How we make this list: we compare pricing pages, product documentation and public user reviews. Rankite is independent; if a vendor ever pays for a featured spot, that listing is clearly labeled Partner.
Key takeaways
- Paessler PRTG (free up to 100 sensors; paid from $2,149/year for 500 sensors) and Zabbix (free, open source) are the value leaders for classic network monitoring.
- SolarWinds NPM, ManageEngine OpManager, Auvik and LogicMonitor are the enterprise and MSP platforms, all quote-based with deeper automation.
- Datadog ($15/host/month) is the cloud-native pick when network monitoring sits inside a broader observability stack.
- Nagios XI ($1,995 one-time Standard) remains the extensible classic for teams that want maximum control and own their monitoring server.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free plan |
|---|
 SolarWinds NPM | Enterprises that want deep network performance analytics | See website (custom quote only) | Free trial available |
 Paessler PRTG | SMBs that want capable monitoring with a genuinely free tier | Free up to 100 sensors; from $2,149/year (PRTG 500) | Yes (100 sensors free, indefinitely) |
 ManageEngine OpManager | IT teams that want monitoring inside a broader management suite | See website (custom quote only) | Free trial available |
 Zabbix | Teams that want enterprise monitoring free and open source | Free | Yes (open source) |
 Nagios XI | Admins who want maximum extensibility on infrastructure they own | $1,995 one-time (Standard Edition) | Free trial available |
 Datadog | Cloud-native teams that want network monitoring inside full observability | $15/host/month (Infrastructure Pro) | Free trial available |
 Auvik | MSPs and IT teams that want automated discovery and mapping | See website (custom quote only) | Free trial available |
 LogicMonitor | Enterprises wanting agentless SaaS monitoring without infrastructure | See website (custom quote only) | Free trial available |
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The best network management software
Network management software watches your infrastructure: device health, bandwidth, uptime, configuration and traffic. The market splits into classic on-premises monitors, open-source platforms, MSP-oriented tools and cloud observability suites. These eight cover the range, with pricing stated only where vendors publish it.
#1
SolarWinds NPM
Best for: Enterprises that want deep network performance analytics
Visit solarwinds.com
Starting priceSee website (custom quote only)
Free planFree trial available
SolarWinds Network Performance Monitor is the enterprise network monitoring standard. It discovers devices automatically, maps the network, monitors performance with SNMP, NetFlow and packet analysis, and correlates metrics across the stack with PerfStack. The Thwack community and template library mean someone has already built the monitor template for your hardware.
Pricing is quote-based, and procurement teams will ask about the 2020 SUNBURST supply-chain incident; SolarWinds has since rebuilt its security posture, but the question comes up. Implementation rewards expertise. For the enterprise network team that needs the deepest device-level analytics, NPM remains the reference.
What we like- The deepest network-specific feature set: NetPath, PerfStack and traffic analysis
- Huge community and template library
- Mature multi-vendor device support
Watch out for- Quote-based pricing with no published numbers
- The 2020 supply-chain attack still comes up in procurement reviews
- Can be heavy to implement well
#2
Paessler PRTG
Best for: SMBs that want capable monitoring with a genuinely free tier
Visit paessler.com
Starting priceFree up to 100 sensors; from $2,149/year (PRTG 500)
Free planYes (100 sensors free, indefinitely)
PRTG is the pragmatic pick. Install it, let auto-discovery find your devices, and you have monitoring with alerting in an afternoon. The free tier covers 100 sensors indefinitely, which handles a small office or lab. Paid tiers are published and sensor-based: PRTG 500 from $2,149 per year, scaling to 10,000 sensors and enterprise licensing.
The sensor model is the thing to understand: one device can consume many sensors, so count before buying. The interface is functional rather than modern. For the SMB that wants real monitoring without a quote process, PRTG is the easiest competent buy.
What we like- 100 sensors free forever covers small networks
- Auto-discovery sets up monitoring with minimal config
- Published sensor-based pricing that scales predictably
Watch out for- Sensor counting confuses new buyers
- The interface shows its age
- Very large networks get expensive per-sensor
#3
ManageEngine OpManager
Best for: IT teams that want monitoring inside a broader management suite
Visit manageengine.com
Starting priceSee website (custom quote only)
Free planFree trial available
ManageEngine OpManager appeals to IT teams that buy from one vendor. Network performance monitoring sits alongside server monitoring, application monitoring, network configuration management and IP address management, all from ManageEngine. For the team standardizing on the suite, the integration and the single vendor relationship matter.
