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Networking · head to head

Catchpoint vs Grafana

Catchpoint logo

Catchpoint

Networking

Internet and digital experience monitoring, with a genuinely published entry price through its WebPageTest product line

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Grafana logo

Grafana

Networking

Observability and Data Visualization

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Catchpoint its flagship enterprise Internet Performance Monitoring product reverts to custom Enterprise pricing beyond the Quick Start package, so full-scale deployment cost is not knowable from the public site; Grafana the free tier retains metrics, logs and traces for 14 days only
  • They diverge on capability: Catchpoint covers Global vantage point network, Grafana covers Dashboard creation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Catchpoint and Grafana actually diverge.

Attributes where Catchpoint and Grafana differ
AttributeCatchpointGrafana
Pricing modelFree tier plus published entry tiers, enterprise quote-onlyusage-based
PlatformsWebWeb, Api
FoundedUnknown2014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Networking).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Catchpoint

  • Global vantage point network
  • WebPageTest integration
  • BGP and DNS monitoring
  • Real user monitoring
  • Token-based points model

Only in Grafana

  • Dashboard creation
  • Alerting
  • Data source integration
  • Visualization plugins
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Catchpoint

  • A web performance engineer wanting a fuller-featured, paid version of WebPageTest with longer retention and more locationsnot Grafana
  • An enterprise SRE or network team monitoring internet-dependent application delivery, DNS and CDN performance at scalenot Grafana
  • An organisation wanting BGP-level visibility into internet routing issues affecting its servicesnot Grafana
  • A team wanting real user monitoring with session replay alongside synthetic testing from one vendornot Grafana

Grafana

  • Metrics visualization and monitoringnot Catchpoint
  • Log aggregation and analysisnot Catchpoint
  • Distributed traces managementnot Catchpoint
  • System performance profilingnot Catchpoint

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Catchpoint

  • Its flagship enterprise Internet Performance Monitoring product reverts to custom Enterprise pricing beyond the Quick Start package, so full-scale deployment cost is not knowable from the public site
  • The token-based points model, while flexible, requires understanding point consumption per test type to budget usage accurately, which is not always intuitive upfront
  • The IPM Quick Start Package carries a 12-month minimum commitment, so there is no genuinely short-term way to trial the enterprise product at scale
  • WebPageTest's published tiers are aimed at web performance testing specifically; the broader enterprise IPM feature set (BGP, DNS, CDN monitoring) is not available at those lower published prices
  • As with ThousandEyes, meaningful internet path visibility depends on a large distributed vantage point network that only the vendor controls, so coverage gaps in specific regions are not something a buyer can fix themselves
  • Session replay and RUM features are gated to the Expert tier and above, so lower tiers give synthetic testing only, without the real user data many teams actually want

Grafana

  • The free tier retains metrics, logs and traces for 14 days only
  • Free is capped at 10,000 active metric series and 50 GB each of logs and traces a month
  • The Pro plan carries a $19 a month platform fee before any usage charges
  • Logs and traces are billed on three separate meters, at $0.050 per GB processed, $0.400 per GB written and $0.100 per GB retained
  • Retaining data is an ongoing charge rather than a one off, so historical data costs every month it exists

Pricing, plan by plan

Catchpoint

Free
  • WebPageTest StarterFree
    • 150 monthly test runs
    • 60-day retention
    • 30 global locations
  • WebPageTest Professional$180/year
    • 1,000-20,000 monthly test runs
    • 13-month retention
    • 40 global locations
  • WebPageTest Expert$11988/year
    • Real user monitoring with session replay
    • Unlimited users with SSO
    • 3,000+ agents across 300+ cities
  • IPM Quick Start$10000/year
    • Single end-to-end journey monitoring
    • DNS, SSL, CDN and API monitoring

Grafana

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Limited usage across all services
    • 14-day retention for metrics, logs, traces, profiles
    • Community support only
  • Pro$19/month
    • Pay-as-you-go pricing with volume discounts
    • 13-month retention for metrics
    • 30-day retention for logs/traces/profiles
  • Enterprise$25000/year
    • Custom pricing based on annual volume
    • Premium support included
    • Custom retention options

Which should you pick?

Choose Catchpoint if

  • You need global vantage point network.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want webpagetest integration.
Catchpoint review

Choose Grafana if

  • You need dashboard creation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want alerting.
Grafana review

Questions people ask

Is Catchpoint or Grafana better?
Neither clearly leads. Catchpoint starts at Free and Grafana at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Catchpoint or Grafana?
Catchpoint starts at Free and Grafana at Free.
Does Catchpoint or Grafana run on more platforms?
Catchpoint runs on Web. Grafana runs on Web, Api.
Can I use Catchpoint for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Catchpoint best used for?
Catchpoint is most often used for a web performance engineer wanting a fuller-featured, paid version of webpagetest with longer retention and more locations, an enterprise sre or network team monitoring internet-dependent application delivery, dns and cdn performance at scale, an organisation wanting bgp-level visibility into internet routing issues affecting its services, a team wanting real user monitoring with session replay alongside synthetic testing from one vendor. Of those, a web performance engineer wanting a fuller-featured, paid version of webpagetest with longer retention and more locations and an enterprise sre or network team monitoring internet-dependent application delivery, dns and cdn performance at scale are not what Grafana is typically brought in for.
What can Catchpoint do that Grafana cannot?
Catchpoint covers Global vantage point network, WebPageTest integration, BGP and DNS monitoring, Real user monitoring. Grafana covers Dashboard creation, Alerting, Data source integration, Visualization plugins.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Catchpoint: Is there a free tier?

Yes, WebPageTest Starter is free with 150 monthly test runs.

Grafana: What is Grafana's pricing model?

Grafana offers a freemium model with a free tier, Pro tier starting at 19 USD/month with pay-as-you-go usage charges, and Enterprise plans starting at 25000 USD/year.

Source
Catchpoint: Is enterprise IPM pricing published?

Only the entry Quick Start Package at $10,000/year with a 12-month minimum; full Enterprise pricing is custom.

Grafana: How long is data retention for each plan?

Free tier provides 14-day retention for metrics, logs, traces, and profiles. Pro tier extends this to 13 months for metrics and 30 days for logs/traces/profiles. Enterprise offers custom retention options.

Source
Catchpoint: Does Catchpoint own WebPageTest?

Yes, Catchpoint operates WebPageTest as a productised offering with its own tiered pricing.

Grafana: What support is included in each tier?

Free tier includes community support only. Pro tier provides 8 times 5 email support. Enterprise includes premium 24/7 support.

Source
Grafana: Does Grafana offer volume discounts?

Yes, Grafana uses adaptive pricing with automatic volume discounts as usage scales, and provides cost-optimization tools to help eliminate spending on unused data.

Source
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