Bitmeter is a bandwidth meter that keeps an eye on your download and upload rates, providing a handful of useful statistics through a very pleasant interface.

The application thus helps you monitor connection speed, but also Internet traffic and can lend you a hand when trying to detect malicious software that may exist on your computer.

It has excellent features, starting with the real-time updates that let you know download and upload rates at any given moment with the help of an eye-candy floating window.

Although in most cases a floating window is quite annoying, this isn't the case with Bitmeter because the application comes with a dedicated “Click Through” feature that makes the window “invisible” to all clicks.

In plain English, it will be displayed on the screen but it won't react to your clicks, and all actions will be applied to the content underneath the floating window.

As said, Bitmeter shows real-time statistics, but it also comprises more detailed figures to show you download and upload stats in the last few hours, in the last few days and in the last few months. Of course, you can view a summary as well and the interval is fully configurable.

Another great tool included in Bitmeter is the alert feature that enables users to set up alerts when some pre-defined limits are reached, be they related to speed, volume or traffic.

Last but not least, Bitmeter comes in handy to all dial-up users with limited data accounts, letting them configure ISP restrictions to make sure they do not exceed the available traffic.

Overall, Bitmeter is definitely one of the best tools in this particular software category and the freeware license simply makes it a five-star product.