iPerf3 for Mac — a native macOS client and server

Run iPerf3 on macOS without Homebrew, Terminal, or building from source. A native Mac Catalyst app gives you a real client, a real server, real-time charts, persistent history, and CSV/JSON export — with macOS-style menus and keyboard shortcuts. Requires macOS 13.5 Ventura or later.

Download on the App Store See how it works

One-time purchase · No tracking · TCP/UDP · Client + Server

  • iOS 16.6+Native build
  • macOS 13.5+Mac Catalyst
  • TCP + UDPBoth protocols
  • 0Trackers
  • 14Languages

Who this is for

  • macOS admins benchmarking lab equipment without CLI overhead
  • Developers correlating macOS network behavior with backend latency
  • Power users testing Thunderbolt, 10 GbE, and Wi-Fi 6E links on Mac
  • Engineers needing simultaneous client and server windows on one machine

What you can test

  • 10 GbE and 2.5 GbE wired throughput between Macs and servers
  • Wi-Fi 6 / 6E peak throughput against a wired iperf3 server
  • Local loopback and tunnel performance on macOS
  • Multiple parallel client/server windows for stress testing

How it works

  1. Install from the Mac App Store

    No Homebrew, no Xcode, no codesign hassles. Universal binary runs natively on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs.

  2. Open Client or Server mode

    Both modes can run side-by-side in separate windows for loopback, multi-NIC, or back-to-back testing.

  3. Configure host, port, protocol, parallel streams

    Or hit Start immediately with the iperf3 defaults — port 5201, TCP, single stream, 10 second duration.

  4. Watch live results

    Native macOS chart with bandwidth, retransmits, congestion window, and round-trip time updated each second.

  5. Use macOS-style shortcuts

    ⌘E to export, ⌘⌥H to view history, ⌘N for a new test. Multiple windows in the Window menu.

macOS workflow for lab and admin testing

Lab and admin work on macOS lives in two patterns: short ad hoc throughput checks and long-running validation runs. Both benefit from a GUI iperf3 over `brew install iperf3`. The GUI keeps a persistent history of every test you've run, with full per-second metrics, so the next morning you can answer 'was the link slow on Tuesday?' without re-running anything. macOS notifications fire when a multi-minute run completes so you can tab away to do other work. Tooltips on chart points expose the underlying counters, which makes review faster than scrolling through Terminal output. And exports drop into Files or directly into Numbers/Excel via the share sheet.

Running parallel client/server sessions on Mac

A Mac is a great two-sided iperf3 bench. Open one window in Server mode bound to the loopback or a specific NIC, and another window in Client mode pointing at it for sanity checks. Or run Server mode on a Mac while running Client mode on an iPhone or iPad on the same Wi-Fi network — that pairing is unique to Apple's ecosystem and lets you measure phone-to-laptop throughput without provisioning extra hardware. For 10 GbE links use parallel streams (`-P 4` or `-P 8`) to ensure the test isn't bottlenecked by a single TCP flow's congestion window growth. Two windows per direction give you bidirectional context that single-window CLI runs can't.

Exporting and analyzing results on macOS

Exports come in CSV and JSON. CSV opens in Numbers or Excel by double-click and works as a normal spreadsheet — sort by retransmits, plot throughput by interval, run conditional formatting for outliers. JSON is the format of choice for scripts: pipe through `jq` for ad hoc queries, parse with Python pandas for regression analysis, or feed into a Grafana datasource for long-term tracking. The app also supports drag-and-drop of an exported file back onto the app icon to re-import a saved run for review. Quick Look in Finder shows a one-page summary of the run's headline metrics — useful when triaging dozens of files.

Screenshots

  • iPerf3 for Mac dashboard showing instant throughput, ping, jitter, and packet loss results
  • iPerf3 for Mac advanced controls for TCP, UDP, streams, direction, and bitrate
  • iPerf3 server mode on Mac showing IP address, port, and copyable client command
  • iPerf3 for Mac organized test servers with favorites, groups, and search
  • iPerf3 for Mac history view for tracking network performance over time
  • iPerf3 for Mac export screen for CSV and JSON results with metadata and raw output
  • iPerf3 for Mac Shortcuts and x-callback-url automation for repeatable network tests

Frequently asked questions

Is this the official iPerf3 app?
It's a native iOS/macOS client and server compatible with the iPerf3 protocol — built independently. Test results are wire-compatible with the standard iperf3 binary.
Does the app collect my data?
No. We don't track users. Crash reports are processed by Sentry without personal identifiers, and test results stay on your device unless you export them.
TCP or UDP — which one should I run?
Use TCP for raw throughput and reliability. Use UDP to measure jitter, packet loss, and bufferbloat — typical for Wi-Fi or VPN diagnostics.
Can I run a server on iPhone?
Yes. The app includes server mode on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. You can pin a port, accept connections from any iPerf3 client, and stop the server with one tap.
Is this a Catalyst app or a native AppKit app?
It's a Mac Catalyst build of the iOS app, sharing the underlying network stack. macOS-specific affordances such as menubar shortcuts and multiple windows are wired through Catalyst APIs.
Does it work on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs?
Yes — the universal binary runs natively on both Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3, M4) and Intel x86_64 Macs supported by macOS 13.5 Ventura or later.

Related iPerf3 guides

Ready to test your network?

Run iPerf3 client and server tests from your iPhone, iPad, or Mac. No account, no tracking, one-time purchase.

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