
- What it is
- ProcessSpy:ProcessSpy provides deep, real-time monitoring of macOS processes with detailed inspection and historical analysis.
- WhyFi:WhyFi is a macOS menu-bar app that monitors Wi-Fi, router, ISP and DNS in real time and tells you how to fix issues.
- Best for
- ProcessSpy:In-depth macOS process monitoring
- WhyFi:Real-time Wi-Fi diagnostics on macOS
- Who it’s for
- ProcessSpy:macOS developers, power users and system administrators who need granular process insight.
- WhyFi:Mac users who need to diagnose slow or unreliable Wi-Fi connections.
- Pricing
- ProcessSpy:Freemium
- WhyFi:Paid
- Works with
- ProcessSpy:macOS 14+, Homebrew, Setapp, Gumroad
- WhyFi:macOS, ChatGPT, Claude
ProcessSpy features
- Per-process CPU & memory history. Logs and visualizes CPU, memory and thread usage over time with export to CSV.
- Point-and-click discovery. Find a process by clicking anywhere on the screen.
- JavaScript & regex filters. Create advanced search queries across multiple process properties.
- Advanced tree view. Groups child processes and XPC services, showing aggregate CPU, memory and thread totals.
- Menu bar dashboard. Shows real-time system health metrics in a compact drop-down.
- Finished process recall. Remembers terminated processes with command-line, env vars and timestamps.
WhyFi features
- Live connection monitor. Shows signal strength, noise, latency, jitter and DNS lookup time continuously from the menu bar.
- WhyFi Radar. Scans the room four times per second to locate the strongest Wi-Fi spot with a 0-100 score.
- Speed test with bufferbloat detection. Runs download/upload tests via Cloudflare and reports latency under load.
- AI-ready diagnostic export. Generates a shareable report that can be pasted into ChatGPT or Claude for assistance.
- One-click DNS switching. Switches between Google and Cloudflare DNS without leaving System Settings.
- Channel scanner. Shows congested Wi-Fi channels and suggests better ones.
- Captive portal detection. Identifies hotel or airport Wi-Fi login pages and alerts you.
- Battery-friendly polling. Polls faster when visible and slows down or sleeps when the Mac sleeps.
ProcessSpy vs WhyFi FAQ
Is ProcessSpy or WhyFi free?+
ProcessSpy has a free plan and paid plans. WhyFi is paid.
Do ProcessSpy and WhyFi integrate with the same tools?+
Their integration lists don't overlap: ProcessSpy lists macOS 14+, Homebrew, Setapp and Gumroad; WhyFi lists macOS, ChatGPT and Claude.
On DevHunt
Based on each tool's website and DevHunt data. Details may change; check the official sites.