The Best Desktop Widget Software in 2026
We researched desktop widget software from official websites, including pricing pages, plan tables, and product documentation. Products are ranked on the category’s core job, value for money, and verified features such as widget variety, customization, platform support, and system monitoring—so buyers can compare tools built for the desktop itself.
Our top picks
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Top ranked
Monitor Flows#1 of 299.4/10A flexible Windows dashboard tool with broad integrations and multi-monitor support.
Free plan · 14-day trial
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Runner-up
Rainmeter#2 of 299.3/10A flexible Windows widget toolkit for system data, feeds, controls, and custom layouts.
Free plan
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Top-ranked free plan
9.0/10A free Windows gadget collection with monitoring, utilities, and desktop organization.
Free plan
Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.
The full ranking 29 tools, best first
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Best forWindows users needing integrations and multi-monitor layouts
A flexible Windows dashboard tool with broad integrations and multi-monitor support.
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
Free plan · 14-day trial Our Monitor Flows verdict → Visit Monitor FlowsFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #1 · $149/mo →9.4/10★★★★★Visit Monitor Flows -
Best forWindows users wanting a free skin ecosystem
A flexible Windows widget toolkit for system data, feeds, controls, and custom layouts.
- Feed widgets
- Weather widgets
- System monitoring
9.3/10★★★★★Visit Rainmeter -
Best forWindows users wanting a ready-made free gadget collection
A free Windows gadget collection with monitoring, utilities, and desktop organization.
- Feed widgets
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit GadgetPack -
Best forWindows users integrating work and personal services
A flexible Windows dashboard for combining work, personal services, and system information.
- Feed widgets
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
8.8/10★★★★☆Visit Themia -
Best forMac developers creating data-driven widgets
A flexible Mac widget framework for developers comfortable with code and shell commands.
- Feed widgets
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
8.7/10★★★★☆Visit Übersicht -
Best forCross-platform hardware and system monitoring
A free, open-source monitor for users who want broad system visibility in one window.
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
8.6/10★★★★☆Visit GKrellM -
Best forFree, highly customizable Linux/macOS monitoring
A flexible open-source monitor for deeply customized desktop system displays.
- Feed widgets
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
8.5/10★★★★☆Visit Conky -
Best forOrganizations building and distributing widget apps
A cross-platform widget runtime with developer publishing tools and perpetual licenses.
- System monitoring
8.4/10★★★★☆Try Desktop Widgets -
Best forMac users wanting lifestyle and productivity widgets
A broad macOS widget collection for personal information and productivity.
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
8.2/10★★★★☆Visit Widgetify -
Best forFeature-rich macOS desktop customization
A broad macOS widget library with wallpapers, stickers, backups, and visual controls.
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
8.1/10★★★★☆Visit WidgetWall -
Best forMac users wanting monitoring and media widgets
A broad Mac widget set for monitoring, media, weather, planning, and desktop styling.
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
8.0/10★★★★☆Visit Widgetter -
Best forMac users wanting broad everyday desktop widgets
A broad macOS widget set for notes, planning, monitoring, and desktop organization.
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
- Custom layouts
7.9/10★★★★☆Visit DeskWidgets -
Best forUsers turning websites into desktop dashboards
A flexible web-to-desktop widget tool with useful free access and a focused scope.
- Feed widgets
- Weather widgets
- Custom layouts
7.8/10★★★★☆Visit Duckboard -
Best forLinux power users who code their widgets
A flexible open-source widget system for Linux users who want to code their desktop.
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
- Custom layouts
7.7/10★★★★☆Visit Eww -
Best forWindows users building custom widgets
A free, open-source Windows widget builder with broad customization options.
- Weather widgets
- System monitoring
- Custom layouts
7.6/10★★★★☆Visit Delta Widgets -
Best forLinux users wanting an all-purpose dashboard
A broad, open-source Linux dashboard for productivity, monitoring, weather, and logs.
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
7.5/10★★★★☆Visit Dashboard -
Best forWindows users wanting varied entertainment widgets
A broad Windows widget collection with free essentials and affordable Pro access.
- Feed widgets
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
7.4/10★★★★☆Visit WidgetSpark -
Best forWindows users wanting a practical free dashboard
A free Windows dashboard that combines monitoring, notes, favorites, and network utilities.