Quote-based pricing keeps the exact cost behind a sales conversation, though ManageEngine traditionally undercuts SolarWinds. The tradeoff of suite buying applies: each module is good rather than best-in-class. For the IT generalist team that wants one throat to choke, OpManager fits.
What we like- Network monitoring plus server, application and configuration management in one vendor
- Affordable positioning against SolarWinds
- Good multi-vendor device coverage
Watch out for- No published pricing
- The breadth means individual modules lag best-of-breed tools
- Interface consistency varies across the suite
#4
Zabbix
Best for: Teams that want enterprise monitoring free and open source
Visit zabbix.com
Starting priceFree
Free planYes (open source)
Zabbix is the open-source enterprise monitor. It handles networks, servers, applications and cloud resources with no licensing cost and no artificial limits, and it scales to tens of thousands of monitored values. The template library covers most hardware out of the box, and the community is large and active.
The price is expertise. Zabbix takes real skill to deploy, tune and maintain; the interface rewards knowledge rather than guiding beginners. Commercial support is available from Zabbix the company for teams that want a safety net. For the skilled team with budget pressure, nothing matches the capability per dollar.
What we like- Completely free with no sensor or device limits
- Scales to very large environments
- Huge template library and active community
Watch out for- Setup and tuning demand real expertise
- The interface is powerful but dated
- Commercial support costs extra
#5
Nagios XI
Best for: Admins who want maximum extensibility on infrastructure they own
Visit nagios.com
Starting price$1,995 one-time (Standard Edition)
Free planFree trial available
Nagios XI is the commercial edition of the monitoring world's elder statesman. Standard Edition at $1,995 one-time (Enterprise $3,495) buys the web interface, configuration wizards, dashboards and reporting on top of the Nagios Core engine, with thousands of community plugins extending it to anything. It runs entirely on your infrastructure, which suits regulated and air-gapped environments.
The experience is old-school: powerful, file-driven in places, and visually dated next to SaaS competitors. But the one-time pricing and the plugin universe keep it relevant. For the team that wants to own its monitoring stack outright, Nagios XI is the buy.
What we like- One-time licensing ($1,995 Standard, $3,495 Enterprise) with no subscription
- The plugin ecosystem is unmatched after decades
- Runs fully on your own infrastructure
Watch out for- Configuration leans on files and wizards rather than modern UX
- The interface feels dated
- Scaling to huge estates needs architecture work
#6
Datadog
Best for: Cloud-native teams that want network monitoring inside full observability
Visit datadoghq.com
Starting price$15/host/month (Infrastructure Pro)
Free planFree trial available
Datadog is the observability platform that also does network monitoring. Network Performance Monitoring, device monitoring via SNMP, and flow data sit alongside infrastructure metrics, logs, traces and security signals, so a network issue and its application impact appear in one investigation. Pricing is published: Infrastructure Pro at $15 per host per month, with network-specific SKUs on top.
The bill is the famous caveat: Datadog costs scale with everything it ingests, and finance teams learn to watch it. Pure network depth is thinner than SolarWinds NPM. For the cloud-native organization already standardizing on Datadog, adding network monitoring to the existing platform beats buying a separate tool.
What we like- Network monitoring unified with logs, APM, infrastructure and security in one platform
- Excellent cloud and container coverage
- Published per-host pricing
Watch out for- Costs scale fast with host and metric volume
- Network-specific depth is thinner than SolarWinds
- The bill needs active management
#7
Auvik
Best for: MSPs and IT teams that want automated discovery and mapping
Visit auvik.com
Starting priceSee website (custom quote only)
Free planFree trial available
Auvik is built for the team managing many networks: managed service providers and mid-market IT departments. It discovers the network automatically, builds live topology maps, backs up configurations and documents everything, cutting the manual inventory work that consumes junior admin time. Multi-tenant management suits MSPs serving many clients.
