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Technology · head to head

Nagios XI vs Tilt

Nagios XI logo

Nagios XI

Technology

Enterprise-grade monitoring solution with advanced visualization and reporting

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Tilt logo

Tilt

Developer Tools

Local Kubernetes development loop that rebuilds and live-updates containers on save

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Nagios XI free Edition caps at 7 nodes or 100 services, whichever limit is hit first; Tilt docker acquired Tilt in 2022 and the team now splits its time across Compose and Docker Desktop, so feature velocity is modest and the product's long-term priority inside Docker is not guaranteed; treat it as a stable utility, not a growing platform.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Nagios XI and Tilt actually diverge.

Attributes where Nagios XI and Tilt differ
AttributeNagios XITilt
Pricing modelone-timeOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWebLinux, macOS, Windows
CategoryTechnologyDeveloper Tools

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

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 Nagios XI

Nothing recorded that Tilt does not also cover.

Only in Tilt

  • Live update
  • Tiltfile as code
  • Unified web UI
  • Selective rebuilds
  • Local and remote clusters
  • Resource dependencies
  • Extensions registry
  • Custom buttons and triggers

What people use each for

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

Nagios XI

  • Monitoring servers, networks, and IoT devices for status changesnot Tilt
  • Detecting infrastructure problems before they cause outagesnot Tilt
  • Creating customizable dashboards for real-time IT visibilitynot Tilt
  • Tracking SLA compliance and generating capacity planning reportsnot Tilt

Tilt

  • A team of ten or more engineers whose application is fifteen microservices on Kubernetes and who currently wait on CI to test a changenot Nagios XI
  • An organisation onboarding new developers who want a single command that stands up the whole stack from a committed Tiltfilenot Nagios XI
  • A platform team giving product engineers a consistent local environment against a shared remote development clusternot Nagios XI
  • A codebase where one repository contains several services and rebuilding all of them on every edit is the main source of lost timenot Nagios XI

Where each one falls short

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

Nagios XI

  • Free Edition caps at 7 nodes or 100 services, whichever limit is hit first
  • Standard Edition is licensed per node count, starting at $2,595 for 100 nodes and rising to $14,995 for 1,000 nodes
  • Enterprise Edition, which adds capacity planning and SLA reporting, is sold as an add-on starting at $4,690 for 100 nodes on top of the base license
  • Sitewide Edition for large distributed environments has no published price and requires contacting sales

Tilt

  • Docker acquired Tilt in 2022 and the team now splits its time across Compose and Docker Desktop, so feature velocity is modest and the product's long-term priority inside Docker is not guaranteed; treat it as a stable utility, not a growing platform.
  • The Tiltfile is Starlark, a Python dialect, so non-trivial setups become real programs that need reviewing and maintaining, and the person who wrote yours becomes a single point of failure.
  • Live update only works when the running container can accept synced files and restart the process; compiled languages, distroless images and read-only filesystems often force you back to a full image rebuild, which removes the main benefit.
  • It assumes Kubernetes. If your development target is plain Docker Compose or serverless functions, Tilt adds a cluster you did not need and a layer of abstraction with no payoff.
  • There is no commercial support contract, no SLA and no paid tier, so when a Kubernetes version upgrade breaks something you are dependent on GitHub issues and a Slack channel rather than a vendor you can escalate to.

Pricing, plan by plan

Nagios XI

Free
  • Free EditionFree
    • 7 nodes OR 100 services limit
    • Self-supported only
  • Standard 100-Node$2595/perpetual
    • 100 nodes
    • First year includes support and upgrades
  • Standard 500-Node$8295/perpetual
    • 500 nodes
    • First year includes support and upgrades
  • Standard 1000-Node$14995/perpetual
    • 1,000 nodes
    • First year includes support and upgrades

Tilt

Free
  • TiltFree
    • Apache 2.0 licensed
    • All features, no paid tier
    • Community support via the Kubernetes Slack #tilt channel

Which should you pick?

Choose Nagios XI if

  • You want to start without paying.
Nagios XI review

Choose Tilt if

  • You need live update.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want tiltfile as code.
Tilt review

Questions people ask

Is Nagios XI or Tilt better?
Neither clearly leads. Nagios XI starts at Free and Tilt at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Nagios XI or Tilt?
Nagios XI starts at Free and Tilt at Free.
Does Nagios XI or Tilt run on more platforms?
Nagios XI runs on Web. Tilt runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Nagios XI for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Nagios XI best used for?
Nagios XI is most often used for monitoring servers, networks, and iot devices for status changes, detecting infrastructure problems before they cause outages, creating customizable dashboards for real-time it visibility, tracking sla compliance and generating capacity planning reports. Of those, monitoring servers, networks, and iot devices for status changes and detecting infrastructure problems before they cause outages are not what Tilt is typically brought in for.
What can Nagios XI do that Tilt cannot?
Tilt covers Live update, Tiltfile as code, Unified web UI, Selective rebuilds.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Nagios XI: What is Nagios XI's pricing model?

Nagios XI uses perpetual licensing with one-time purchase costs based on node count, ranging from $2,595 for 100 nodes to $14,995 for 1,000 nodes.

Source
Tilt: Is Tilt free?

Yes, entirely. It is Apache 2.0 open source with no paid tier and no licence fee.

Nagios XI: Is there a free version of Nagios XI?

Yes, Nagios XI Free Edition is available at no cost with a limit of 7 nodes or 100 services, whichever is reached first.

Source
Tilt: Who owns Tilt now?

Docker, which acquired it in May 2022. It remains open source and the repository is still actively maintained.

Nagios XI: What is included with Nagios XI licensing?

Initial licenses include one year of free version upgrades, up to 10 support cases, and support portal access. Each license permits three installations: production, backup/failover, and testing/development.

Source
Tilt: Do I need a remote cluster?

No. It works against a local cluster such as kind, minikube or Docker Desktop, and also against a shared remote development cluster if your services are too heavy to run locally.

Tilt: How is it different from Skaffold?

Both automate the build-deploy loop. Tilt puts more weight on the live-update path and a multi-service dashboard; Skaffold is more configuration-driven and closer to Google's tooling.

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