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265 stars · Python

How to use Headroom: what you can do with it

What is Headroom? Headroom is a local-first macOS menu bar app that shows your AI coding quotas and CI, deploy, and monitor status, with optional iPhone, Watch, and ESP32 desk displays.

How do I use it? Download Headroom-macOS.zip from the Releases page on the Headroom GitHub repo and open Headroom.app; then open the menu bar meters and follow the Welcome screen; Confirm the detected providers, then select Continue. On a Release build the host starts automatically and stays up at login. Full steps below.

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What do you want to do?

3 use cases

  • Check AI coding quota and ship status from the menu bar

    Install the Mac app to see remaining quota and failed CI or deploys without leaving your editor.

    View prompt
    Using the michellzappa/headroom repo, help me set up the Headroom macOS menu bar app for my <tool name> account. Expected output: the menu bar shows quota tanks for the enabled providers, and the local health check returns JSON. Verify by running `curl -s localhost:8737/health | python3 -m json.tool` and confirming it responds.

  • Approve or deny coding agent requests from your iPhone

    Pair the iPhone app to your Mac so you can answer Claude or Codex requests when you are away from the desk.

    View prompt
    Using the michellzappa/headroom repo, pair the Headroom iPhone companion with my Mac using the mobile token from Mac Settings. Expected output: a pending <agent name> request appears in the iPhone Attention tab and can be answered. Verify by confirming the request is listed on the phone and the Mac host responds to `curl -s localhost:8737/health | python3 -m json.tool`.

  • Read the local usage feed before starting a long agent task

    Query the local Headroom host for quota Headroom so an agent can decide whether a big task fits the remaining limit.

    View prompt
    Using the michellzappa/headroom repo, query the local Headroom host at localhost:8737 and read the /usage feed for <provider name>. Expected output: a yes or no decision on whether remaining quota covers the task, based on a threshold of <threshold>. Verify by confirming the /usage response parses as JSON before using it.

Quick start with Headroom

  1. Check you have what it needs: macOS 14 or later for the menu bar app; Python 3.9 or later (the bundled host is stdlib only, using /usr/bin/python3); At least one AI coding tool already signed in locally.
  2. Open michellzappa/headroom on GitHub and read the README and license.
  3. Download Headroom-macOS.zip from the Releases page on the Headroom GitHub repo and open Headroom.app.
  4. Open the menu bar meters and follow the Welcome screen.
  5. Confirm the detected providers, then select Continue. On a Release build the host starts automatically and stays up at login.
  6. Run curl -s localhost:8737/health | python3 -m json.tool in Terminal to confirm the host is responding.

These steps come from our top use case, Check AI coding quota and ship status from the menu bar, which also has a copy-paste agent prompt.

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About this repo

  • Who it is forDevelopers who use Claude, Codex, or Cursor daily and want quota limits and ship status visible without opening billing pages, gh, or Vercel.
  • Why it is hot265 stars
  • LanguagePython
  • Sourcegithub.com/michellzappa/headroom · Back to Hot repos

Requirements

  • macOS 14 or later for the menu bar app
  • Python 3.9 or later (the bundled host is stdlib only, using /usr/bin/python3)
  • At least one AI coding tool already signed in locally
  • Optional: iPhone or iPad on iOS 17 or later, on the same LAN or Tailscale as the Mac
  • Optional: PlatformIO and a Waveshare ESP32-S3-Touch-AMOLED-1.8 for the desk board

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Questions about Headroom

What is Headroom?

Headroom is a local-first macOS menu bar app that shows your AI coding quotas and CI, deploy, and monitor status, with optional iPhone, Watch, and ESP32 desk displays. It is an open-source project on GitHub: https://github.com/michellzappa/headroom.

How do I use Headroom?

Download Headroom-macOS.zip from the Releases page on the Headroom GitHub repo and open Headroom.app; then open the menu bar meters and follow the Welcome screen; Confirm the detected providers, then select Continue. On a Release build the host starts automatically and stays up at login. The use cases on this page give the full steps and a copy-paste agent prompt for each job.

Who is Headroom for?

Developers who use Claude, Codex, or Cursor daily and want quota limits and ship status visible without opening billing pages, gh, or Vercel.

What can I do with Headroom?

3 use cases so far, for example: Check AI coding quota and ship status from the menu bar; Approve or deny coding agent requests from your iPhone; Read the local usage feed before starting a long agent task. Each has steps and a copy-paste agent prompt.

What do I need to run Headroom?

macOS 14 or later for the menu bar app; Python 3.9 or later (the bundled host is stdlib only, using /usr/bin/python3); At least one AI coding tool already signed in locally; Optional: iPhone or iPad on iOS 17 or later, on the same LAN or Tailscale as the Mac.

What are alternatives to Headroom?

Other hot AI repos in Software and DevOps: ECC, Thinkrail, Superpowers, Deep Infer, Instructor.

Is Headroom safe to run?

Deduped does not own, audit or vouch for it. Read the README and license, run it on your own systems first and review every command before you run it.