HWMonitor

HWMonitor is a lightweight, accurate, and highly trusted hardware monitoring tool developed by CPUID. It provides real-time readings for temperatures, voltages, fan speeds, power draw, frequencies, and SMART data across CPUs, GPUs, motherboards, RAM, VRMs, NVMe drives, and more. Because of its minimal footprint and read-only sensor access, HWMonitor is one of the most widely used diagnostics tools for gaming PCs, workstations, laptops, and overclocking setups.

Whether you’re troubleshooting throttling, testing a new GPU, checking VRM temperatures, validating a cooling upgrade, or stress-testing system stability, HWMonitor offers clean, precise monitoring with no configuration required. Its portable build makes it ideal for USB “tech kits,” rescue environments, and on-the-go diagnostics.

For deeper, enterprise-level sensor analysis, tools like HWiNFO or Libre Hardware Monitor may be more advanced. But for everyday monitoring, quick debugging, or gaming performance checks, HWMonitor remains a fast, reliable, and clean solution.

Technical Overview

HWMonitor gathers readings directly from low-level system interfaces. It supports:

• SMBus Sensors — motherboard voltage, VRM, and temperature controllers (Nuvoton, ITE, Fintek)
• Embedded Controller (EC) — laptop battery telemetry, fan curves, and thermals
• ACPI Thermal Zones — CPU package sensors, system temperature, thermal trip points
• CPU Digital Thermal Sensors — Intel DTS (Core/Package), AMD Tctl/Tdie, CCD & IOD temps
• GPU Telemetry — NVIDIA/AMD/Intel GPU temperatures, VRAM temp, hotspot, fan RPM
• NVMe SMART Data — controller temperature, NAND temp, lifespan indicators, error logs
• HDD/SSD SMART — health, temp, read/write error rates, power-on hours
• PSU and VRM Telemetry — if supported by the motherboard or monitoring IC

Thanks to its read-only design, HWMonitor never modifies fan curves, voltages, or system settings — making it safe during diagnostics or stress testing.

Supported Hardware & Sensors

• CPUs: Intel Core/i9/i7/i5/i3, AMD Ryzen/APU/Threadripper, Athlon, EPYC
• GPUs: NVIDIA RTX/GTX, AMD Radeon, Intel ARC & iGPUs
• Motherboards: ASUS, MSI, Gigabyte, ASRock, Dell, HP, Lenovo OEM boards
• Drives: NVMe SSDs, SATA SSDs, HDDs with SMART
• Laptops: EC readings for fan RPM, battery charge/discharge rate, internal temps
• PSUs: Telemetry via supported ATX12VO / digital power supplies

When HWMonitor Is the Best Choice

• Monitoring CPU/GPU temperatures under gaming or rendering loads
• Diagnosing thermal throttling, overheating, or sudden shutdowns
• Checking VRM, chipset, and motherboard sensor behavior
• Testing new cooling hardware (AIO, air coolers, case fans)
• Evaluating PC stability during stress tests (Prime95, Cinebench, FurMark, AIDA64)
• Monitoring laptop thermals and Embedded Controller sensors
• Reading NVMe SSD controller and NAND temperatures
• Creating portable diagnostics USB kits

HWMonitor vs Other Tools

HWiNFO
• Most detailed sensor tool available (hundreds of values)
• Better for overclockers and engineers
• Heavier and more complex than HWMonitor

Libre Hardware Monitor
• Open-source alternative
• Similar to HWMonitor but with slightly broader hardware support
• Great for long-term logging & dashboards

Core Temp
• CPU-only monitoring
• Good for simple temp checks
• Lacks full system telemetry

Speccy
• Summary-focused system profiler
• Not as detailed in sensor readings

Conclusion: HWMonitor is the best choice when you need simple, accurate, real-time monitoring without complex configuration or overwhelming data.

Troubleshooting & Technical Tips

HWMonitor does not show CPU or GPU sensors
Disable other monitoring tools (ARMOURY CRATE, MSI Afterburner, iCue, NZXT CAM, AIDA64). Multiple apps can lock the same sensor bus.

GPU hotspot missing
Older GPUs or outdated drivers may not expose VRAM & hotspot telemetry.

Fan speed shows 0 RPM
Fans connected via Molex/SATA power cannot report RPM. Use motherboard headers.

Battery readings missing (laptops)
OEM EC restrictions. BIOS update may restore access.

CPU temps look “too high”
Ryzen CPUs report Tctl/Tdie + CCD temps — these may differ by 5–15°C.

System freezes when opening HWMonitor
Rare conflict with unstable memory overclocking or bad SMBus sensor chips.

FAQ

Is HWMonitor safe?
Yes — it is read-only and does not modify fan curves, voltages, or hardware settings.

Does HWMonitor support Windows 11?
Yes. Full compatibility with Windows 10/11 (x64).

Can HWMonitor control fan speeds?
No. It is monitoring-only. For fan control, use FanControl, Argus Monitor, or BIOS setup.

Does HWMonitor monitor GPU VRAM temperature?
Yes — for NVIDIA/AMD GPUs that expose VRAM/controller/hotspot sensors.

Does HWMonitor support NVMe SSDs?
Yes — most NVMe drives expose two temperature sensors plus SMART attributes.

Is HWMonitor portable?
Yes — the ZIP version requires no installation.

Download Options

Useful Links

• Official Website
• License: Freeware