- System monitoring
- Custom layouts
7.3/10★★★★☆Try SAWAS Dashboard -
Best forWindows users wanting polished wallpaper-level widgets
A polished, one-time-purchase widget dashboard for Windows desktops.
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
- System monitoring
7.2/10★★★★☆Visit DeskDash -
Best forFree Windows users who build custom widgets
A free Windows widget app with layout saving, a widget store, and custom development tools.
7.1/10★★★★☆Visit BeWidgets -
Best forWindows users who mainly need persistent sticky notes
A focused, free Windows note widget for persistent reminders and desktop reference.
- Custom layouts
6.8/10★★★☆☆Visit Stickies -
Best forWindows users focused on performance metrics
A focused Windows monitor for detailed live hardware and network metrics.
- System monitoring
- Custom layouts
6.7/10★★★☆☆Visit pcGauge -
Best forWindows users needing lightweight diagnostic monitoring
A focused, open-source Windows monitor with useful diagnostics and a customizable sidebar.
6.6/10★★★☆☆Visit Sidebar -
Best forMac and iOS users wanting utility widgets
A focused widget collection for Apple users, with free calculator and converter tools.
6.5/10★★★☆☆Visit Wdgts 2 -
Best forWindows users wanting a simple clock widget
A focused Windows clock widget with skins, alarms, calendar, and desktop controls.
- Calendar widgets
6.4/10★★★☆☆Visit ClocX -
Best forWindows users needing rich-text sticky notes
A focused Windows note app with rich text, reminders, images, and offline storage.
6.3/10★★★☆☆Visit Vovsoft -
Best forMac users tracking cryptocurrency prices
A focused, free open-source menu bar utility for tracking crypto on Mac.
6.2/10★★★☆☆Visit CryptoBar -
Best forHealth and lifestyle dashboards
A flexible personal dashboard with health integrations, but not a conventional desktop widget tool.
- Feed widgets
- Weather widgets
- Calendar widgets
6.1/10★★★☆☆Visit Mango Mirror -
Best forUsers seeking RGB lighting controls on many platforms
A broad RGB control suite that fits lighting workflows better than desktop widgets.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit Nexus
No tools match those filters.
Compare at a glance
| # | Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Supported platforms | Widget categories | System monitoring | Custom layouts | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monitor Flows | Yes | $3/mo | Windows | system monitoring; media controls; calendar; weather; smart home | Yes | Yes | 9.4 |
| 2 | Rainmeter | Yes | Free | Windows | memory, battery, RSS feeds, weather forecasts, notes, to-do lists, application launchers, media-player controls | Yes | Yes | 9.3 |
| 3 | GadgetPack (formerly 8GadgetPack) | Yes | Free | Windows | sidebar, agenda, CPU and GPU monitoring, battery, calendar, clipboard, clocks, currency, drives, network monitoring, weather, reminders, slideshow, sticky notes, calculator, volume control, unit converter, radio | Yes | Yes | 9.0 |
| 4 | Themia | Yes | $19 one-time | Windows | Office, Online, System, Themia, Layout, Others | Yes | Yes | 8.8 |
| 5 | Übersicht | Yes | Free | Macos | system monitoring; clocks; calendars; weather; RSS feeds; networking; media; launchers; finance; reminders | Yes | Yes | 8.7 |
| 6 | GKrellM | Yes | Free | Cross_platform | CPU, process, disk, network, internet, memory, swap, filesystem, mailbox, clock, calendar, hostname, battery, temperature, fan, voltage, uptime, plugins | Yes | 8.6 | |
| 7 | Conky | Yes | Free | Cross_platform | text, progress bars, graph widgets, RSS feeds, calendar events | Yes | Yes | 8.5 |
| 8 | Desktop Widgets | No | Cross_platform | Yes | 8.4 | |||
| 9 | Widgetify | Yes | Macos | Photo; music playback and lyrics; translator; world clock; date and time clocks; app shortcuts; folders and files; day master; to-do; sticky notes; reminders; weather; time-zone tracker; statistics; flip clock; browser; focus timer; water reminder; calendar | Yes | Yes | 8.2 | |
