Claude Usage Tracker vs SessionWatcher (2026)

Which “Claude Usage Tracker”?

Two different things answer to the name. The one people usually mean is the Mac app by Hamed Elfayome (claudetracker.com), a native Swift menu bar app with about 3,600 GitHub stars. The other is a family of browser extensions with the same name, such as this Chrome extension, which read your claude.ai cookies and show the 5-hour and weekly bars in the toolbar. This page compares SessionWatcher with both. ClaudeUsageBar is a third, separate app; see SessionWatcher vs ClaudeUsageBar.

What the Claude Usage Tracker app does

Per its README: session, weekly and per-model usage for Claude, plus API Console usage and API costs, for as many profiles (accounts) as you like, all visible in the menu bar at once. Each profile can get its own claude-<profile> terminal command, and the app can switch Claude Code's credentials when you change profile. It sends threshold notifications at 75%, 90% and 95% or at thresholds you set, keeps usage history charts, adds segments to the Claude Code status line, and since v3.3.0 tracks Codex too. A beta “Dynamic Island” shows what Claude Code is doing in a small display at the Mac's notch. It signs in with Claude Code's existing login, an in-app browser sign-in or a pasted session key, and sends a version-only analytics heartbeat once a day.

Claude Usage Tracker is the better choice if

Claude (and perhaps Codex) on a Mac is your whole setup, and you want it free.
You juggle many Claude accounts and want a terminal command per account.
You also pay for the Claude API and want Console usage and costs next to your plan limits.
You want the limits inside the Claude Code status line as well as the menu bar.

SessionWatcher is the better choice if

You use Cursor, Copilot, Gemini CLI, opencode or another of the tools SessionWatcher supports (20 in all) alongside Claude.
You work on Windows, or on a Mac and a PC with one licence: SessionWatcher for Windows puts the readout inside the taskbar.
You want Claude and Codex limits on your iPhone, in widgets and the Dynamic Island, or on your Apple Watch: the companion app is in TestFlight beta.
You want desktop widgets for your limits on the Mac (widgets).
You want a paid product with a developer to email, and a 14-day refund if it does not fit.

Side by side

	Claude Usage Tracker (Mac app)	Claude Usage Tracker (extension)	SessionWatcher
Price	Free, MIT open source	Free	Paid; 7-day trial with no card
Where it runs	Mac menu bar, macOS 14 or later	Browser toolbar, while the browser is open	Mac menu bar (macOS 14+) and Windows taskbar
Tools	Claude, and Codex since v3.3.0	Claude (claude.ai plan limits)	20, including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot and Gemini CLI
5-hour and weekly limits	Yes, plus per-model limits	Yes, plus weekly Sonnet	Yes, with reset times and pace
Notifications	At 75%, 90% and 95%, plus custom thresholds	At 50%, 75% and 90%	At 70% and 90% by default, or every 10%, and on reset
Several Claude accounts	Unlimited profiles, with a terminal launcher each	One browser login	Yes, with Pro; Codex accounts too
Sign-in	Claude Code’s login, an in-app browser sign-in, or a pasted session key	Your claude.ai cookies	The logins your tools already keep
API Console usage and cost	Yes, per profile	No	Estimated cost from local logs; not the Console
Claude Code status line	Yes	No	No
iPhone and Apple Watch	Not stated (its Dynamic Island beta is a Mac notch display)	No	Companion app in TestFlight beta
Windows	Not stated	Chrome on Windows	Native app, x64 and ARM64
What it sends out	A version-only analytics heartbeat every 24 hours	Not stated beyond calls to claude.ai	Licence checks send the key and device details

Third-party columns: each project's README, checked October 6, 2026; we did not install or test them, and other extensions with the same name differ in detail. SessionWatcher column: our facts page.

SessionWatcher

Claude, Codex and Cursor in one menu bar.
Or one Windows taskbar.

Native app for the Mac menu bar and the Windows taskbar. Track Claude, Codex and 18 more tools' usage, costs, and rate limits in real time.

★★★★★Trusted by developers daily

“Fast, simple, and does exactly what it should. Definitely worth it.”

@nicojerome on GitHub

Prices go up Nov 1, midnight Paris time. Prices go up Nov 1

Download Free for Mac

macOS 14+. Free for 7 days, no credit card.

Download free: 7-day trial, no card

For Mac (macOS 14+). Claude Code and everything in Pro are included. Nothing is charged when it ends.

Rather buy now? Claude Code alone is $6.99 one-time →

FinderFileEditViewGoWindowHelp

Mon Jan 1 12:00 AM

A note on browser extensions

An extension is the lightest option and works on any computer with Chrome. Two limits come with the shape: it only updates while the browser runs, and it reads the claude.ai plan limits through your web login, so it knows nothing about Codex, Cursor or other tools. If Claude in the browser is all you use, that is fine.

Pricing

Claude Usage Tracker and the extensions are free. Solo is $6.99 and the Bundle is $14.99, both one-time. Pro is $59 one-time ($79 from November 1, Paris time) or $24 a year. Solo covers Claude Code alone on one device; Pro covers all 20 tools and several accounts on up to 5 Macs and PCs. The 7-day trial unlocks all of Pro with no card.

The verdict

For Claude on a Mac, Claude Usage Tracker is the stronger free choice, and we would point a Claude-only Mac user to it. SessionWatcher earns its price when the question is wider than Claude on one Mac: several tools, Windows, or your phone and watch.

Frequently asked questions

Is Claude Usage Tracker free?

Yes. The Mac app by Hamed Elfayome is free and open source under the MIT licence, installable with Homebrew, Nix or a direct download, and accepts donations. The browser extensions called Claude Usage Tracker are free to install as well.

Does Claude Usage Tracker work on Windows?

The app is a native macOS menu bar app for macOS 14 or later; its README describes no Windows build. A browser extension of the same name works wherever Chrome runs, but only while the browser is open and only for claude.ai plan limits. SessionWatcher for Windows shows Claude Code and 19 other tools inside the Windows 11 taskbar, or beside it on Windows 10, on the same licence as the Mac app.

Can Claude Usage Tracker show two Claude accounts?

Yes, and it goes further than SessionWatcher here: its README lists unlimited Claude profiles with separate credentials, all shown in the menu bar at once, plus a claude-<profile> terminal command per profile. SessionWatcher Pro shows several Claude and Codex accounts side by side, on Mac and Windows, without the launcher.

Is Claude Usage Tracker the same as ClaudeUsageBar or Claude Code Usage Monitor?

No. ClaudeUsageBar is a different free Mac app that needs a claude.ai cookie. Claude Code Usage Monitor is the name of two other projects: a terminal dashboard by Maciek-roboblog and a Windows taskbar widget by CodeZeno. Several Chrome and Firefox extensions also use the name Claude Usage Tracker.

Can I try SessionWatcher before paying?

Yes. The 7-day trial needs no card and unlocks all of Pro, on Mac and Windows. Solo is $6.99 and the Bundle is $14.99, both one-time. Pro is $59 one-time ($79 from November 1, Paris time) or $24 a year. Every purchase has a 14-day refund window.