KamaeBest posture apps for Mac in 2026, compared — Kamae
Mac posture apps split into three groups by sensor: webcam-based apps that look at your shoulders and head, AirPods-based apps that read motion from your earbuds, and wearables that clip on or stick to your body. Within each group, some are free, some are subscriptions, and one is open source. The right one for you depends on which trade-off you can live with — and on whether you also use Windows or Linux.
This guide compares eleven apps on the same axes: how they sense your posture, which platforms they run on, what they cost, and what each one does that the others do not. There is no winner. The goal is to help you pick the one that fits how you actually work.
Comparison table
| App | How it senses | Platforms | Price | Free option or trial | Open source | Stands out for | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Straighty | Mac camera | macOS 15+ | Free | n/a (free) | No | Sloth companion; Pomodoro sessions; guided stretch breaks | | SitTall | AirPods / headphone motion | macOS 14+ | One-time US$5.99 | None stated | No | Menu bar posture gauge; daily slouch count | | Dorso (formerly Posturr) | Mac camera or AirPods motion | macOS 13+ (AirPods mode macOS 14+) | Free on GitHub / Homebrew, or US$4.99 on the App Store | n/a (free on GitHub) | Yes, MIT | Progressively blurs the screen when slouching | | AirPosture | AirPods motion | macOS 14+ (Apple silicon required) | One-time US$17, 1 year of updates | No trial; 30-day refund | No | Five-second calibration; menu bar beep | | StopSlouching | Webcam (browser, Chrome extension, Windows app) | Web (Chromium best); Windows desktop | Pro US$2.99/month, US$24.99/year, or US$39.99 lifetime | Free live demo; 14-day refund | No | One subscription covers web, extension and Windows app | | SitApp | Webcam | macOS 12+, Windows 10+, Linux; also Mac App Store | Free (1 h/day), Pro US$34.99/year, or Lifetime US$89.99 | 7-day Pro trial, no card | No | Multi-desk setups; guided movement breaks; streaks | | Slouch Sniper | Webcam (built-in or external) | Apple silicon Mac (M1+) only; Windows | One-time US$19 (rising to US$38) | No trial; browser demo | No | Dims the screen when slouching | | SitSense | Webcam (browser) | Chrome / Firefox / Safari / Edge on macOS, Windows, Linux | Free; Pro US$34.99/year | Free tier; "no trial" | No | Axolotl character; AI coach and trends in Pro | | Posture Pal | AirPods / Beats motion | iPhone (iOS 17+); Mac (macOS 14+) | Pro US$19.99 one-time, or weekly / monthly / yearly IAP | None stated | No | Characters; music volume by posture; Live Activities | | Upright GO 2 / GO S | Wearable sensor (back or necklace) | Hardware + phone | GO 2 US$99.95 (sale US$79), GO S US$79.95 (sale US$59); app free | 30-day refund | No | Vibration feedback; no camera, no computer needed | | Kamae | Mac camera (built-in, Continuity Camera, or USB) | macOS 11+ (Apple silicon only) | One-time US$19, 1 year of updates | 14 days | No | Menu bar colour; 45-minute stand reminder; daily routine; in-app connection log |
App Store prices are from the US storefront and may differ by region. Prices and features were checked on each app's official website or App Store page on 25 September 2026 and may have changed.
Each app in a few sentences
Straighty is a free Mac App Store download that uses the built-in camera, runs Pomodoro sessions, and pairs a slow-moving sloth companion with stretch-break prompts. The official listing says all processing happens locally on your Mac. It is the easiest way to try a webcam-based posture app without paying anything, on macOS 15 or later.
SitTall is a US$5.99 one-time Mac App Store app that reads AirPods or headphone motion and never uses a camera. It shows a posture gauge in the menu bar and tracks your daily slouch count. The developer states the app collects no data. No free trial is stated.
Dorso is the open-source option: free on GitHub and Homebrew under MIT, and also listed on the Mac App Store for US$4.99. It uses the Mac camera or, on macOS 14 and later, AirPods motion. Its signature move is to progressively blur your screen when you slouch, with Glow, Border and Solid styles. (Dorso was previously called Posturr; it is the same product, renamed.)
AirPosture is a US$17 one-time app that reads AirPods motion only, requires Apple silicon and macOS 14 or later, and runs a five-second calibration. It beeps through the menu bar when your head stays forward. There is no free trial, but there is a 30-day refund window.
StopSlouching is a webcam-based app that runs in the browser (best on Chromium), as a Chrome extension, and as a Windows desktop app. Pro is US$2.99 a month, US$24.99 a year or US$39.99 once for life, with one subscription covering all three surfaces. Firefox and Safari detect posture only while the StopSlouching tab is on screen. There is a free live demo and a 14-day refund.