| 10 | WidgetWall | Yes | Macos | clock, calculator, photos, stopwatch, timer, app shortcuts, video, games, lava lamp, affirmations, iPod, stocks and crypto, white noise, Pomodoro, alarm, countdown, countup, emoji browser, TikTok, weather, stats, music, calendar, reminders, notes, browser, battery, mirror, Pinterest, bookmarks, canvas, Finder, stickers | Yes | Yes | 8.1 | |
| 11 | Widgetter | Yes | Macos | Date & Time, Calendar, Weather, Battery, Music player, Photo, Internet speed, Currency and cryptocurrency quotes, Tasks and Reminders, CPU, RPM, RAM, HDD/SSD | Yes | Yes | 8.0 | |
| 12 | DeskWidgets | Yes | Macos | Interactive Widgets; Information Widgets | Yes | Yes | 7.9 | |
| 13 | Duckboard | Yes | $29 one-time | Cross_platform | YouTube, X, weather, productivity tools, feeds, custom HTML and embeds | Yes | 7.8 | |
| 14 | Eww | Yes | Free | Linux | combo-box-text, expander, revealer, checkbox, color-button, color-chooser, scale, progress, input, button, image, box, overlay, tooltip, centerbox, scroll, eventbox, label, literal, calendar, stack, transform, circular-progress, graph | Yes | Yes | 7.7 |
| 15 | Delta Widgets | Yes | Free | Windows | date and time, media, audio visualizer, weather, disks, RAM, CPU, battery, system stats, custom HTML, URL/web content | Yes | Yes | 7.6 |
| 16 | Dashboard | Free | Linux | Clock, Calendar, Todo, Notes, Pomodoro, Countdown, Links, Weather, System Status, Htop, AI Chat, Log Tail | Yes | Yes | 7.5 | |
| 17 | WidgetSpark | Yes | $19.99/yr | Windows | System, Productivity, Games, Time, Media, Entertainment, Weather, Finance | Yes | Yes | 7.4 |
| 18 | SAWAS Dashboard | Yes | Free | Windows | Clock and date; system CPU/RAM; network rate; notes; Chrome favorites; Edge favorites; network scanner; support links | Yes | Yes | 7.3 |
| 19 | DeskDash | No | €10 one-time | Windows | clock, system monitoring, weather, calendar, media controls, notes, calculator, system controls, taskbar | Yes | Yes | 7.2 |
| 20 | BeWidgets | Yes | Free | Windows | 7.1 | |||
| 21 | Stickies | Yes | Free | Windows | text notes, image notes, reminders, alarms, recurring notes, attached notes | Yes | 6.8 | |
| 22 | pcGauge | No | $9.99 one-time | Windows | CPU, GPU, memory, network, disk | Yes | Yes | 6.7 |
| 23 | Sidebar Diagnostics | Yes | Free | 6.6 | ||||
| 24 | Wdgts 2 | Yes | Cross_platform | Calculator; Converter; Clips; On This Day; ScratchPad; Zones; Music | 6.5 | |||
| 25 | ClocX | Yes | Free | Windows | clock, calendar | 6.4 | ||
| 26 | Vov Sticky Notes | No | $19 one-time | Windows | Text, Image, Web Browser | 6.3 | ||
| 27 | CryptoBar | Yes | Free | Macos | cryptocurrency prices; 24-hour price charts | 6.2 | ||
| 28 | Mango Mirror | Yes | Cross_platform | health, fitness, nutrition, sleep, weather, photos, calendar, reminders, notes, news, quotes, background photos | No | Yes | 6.1 | |
| 29 | Nexus | Yes | Free | 6.0 |
Head-to-head All 28 comparisons →
- Monitor Flows vs Rainmeter
- Monitor Flows vs GadgetPack (formerly 8GadgetPack)
- Monitor Flows vs Themia
- Monitor Flows vs Übersicht
- Monitor Flows vs GKrellM
- Monitor Flows vs Conky
- Monitor Flows vs Desktop Widgets
- Rainmeter vs GadgetPack (formerly 8GadgetPack)
- Rainmeter vs Themia
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How we rank desktop widget software
Every tool on this page was researched by iTechGuides Editors from its official website — pricing pages, plan tables and product documentation. We rank on how well each one does this category's core job, what the free or entry plan includes, and where it falls short. Where we have enough verified facts, the score out of 10 is a rubric — job fit, value and how much we could verify — shown with its breakdown on every tool's page; a tool we have not verified enough to score yet shows its rank without a number. Scores are re-checked when a product changes its plans. Read the full editorial policy, or submit a tool we missed.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Last updated · How we research and update