Introduction
Powertop is a power usage diagnostic tool by Intel, mainly used to monitor and optimize power consumption on Linux laptops and desktops. It shows real-time statistics for CPU wakeups, device usage, and system activity that can drain battery.
Basic Syntax
sudo powertop [options]Common options:
--auto-tune— apply all power-saving suggestions (for optimization)--calibrate— calibrate power estimation (needs idle system)
Installation
Ubuntu / Debian
sudo apt install powertopMonitoring usage
Run in interactive mode (default):
sudo powertopPress ESC to exit after current run (20 seconds).
Note
Power usage column will be visible only after 1 hr 30 mins (total, can be quit and restart in between) of running in battery mode.
Non-interactive usage
sudo powertop --html=report.htmlThen open report.html in a browser to view power stats.