Networking · alternatives
Alternatives to PRTG Network Monitor
19 networking tools sit alongside PRTG Network Monitor in this directory. Below is what separates each from PRTG Network Monitor on the figures we hold, price, model, tier count and rating, and a direct comparison for every one.
- Alternatives listed
- 19
- With a free tier
- 12
- Cheaper to start
- -
- PRTG Network Monitor starts at
- On request
Why people look past PRTG Network Monitor
Only what the record supports. Each point below is a figure on the PRTG Network Monitor entry measured against the tools listed beside it.
There is no free tier
The record for PRTG Network Monitor carries no free tier, so evaluating it means paying first. 12 of the 19 alternatives below can be used without paying.
Cost climbs steeply across the tiers
PRTG Network Monitor publishes 5 tiers, from $200/month up to $1642/month. Teams that outgrow the entry plan can find the next rung a large step, the PRTG Network Monitor pricing page breaks each one down.
What each alternative does differently
Ordered by the aggregated rating on each catalogue entry. Differences are drawn from price, pricing model, tier count and rating, the fields the category listing carries. For a feature-level difference, follow the head-to-head link on each card: those pages read both full records.
Open source infrastructure monitoring, free at its core, with paid support and modules sold separately by Icinga GmbH
- Can be used without paying; PRTG Network Monitor cannot.
- Sold on a Open source core, with paid repository, module and support subscriptions sold separately model rather than Per sensor tier, billed monthly on an annual contract.
- 2 tiers to PRTG Network Monitor's 5.
Free, community-driven network monitoring with commercial support sold by a third-party partner, not the project itself
- Can be used without paying; PRTG Network Monitor cannot.
- Sold on a Open source, no licence fee; commercial support sold by a third-party partner model rather than Per sensor tier, billed monthly on an annual contract.
- 1 tier to PRTG Network Monitor's 5.
Cloud-based network monitoring and management priced by managed device count, quote-only
- Sold on a quote, per managed device model rather than Per sensor tier, billed monthly on an annual contract.
- 1 tier to PRTG Network Monitor's 5.
Software-defined mesh networking, free up to 10 devices and one network, then billed per device
- Can be used without paying; PRTG Network Monitor cannot.
- Sold on a Free up to 10 devices and 1 network, then per additional device per month model rather than Per sensor tier, billed monthly on an annual contract.
- 3 tiers to PRTG Network Monitor's 5.
Open source firewall software with a free Community Edition and a separate commercial Plus edition sold by Netgate
- Can be used without paying; PRTG Network Monitor cannot.
- Sold on a Open source Community Edition, free; commercial Plus edition sold separately by Netgate model rather than Per sensor tier, billed monthly on an annual contract.
- 2 tiers to PRTG Network Monitor's 5.
Open source VPN protocol with a commercial Access Server product priced per simultaneous connection
- Can be used without paying; PRTG Network Monitor cannot.
- Sold on a Open source core is free; Access Server billed per simultaneous connection model rather than Per sensor tier, billed monthly on an annual contract.
- 3 tiers to PRTG Network Monitor's 5.
Every PRTG Network Monitor alternative at a glance
A dash means the catalogue entry carries no figure, not that the answer is nothing.
| Tool | Entry price | Model | Tiers | Head to head |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRTG Network Monitor (this page) | On request | Per sensor tier, billed monthly on an annual contract | 5 | |
| IcingaFor open source infrastructure monitoring with paid support available separately rather than a mandatory sensor-priced licence | Free | Open source core, with paid repository, module and support subscriptions sold separately | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| LibreNMSFor a free, community-driven network monitoring alternative with optional third-party paid support | Free | Open source, no licence fee; commercial support sold by a third-party partner | 1 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| AuvikFor network monitoring priced by managed device rather than by individual sensor count | On request | Quote, per managed device | 1 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| ZeroTier | Free | Free up to 10 devices and 1 network, then per additional device per month | 3 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| pfSense | Free | Open source Community Edition, free; commercial Plus edition sold separately by Netgate | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| OpenVPN | Free | Open source core is free; Access Server billed per simultaneous connection | 3 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Catchpoint | Free | Free tier plus published entry tiers, enterprise quote-only | 4 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| NetBird | Free | Per user per month | 3 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Nebula | Free | Open source, no licence fee | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Headscale | Free | Open source, no licence fee | 1 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Twingate | Free | Per user per month | 3 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Zabbix | Free | Open source, no licence fee | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Netdata | Free | Open source, no licence fee | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Domotz | On request | Per collector or per managed device per month | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Juniper Mist | On request | Quote, hardware plus required Wi-Fi Assurance subscription | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Kentik | On request | Annual contract only, per tier | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| Cisco Meraki | On request | Quote, hardware plus mandatory recurring licence | 1 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| ThousandEyes | On request | Quote, unit-based consumption on annual or prepaid contracts | 1 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
| MikroTik RouterOS | On request | One-time purchase, per licence level | 2 | vs PRTG Network Monitor |
Ratings are aggregated from third-party sources and imported with each catalogue entry; Softwr hosts no reviews of these products. How each figure is used is set out on the PRTG Network Monitor badges page.
