A posture app for Mac that stays out of the way
Sitwise learns the sit you choose for your own desk, keeps a posture score in the menu bar, and nudges you only after the delay you set. It also counts the time you actually spend in the chair.
Made for a Mac desk day
Most posture tools want a session, a class, or a phone in your pocket. Sitwise is a macOS 14+ menu-bar extra. The score stays visible while you write, design, or take calls. There is no Dock icon to babysit and no account to create.
The sit drifted. Sitwise asks you to sit up.
Personal calibration
There is no universal correct sit in the evidence, and Sitwise does not invent one. You save a comfortable working position for this camera, chair, and desk. 100 means a match to that sit. Recalibrate when the setup moves. A close webcam that can see your face is enough to save.
Menu-bar score
The number updates from a short rolling window, not a single jittery frame. Bands are Good sit, slipping, and slouch. Colour is never the only signal: the state name sits next to the number.
Actual sitting time
A generic timer knows that an hour passed. Sitwise knows whether you were in the chair. Stand, step away, or pause and the sit clock pauses. After your chosen interval — 30 to 90 minutes, 60 by default — it asks you to stand and move.
Configurable reminders
You set alert delay, cooldown, sitting interval, break duration, seated shift, sleep hours, and pause. Sitwise stays quiet while you are standing, away, paused, or calibrating.
On-device privacy
Apple Vision runs on your Mac. Frames stay in memory and are discarded. Read privacy by design or the full walkthrough.
Compatibility
macOS 14 or later and a camera. The default Mac webcam is enough. USB cameras such as a Logitech C920 work when macOS treats them as the selected source.
How this differs from a break timer
- Elapsed-time timerCounts the clock. Cannot tell a stand from a sit. Fires whether you left the chair or not.
- SitwiseCounts chair time and posture drift against the sit you saved. Quiet when you stand, step away, or pause.
Is Sitwise a fitness app?
No. Sitwise is a Mac menu-bar posture coach and sitting reminder. There is no workout, class, calorie target, streak, or leaderboard.
What does a score of 100 mean?
It means the current sit is close to the comfortable position you saved for this camera, chair, and desk. It is not a universal measure of perfect posture, and it is not a reason to hold one shape for hours.
Does Sitwise save or upload camera footage?
No. Camera frames are processed in memory on your Mac with Apple Vision and discarded after each score. Sitwise does not write frames to disk or send them to EthicsLab.
Will it nag me?
You choose the delay, cooldown, sitting interval, break duration, and sleep hours. Sitwise stays quiet when you are standing, away, paused, or calibrating. You can snooze or pause whenever you need to.
Does it know when I stand or step away?
Yes. Standing and away are different from slouching. The sitting clock pauses when you leave the chair, and a movement break counts after the duration you set.
Do I need special equipment?
You need a Mac running macOS 14 or later and a camera. The default Mac webcam is enough. Recalibrate if the camera, chair, desk, or distance changes.