When we think of excellent utilities for laptops and desktop PCs, the best third-party Windows programs usually come to mind first. However, macOS isn't short of its own tweaks that can improve performance and usability. After many years as a macOS power user, and owning quite the collection of great Macs, there's only one third-party app that I install on every single one. It's called Macs Fan Control, and this free app provides you with insights and controls over your Mac's fans and temperatures.

Part of the Apple experience is not having to worry about temperatures and fan speeds. With that being said, the company is known for letting the temperatures get a bit higher than recommended in order to reduce fan noise. This is especially true for Intel Macs, but can also have an impact on Apple silicon Macs. The Macs Fan Control app returns control over RPM and temperatures to the user, and that's why I always use it — even on laptops without fans in the first place.

3 It's a DIY-er's dream

Modding or upgrading your Mac is incredibly fun, and Macs Fan Control helps you avoid unintended consequences

Macs Fan Control is a vital tool that I use for DIY projects and mods that involve both new and old Mac computers. Any time you significantly change the stock hardware or default software configuration of a Mac, there's a chance that macOS won't adjust its thermal thresholds for the new configuration. For example, if you want to swap the spinning hard drive in an Intel iMac for an SSD, it's quite easy to do so. However, removing the SSD also removes at least one temperature sensor. It also changes the airflow situation, and this could have unintended consequences.

To compensate, you could download and install Macs Fan Control, which allows users to pick a custom fan speed or temperature threshold. This will ensure that your Mac is running cool and performing well even after upgrades. I installed it on my Mac Pro when I swapped out the CPU for a higher-core model, because macOS Monterey didn't recognize the configuration and thus couldn't optimize the system's thermals and fans.

Another reason you might want to run Macs Fan Control is if you're using the OpenCore Legacy Patcher to install a newer version of macOS, like the upcoming macOS Sequoia, on an unsupported device. These demanding software releases may stress Mac computers in ways that officially-supported versions of macOS will not, and you can compensate for that by adjusting Macs Fan Control values directly.

If you're one of the few — but passionate — DIY-ers and modders that tinker with Mac computers, Macs Fan Control is a must-have tool to keep in your arsenal.

2 Useful presets and data

Macs Fan Control can tell you exactly how hot your components are getting

The best part about Macs Fan Control is that it's free, and anyone can use it. There are quick toggles for the app that appear in a menu bar module, and clicking Show Macs Fan Control will reveal a more detailed window. From there, you can view the exact temperature readings of every sensor within your Mac laptop or desktop. This is crucial for monitoring CPU and GPU temps on Intel Macs, and SSDs on Apple silicon Macs. An overheating SSD can cause a variety of system problems, including but not limited to data loss, and Macs Fan Control's diagnostics can help you avoid that issue.

The insights still come in handy on Apple silicon machines, even those without fans, like the MacBook Air. On those computers, Macs Fan Control is better served as a way to keep an eye on temperatures. While the app obviously can't control fans on the MacBook Air, because it doesn't have any, it can still display temps and sensor data.

Two quick and helpful presets are available for fan control in the menu bar module. There's Automatic mode, which effectively keeps the native macOS fan control in use. Alternatively, you can use Full blast, and this option kicks the fans into high gear. You shouldn't use Full blast all the time, but it's useful as a quick way to improve performance and tame temperatures in a pinch.

1 Temperature-based fan control

Automatically tell the fans to kick in when components reach a certain temperature

The presets are nice, but the most useful way to employ Macs Fan Control is with custom settings. You can set sensor-based values that determine when the fans kick in while using your computer. It's possible to pick minimum and maximum temperature values for a given sensor. In the event that the temperature sensor starts to get hotter than you'd like, you can force the fans to automatically start up. Rather than manually turning up or down the fans, sensor-based control does the work for you.

This is great for people who don't find Apple's thermal management programming to be aggressive enough. If you feel that your system is running too hot, you can set your own custom thermal threshold with this free and easy-to-use app. Aside from sensor-based control, you can also pick a custom RPM speed to consistently spin your fans at.

Everyone should download Macs Fan Control

Considering that Macs Fan Control is free, there isn't a downside to installing it on your Mac. Even if you don't play around with the custom values or even the presets, simply keeping tabs on your temperature sensors can be useful. After all, there's a lot going on inside your Mac that Apple doesn't show you. Macs Fan Control is just one way that you can peek behind the curtain and access some of that crucial diagnostic data.