Cheaper ways to solve the same problem
What you would be giving up
PRTG Network Monitor is most often brought in for an it team wanting network, server and application monitoring in one product rather than assembling separate open source tools, an organisation that wants a windows-installable on-premises monitoring server with a polished ui out of the box, a team sizing a monitoring purchase that needs to calculate sensor density per device carefully before committing to a tier, a company wanting hybrid on-premises and cloud monitoring from the same licence and dashboard. Anything replacing it has to cover the ones you actually depend on, and a cheaper tool that misses one of them is not cheaper.
Two things this page cannot settle. It compares on price, model, tier count and rating, because those are the fields the category listing carries, feature-level differences need both full records, which is what the head-to-head pages load. And the ratings are third-party aggregates imported with each entry rather than reviews written here, so a 0.2 difference between two tools is noise rather than a finding.
If PRTG Network Monitor is broadly right and the question is cost, the PRTG Network Monitor pricing breakdown covers every tier and what each one adds. If you want the whole field rather than a shortlist, the Networking category lists everything the directory holds, and best networking tools ranks them.
PRTG Network Monitor runs on windows, web, ios, android. Platform coverage is not carried on the category listing for the alternatives, so it is one more thing to check on each head-to-head page rather than here.
Questions about PRTG Network Monitor alternatives
- What are the main alternatives to PRTG Network Monitor?
- 19 other networking tools are listed in this directory, led by Icinga, LibreNMS, Auvik, ZeroTier. They are ordered by the aggregated rating on each catalogue entry, not by any Softwr ranking.
- What is the best free alternative to PRTG Network Monitor?
- 12 of the alternatives listed here can be used without paying: Icinga, LibreNMS, ZeroTier, pfSense, OpenVPN.
- Why do people look for an alternative to PRTG Network Monitor?
- On the figures on record, 2 things stand out: there is no free tier; cost climbs steeply across the tiers. Each is set out with the numbers behind it above.
- What would I give up by switching from PRTG Network Monitor?
- PRTG Network Monitor is most often brought in for an it team wanting network, server and application monitoring in one product rather than assembling separate open source tools, an organisation that wants a windows-installable on-premises monitoring server with a polished ui out of the box, a team sizing a monitoring purchase that needs to calculate sensor density per device carefully before committing to a tier, a company wanting hybrid on-premises and cloud monitoring from the same licence and dashboard. Anything you replace it with has to cover the ones you actually rely on, the side-by-side comparisons linked from each alternative below put the two feature records against each other.
- Is there an open-source alternative to PRTG Network Monitor?
- None of the networking tools listed here are recorded as open source. That is what the licence field on each entry says, and the field is not always filled in, so it is worth checking directly for any tool you are serious about.
- How were these PRTG Network Monitor alternatives chosen?
- They are the tools filed in the same category, Networking, ordered by the aggregated rating on each entry. There is no editorial shortlist, and nothing on this page is paid: no sponsored placement runs on alternatives pages and the order cannot be bought. Softwr has not used these products.
- Where can I compare PRTG Network Monitor against one of these directly?
- Every alternative below has a side-by-side page against PRTG Network Monitor covering price, platforms, features and what each one is used for. Those pages read the full record for both products rather than the summary shown here.
- Does this list cover every networking tool?
- No. It covers what this directory holds in the Networking category, 19 tools beside PRTG Network Monitor. The category page lists the rest of the catalogue as it grows.