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Networking · head to head

Catchpoint vs Kentik

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
Kentik logo

Kentik

Networking

Network observability platform built on flow and traffic data, sold on annual-only contracts starting around $24,000/year

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Catchpoint has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • 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; Kentik contracts are annual only, so there is no monthly option for a team wanting to trial the platform under real production load before committing to a year of spend
  • They diverge on capability: Catchpoint covers Global vantage point network, Kentik covers Flow-based traffic analysis.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Catchpoint and Kentik actually diverge.

Attributes where Catchpoint and Kentik differ
AttributeCatchpointKentik
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelFree tier plus published entry tiers, enterprise quote-onlyAnnual contract only, per tier
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, API

Identical on both: 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 Kentik

  • Flow-based traffic analysis
  • Synthetic testing
  • Cloud network monitoring
  • DDoS detection
  • API-driven querying

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 Kentik
  • An enterprise SRE or network team monitoring internet-dependent application delivery, DNS and CDN performance at scalenot Kentik
  • An organisation wanting BGP-level visibility into internet routing issues affecting its servicesnot Kentik
  • A team wanting real user monitoring with session replay alongside synthetic testing from one vendornot Kentik

Kentik

  • A network engineering team at an ISP or large enterprise needing flow-level traffic visibility beyond basic uptime monitoringnot Catchpoint
  • A cloud-heavy organisation wanting visibility into cloud provider network cost and performance across multiple providersnot Catchpoint
  • A security or network operations team wanting DDoS detection layered on top of standard traffic monitoringnot Catchpoint
  • A team needing synthetic testing alongside passive flow analysis in one platform rather than two separate toolsnot 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

Kentik

  • Contracts are annual only, so there is no monthly option for a team wanting to trial the platform under real production load before committing to a year of spend
  • The Pro tier's $24,000/year starting price is a serious commitment relative to general infrastructure monitoring tools, and it is aimed specifically at flow-level traffic visibility rather than general host monitoring
  • Add-on modules for advanced DDoS protection, service provider analytics and the Firehose pipeline are priced separately, so real deployment cost frequently exceeds the Pro sticker price
  • Premier tier pricing is entirely quote-based, so organisations needing more than Pro's limits (50 users, 1,000 FPS, 120-day retention) cannot get a number without a sales conversation
  • It is a specialised flow and traffic analytics tool, not a general infrastructure monitoring platform, so most buyers will still need a separate tool like PRTG or Icinga for host and service uptime checks
  • Data retention is capped at 120 days for traffic and 45 days for forensic data even on Pro, which may be short for organisations with longer compliance or investigation requirements

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

Kentik

On request
  • Pro$24000/year
    • 50 users
    • 1,000 flows per second baseline
    • 2.5M synthetics credits
  • Premier$undefined/year
    • 1,000 users
    • 5M synthetics credits
    • Custom dimensions and scheduled reporting

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 Kentik if

  • You need flow-based traffic analysis.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want synthetic testing.
Kentik review

Questions people ask

Is Catchpoint or Kentik better?
Neither clearly leads. Catchpoint starts at Free and Kentik at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Catchpoint or Kentik?
Catchpoint has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Catchpoint and On request for Kentik.
Does Catchpoint or Kentik run on more platforms?
Catchpoint runs on Web. Kentik runs on Web, API.
Can I use Catchpoint for free?
Yes. Catchpoint has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Kentik starts at On request.
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 Kentik is typically brought in for.
What can Catchpoint do that Kentik cannot?
Catchpoint covers Global vantage point network, WebPageTest integration, BGP and DNS monitoring, Real user monitoring. Kentik covers Flow-based traffic analysis, Synthetic testing, Cloud network monitoring, DDoS detection.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Catchpoint: Is there a free tier?

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

Kentik: Is there a monthly billing option?

No, Kentik states contracts are annual only.

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.

Kentik: What is the entry price?

Pro starts at $2,000/month billed as $24,000/year for 50 users and baseline flow and synthetics quotas.

Catchpoint: Does Catchpoint own WebPageTest?

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

Kentik: Does Kentik replace general infrastructure monitoring tools like PRTG?

No, it is focused on flow-based traffic and network observability rather than general host and service uptime monitoring.

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