MangoHud
A Vulkan and OpenGL overlay for monitoring FPS, temperatures, CPU/GPU load, and other performance metrics on Linux.
What is MangoHud?
MangoHud is a real-time performance monitoring overlay for Linux that displays FPS, temperatures, CPU/GPU load, and other system metrics directly on-screen while running Vulkan or OpenGL applications. It helps gamers and developers visualize performance bottlenecks, log benchmark data, and fine-tune graphics settings. The tool is highly configurable and integrates with popular gaming platforms like Steam and Lutris.
Linux gamers, graphics developers, and performance enthusiasts who need detailed, real-time insights into their system's behavior while running Vulkan or OpenGL applications.
Developers choose MangoHud for its extensive customization, broad hardware support, and seamless integration with the Linux gaming stack. Unlike generic monitoring tools, it offers deep Vulkan/OpenGL-specific metrics, built-in FPS limiting, and benchmark logging with visualization options.
Overview
A Vulkan and OpenGL overlay for monitoring FPS, temperatures, CPU/GPU load and more.
Use Cases
Best For
- Monitoring FPS and frametimes in Linux games
- Debugging GPU or CPU performance bottlenecks in Vulkan/OpenGL applications
- Logging and comparing benchmark results across different system configurations
- Limiting FPS or controlling Vsync in games that lack built-in options
- Displaying real-time system metrics (temps, power, usage) during gameplay
- Customizing on-screen overlay appearance and metrics for streaming or recording
Not Ideal For
- Windows or macOS users needing performance overlays
- Competitive esports players requiring absolute minimal performance overhead
- Projects using graphics APIs other than Vulkan or OpenGL (e.g., DirectX)
- Users seeking a zero-configuration, automatic monitoring tool
Pros & Cons
Pros
The README lists over 100 config variables like MANGOHUD_CONFIG for choosing metrics, colors, fonts, and position, allowing granular control over the overlay's appearance and data.
It includes fps_limit and vsync parameters for both Vulkan and OpenGL, enabling FPS capping and sync options directly without game support.
MangoHud logs frametime data to files with support for online visualization at FlightlessMango.com and local plotting via mangoplot, facilitating detailed performance analysis.
The metrics table shows monitoring for NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel GPUs across drivers, and it integrates seamlessly with Steam, Lutris, gamescope, and Flatpak via launch options.
Cons
It only works with Vulkan and OpenGL applications, making it useless for DirectX-based games or other graphics APIs on Linux without translation layers.
As per the README table, some GPUs like Intel integrated lack key metrics such as temperature and power readings, and features depend on kernel versions or driver installations.
Setting up requires editing config files or environment variables manually, which can be overwhelming given the vast options, and per-application configs need precise naming.
Frequently Asked Questions
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