SitApp runs on macOS 12 and later, Windows 10 and later, and most modern Linux distributions, and uses the webcam. The free plan gives you one hour of monitoring a day. Pro is US$34.99 a year or US$89.99 once for life, with a 7-day Pro trial and no credit card required. The official site says images never leave your machine.
Slouch Sniper runs on Apple silicon Macs (M1 and later) and Windows and uses the webcam, built-in or external. It costs US$19 once for a lifetime licence, with the site noting the price will rise to US$38. It dims your screen when you slouch. There is no free trial — only a browser demo. Intel Mac and mobile support are listed as "in development".
SitSense runs in any modern browser on macOS, Windows and Linux and uses the webcam. The free tier is real and usable. Pro is US$34.99 a year. The Pro tier adds an axolotl character, an AI coach, and longer-term trends. The site says no video ever leaves your computer.
Posture Pal is primarily an iPhone app (iOS 17 and later) that also lists a macOS 14 and later build. It reads motion from AirPods 3rd gen, AirPods Pro, AirPods Max or Beats Fit Pro and uses characters — a giraffe, for example — to nudge you. It can adjust your music's volume by posture and post Live Activities on the iPhone. Pro is US$19.99 one-time, or weekly, monthly and yearly in-app subscriptions. The privacy label lists usage data, not linked to you.
Upright GO 2 and GO S are physical sensors you stick to your upper back or wear on a necklace. They vibrate when you slouch and pair with a free phone companion app. No camera, no computer needed. The GO 2 is US$99.95 (sale US$79) and the GO S is US$79.95 (sale US$59), with a 30-day refund. This is a different category from the rest of this list.
Kamae is a webcam-based Mac menu bar app. It is one-time US$19 with a 14-day free trial and a year of updates included. It uses your Mac's built-in camera, an iPhone through Continuity Camera, or a USB webcam. It opens the camera for about one second every thirty seconds by default — the green camera light blinks with that pattern, not stays on. When no camera is available, Kamae falls back to a sit timer so the 45-minute stand-up reminders keep working. It also has an in-app connection log so you can see every network call it has made.
How to choose
The "best" app is the one whose trade-offs match how you actually work. A few common situations:
- You don't want a camera watching you at all. SitTall and AirPosture use AirPods motion sensors, no camera at all. Posture Pal also uses headphone motion, though it is centred on iPhone. Upright GO is the only option here that does not need a computer at all.
- You want a free webcam app on macOS. Straighty is free on the Mac App Store. Dorso is free on GitHub and Homebrew (open source under MIT) and US$4.99 on the App Store.
- You also use Windows or Linux. SitApp supports macOS, Windows and Linux. Slouch Sniper covers Apple silicon Macs and Windows. StopSlouching runs in any browser and ships a Windows desktop app. SitSense is browser-only and runs anywhere a browser does.
- The blinking camera light all day bothers you. Look for an app that documents a short, intermittent sampling pattern. Kamae's default is about one second of camera time every thirty seconds, with the camera off the rest of the time.
- You would rather pay once than subscribe. Straighty and Dorso are free. SitTall, AirPosture, Slouch Sniper and Kamae are one-time purchases. StopSlouching has a lifetime tier. SitApp's paid plans are yearly or a US$89.99 lifetime licence; SitSense Pro is yearly.
- You want source you can read or build yourself. Dorso is the only app here that is open source.
- You use the laptop in places where there is no camera at all. Kamae falls back to a sit timer in that case.
Privacy
Most webcam-based apps in this list — Kamae included — state that they process video on your Mac and discard it. Straighty, Dorso, AirPosture, StopSlouching, SitApp, Slouch Sniper and SitSense all use language along these lines on their official pages. AirPods-based apps see only motion data; Upright GO sees only tilt and vibration. None of that is a substitute for actually checking.
Two things are useful to know specifically about Kamae. First, the camera is open for about one second every thirty seconds by default — the green camera light blinks with that pattern, not stays on. You can watch the light on the Mac for a minute and see. Second, Kamae shows every connection it has made in Settings → Privacy → Connection log, with a timestamp and destination. If something in that log looks unfamiliar, that is a bug and the company wants to hear about it.
Things that change quickly
App Store prices change. Free tiers get trimmed. macOS requirements get bumped. Two ways to keep your eye on the field: check the official website or App Store page of the app you use, and re-read the privacy screen once a year — the language there is usually clearer than the marketing page.
Try Kamae
Kamae is for people who want a webcam-based posture app that lives in the menu bar, keeps the camera off most of the time, and lets them see every connection it makes. It is US$19 once, with a 14-day free trial, and runs on Apple silicon Macs with macOS 11 or later.
Try Kamae
Kamae is a Mac menu bar app that quietly watches your posture through the camera. Video never leaves your Mac. Try it free for 14 days, or buy it once for US$19.