How to Toggle Load Average Numbers in Ubuntu

Load average numbers indicate the system’s workload over specific time periods and are essential for monitoring Ubuntu performance. This article explains the two primary methods to toggle the visibility of these numbers: using the built-in terminal command for temporary viewing and installing a desktop extension for persistent display in the top bar.

Toggle Load Average in the Terminal

The quickest way to view and toggle load average numbers is using the top command within the terminal. This method requires no installation and works on any Ubuntu version.

1. Open the terminal by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T.
2. Type top and press Enter.
3. By default, the load average appears at the top of the output.
4. Press the l key (lowercase L) to toggle the load average line on or off.
5. Press q to exit the command.

Toggle Load Average on the Desktop Panel

Ubuntu’s default GNOME desktop does not show load average numbers in the top panel. To toggle this display permanently on your desktop, you must enable a GNOME Shell extension.

1. Open the terminal and install the extension manager by typing sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-manager and pressing Enter.
2. Open the Extension Manager application from your app grid.
3. Click the Browse tab and search for “Load Average” or “System Load Indicator”.
4. Click Install on your preferred extension.
5. Once installed, the numbers will appear in the top bar. You can toggle the display off by returning to the Installed tab in the Extension Manager and switching the toggle to off.