Pricing is quote-based. The focus is networks specifically rather than full-stack infrastructure, so server and application depth is thinner. For the MSP or the IT team drowning in undocumented networks, the automation is the selling point.
What we like- Automatic network discovery, mapping and inventory with minimal setup
- Strong MSP multi-tenant features
- Automated config backup and documentation
Watch out for- Quote-based pricing
- Best fit is MSPs and mid-market IT, less so giant enterprises
- Depth on non-network infrastructure is thinner
#8
LogicMonitor
Best for: Enterprises wanting agentless SaaS monitoring without infrastructure
Visit logicmonitor.com
Starting priceSee website (custom quote only)
Free planFree trial available
LogicMonitor delivers infrastructure monitoring as SaaS. Collectors installed locally gather data from networks, servers and cloud accounts and feed the cloud platform, so there is no monitoring server to maintain. Coverage spans the modern estate: network devices, servers, Kubernetes, cloud services and applications, with automation that reduces manual threshold tuning.
Pricing is quote-based. Organizations that cannot send monitoring data to a SaaS platform should look at the on-premises options instead. For the enterprise that wants broad monitoring without running the monitoring infrastructure, LogicMonitor is the streamlined choice.
What we like- SaaS platform with agentless collection via local collectors
- Broad coverage: networks, servers, cloud, containers and applications
- Strong automation and AIOps features
Watch out for- Quote-based pricing
- SaaS-only will not suit air-gapped requirements
- The breadth takes onboarding effort to use well
How to size network monitoring
Count what you will monitor before comparing prices. PRTG prices per sensor, Datadog per host, Nagios per instance, and the quote-based vendors price by device count and modules. A 50-device network and a 5,000-device network are different purchases even from the same vendor.
Then decide where the software runs. On-premises (PRTG, Nagios XI, Zabbix, SolarWinds) suits regulated environments and teams that want control. SaaS (LogicMonitor, Auvik, Datadog) suits teams that want to stop maintaining monitoring servers. The free tiers (PRTG 100 sensors, Zabbix unlimited) let small networks start without spending anything.
How we chose
We started with the categories buyers search: network management software, network monitoring software and infrastructure monitoring tools. For each candidate we verified active development and real-world deployment, opened the vendor's own pricing page, and separated network-specific monitors from full observability platforms. Where a price could not be verified on the vendor's page we wrote "See website" rather than guessing.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free network monitoring software?
Zabbix (free, open source, unlimited) for full capability, or PRTG (100 sensors free forever) for the easiest setup. Both monitor real networks without payment; Zabbix demands more expertise, PRTG is friendlier.
How much does network monitoring software cost?
From $0 (Zabbix, PRTG free tier) to $1,995 one-time (Nagios XI Standard) to $2,149/year (PRTG 500) to $15/host/month (Datadog). Enterprise platforms (SolarWinds, LogicMonitor, Auvik, ManageEngine) are quote-based and scale with device count.
What is the difference between network monitoring and observability?
Network monitoring watches devices, links and traffic health. Observability (Datadog, LogicMonitor) correlates network data with application performance, logs and infrastructure metrics for root-cause analysis. Large cloud-native teams usually want observability; network-focused teams want dedicated monitoring.
Do I need an on-premises or cloud monitoring tool?
On-premises suits regulated industries, air-gapped networks and teams that want full data control. Cloud suits distributed teams that want to stop maintaining monitoring servers. Hybrid estates often run collectors locally feeding a cloud platform, which is LogicMonitor and Auvik's model.
Can these tools monitor cloud infrastructure too?
Most can: Datadog and LogicMonitor are strongest in cloud and containers, Zabbix and PRTG cover cloud resources adequately, and SolarWinds and ManageEngine have cloud modules. If your estate is mostly cloud, weight the observability platforms over the classic network monitors.
Sources we checked (8)
- https://www.solarwinds.com/
- https://www.paessler.com/
- https://www.manageengine.com/
- https://www.zabbix.com/
- https://www.nagios.com/
- https://www.datadoghq.com/
- https://www.auvik.com/
- https://www.logicmonitor.com/
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
Shihab Mia · Founder, Rankite
Shihab has spent more than a decade helping SaaS and e-commerce brands grow through search. He writes Rankite's software buying guides from pricing pages, documentation and public user reviews. More about Shihab.