Software · head to head
Palo Alto Networks vs Prometheus
Prometheus
Software
Open source monitoring and alerting toolkit for cloud native environments
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Prometheus has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Palo Alto Networks enterprise-focused pricing model; Prometheus not suitable for per-request billing as collected data lacks 100% accuracy
- They diverge on capability: Palo Alto Networks covers Advanced threat prevention, Prometheus covers Multi-dimensional Data Model.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Palo Alto Networks and Prometheus actually diverge.
| Attribute | Palo Alto Networks | Prometheus |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | On request | Free |
| Pricing model | subscription | open-source |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Cloud, On-premises, Hybrid | Linux, macOS, Windows |
| Founded | 2005 | 2015 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
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 Palo Alto Networks
- Advanced threat prevention
- Threat detection and response
- Cloud security
- Endpoint protection
- Network security
- API protection
- Incident response
- Threat intelligence
Only in Prometheus
- Multi-dimensional Data Model
- PromQL Query Language
- Pull-based Collection
- Service Discovery
- Alerting Rules
- Federation
- Local Storage
- Grafana
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Palo Alto Networks
- Enterprise network security and threat protectionnot Prometheus
- Cloud-native application protectionnot Prometheus
- Identity and access securitynot Prometheus
- Security operations and incident responsenot Prometheus
Prometheus
- Cloud-native monitoring and alertingnot Palo Alto Networks
- Time-series metrics collectionnot Palo Alto Networks
- Infrastructure monitoringnot Palo Alto Networks
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Palo Alto Networks
- Enterprise-focused pricing model
- Complex implementation required
Prometheus
- Not suitable for per-request billing as collected data lacks 100% accuracy
- Hard limit on scrape body size; large responses cause scrape failure
- Per-scrape sample limit enforced; exceeding limit marks targets as failed
- Not designed for long-term durable storage; optimised for metrics collection
Pricing, plan by plan
Palo Alto Networks
On request- Enterprise$undefined/year
- Threat prevention
- Detection and response
- Cloud security
Prometheus
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Prometheus review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Palo Alto Networks if
- You need advanced threat prevention.
- You work on Cloud, On-premises, Hybrid.
- You also want threat detection and response.
Choose Prometheus if
- You need multi-dimensional data model.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
- You also want promql query language.
Questions people ask
- Is Palo Alto Networks or Prometheus better?
- Neither clearly leads. Palo Alto Networks starts at On request and Prometheus at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Palo Alto Networks or Prometheus?
- Prometheus has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Palo Alto Networks and Free for Prometheus.
- Does Palo Alto Networks or Prometheus run on more platforms?
- Palo Alto Networks runs on Cloud, On-premises, Hybrid. Prometheus runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
- Can I use Prometheus for free?
- Yes. Prometheus has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Palo Alto Networks starts at On request.
- What is Palo Alto Networks best used for?
- Palo Alto Networks is most often used for enterprise network security and threat protection, cloud-native application protection, identity and access security, security operations and incident response. Of those, enterprise network security and threat protection and cloud-native application protection are not what Prometheus is typically brought in for.
- What can Palo Alto Networks do that Prometheus cannot?
- Palo Alto Networks covers Advanced threat prevention, Threat detection and response, Cloud security, Endpoint protection. Prometheus covers Multi-dimensional Data Model, PromQL Query Language, Pull-based Collection, Service Discovery.