PRTG Network Monitor vs. SolarWinds Network Device Monitor

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
PRTG
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
PRTG Network Monitor is the flagship offering from German software company Paessler, for monitoring local and wide area networks (LANs & WANs), servers, websites, apps, and more.
$1,750
perpetual license
SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Score 8.4 out of 10
N/A
SolarWinds Network Device Monitor is a network diagnostic tool, from Austin-based SolarWinds.N/A
Pricing
PRTG Network MonitorSolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Editions & Modules
PRTG 500
1,750
perpetual license
PRTG 1,000
3,200
perpetual license
PRTG 2,500
6,500
perpetual license
PRTG 5,000
11,500
perpetual license
PRTG XL 1
15,500
perpetual license
PRTG Enterprise
Custom Pricing
subscription license
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
PRTGSolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
PRTG Network MonitorSolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Considered Both Products
PRTG
Chose PRTG Network Monitor
We selected PRTG Network Monitor because it's very easy to deploy and setup. It doesn't require too many skills or resources. With the trial license you can test it and see how many info you can get about your infrastructure and choose what to put under control and how to send …
Chose PRTG Network Monitor
In comparison with two other similar tools I have used in the past, I would put PRTG in the middle strictly in terms of features/performance, but at the top when overall value is considered. While SolarWinds does have some features that PRTG lacks, it comes at a much higher …
Chose PRTG Network Monitor
Price is better than SolarWinds, and cost per sensor is a direct impact in making decisions in a medium sized business.
Chose PRTG Network Monitor
PRTG has superior performance, a greater community and online documentation, more accurate data collection, and more complete configuration and operating environment than competitors.
SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Chose SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
For the purposes we use SolarwWnds, we get the functionality we need at a favorable price point. Additionally, we have easy adoption by our staff and any consultants we work with due to existing familiarity and/or experience with the product which brings some added efficiency …
Chose SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
SolarWinds was the commercial tool that our teams disliked the most even though it is windows only, other commercial tools had a Linux version but we found them to be unstable and/or poorly implemented. So we bit the windows bullet and installed a windows server in our Linux …
Chose SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
SolarWinds Network Device Monitor provides great value for money and provides a host of options which in some cases cost more in other competitors or are simple not available. SolarWinds Network Device Monitor is simple to implement and can be up an running with little to no …
Chose SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Cognizant has done extensive POC/POV on SolarWinds modules specifically on NPM and we believe it has out of the box broad range of devices, vendors, and versions monitoring and also multiple modules options like NCM for
Chose SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
I selected SolarWinds Network Device Monitor for 2 main reasons, functionality and support.
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
PRTG Network MonitorSolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Network Performance Monitoring
Comparison of Network Performance Monitoring features of Product A and Product B
PRTG Network Monitor
7.0
55 Ratings
16% below category average
SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
-
Ratings
Automated network device discovery7.449 Ratings00 Ratings
Network monitoring7.654 Ratings00 Ratings
Baseline threshold calculation6.647 Ratings00 Ratings
Alerts7.655 Ratings00 Ratings
Network capacity planning6.639 Ratings00 Ratings
Packet capture analysis5.328 Ratings00 Ratings
Network mapping7.539 Ratings00 Ratings
Customizable reports7.448 Ratings00 Ratings
Wireless infrastructure monitoring7.338 Ratings00 Ratings
Hardware health monitoring6.852 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
PRTG Network MonitorSolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Small Businesses
NinjaOne
NinjaOne
Score 9.2 out of 10
Auvik
Auvik
Score 8.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Nmap
Nmap
Score 8.8 out of 10
PingPlotter
PingPlotter
Score 9.4 out of 10
Enterprises
Nmap
Nmap
Score 8.8 out of 10
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM)
SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM)
Score 8.8 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
PRTG Network MonitorSolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Likelihood to Recommend
8.4
(55 ratings)
8.5
(19 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
9.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
8.5
(17 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
PRTG Network MonitorSolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Likelihood to Recommend
Paessler
If there are a number of different protocols and devices to monitor PRTG is really an all in one solution. There are network specific solutions, telephony solutions, server solutions, etc - but this tool can do anything. Even if you don't use this tool as your main "monitoring solutions" every IT professional should have access to this tool for at least troubleshooting purposes. If you are looking for something specific built for a task you may be able to find [a] more direct and easy tool to use that would be easier and quicker to setup as customization is not needed.
Read full review
SolarWinds
On its own, it's a solid choice for an SMB or Mid-size Enterprise if you're price sensitive and looking primarily for core functionality. SolarWinds has a large family of products that can also be leveraged in conjunction with SWNDM. Turning the product loose on a very large environment for discovery and mapping should be done with care and concern for a number of reasons but including the performance of the product for this task. If you're looking for an all-in-one product with some presumed supporting features built in (config manager, etc.) you'll need to look elsewhere.
Read full review
Pros
Paessler
  • Very, very configurable. You can create all kinds of monitors for all kinds of things. Plus it has loads of suggestions out of the box. It can get complicated but monitoring is complicated. Pretty decent interface and good support - active community.
  • I really liked how easy it was to add alerts by SMS. So easy to setup.
  • I like their sizing models (for purchase). We're actually small enough that we are free. But it's not free as in stripped down - it's free because we don't use many "sensors" and don't honestly have the need.
Read full review
SolarWinds
  • Monitor for and record network device configuration changes.
  • Allow for the creation, or modification, of hardening standards for multiple vendors' network devices.
  • Automate the creation of alerts that can be sent to owners for correction of compliance violations.
  • Allow you to organize a visualization of your network devices.
Read full review
Cons
Paessler
  • The probe service can be quite resource-intensive. This can cause false-positive readings from some sensors sometimes.
  • The software gets updated very regularly. Whilst this is usually a good thing to fix bugs etc, it does meantime downtime of the monitoring quite often while they are installed.
  • The ability to create Maps from Libraries. Very specific issue but a lot of people have been asking for it for years and it is still not available.
Read full review
SolarWinds
  • More security put into the product, the Orion hack was not good news.
  • More frequent releases to address small bugs rather than big releases that are rare.
  • More IPv6 related features to make it easier for people familiar with IPv4 to learn IPv6.
  • Ability to edit dashboards using JSON or another similar language.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Paessler
It is now an essential tool for monitoring and maintaining the health of our network and systems.
Read full review
SolarWinds
No answers on this topic
Usability
Paessler
The tool is very intuitive to use and it is Windows-based (everybody knows how to use Windows) so it's easy to get into. Every time is setup in a hierarchy so if you have a good initial hierarchy design, it will really reduce administrative effort down the road.
Read full review
SolarWinds
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Paessler
I am giving this a 6 simply because I have never had to contact support. The online documentation is adequate for most things, and the user-maintained knowledgebase is excellent. The few times I have run into issues that were not easily resolvable with intuitive UI, I was able to find the answers that I needed either in the PRTG-provided documentation, the knowledgebase, or with a quick online web search.
Read full review
SolarWinds
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Paessler
I have deployed and tested three products for evaluation I found [PRTG Network Monitor] very easy to deploy, the deployment literally took not more than one hour including basic configuration and network discovery. After deployment few configuration changes and creation of maps, reports and little tweaking is required. [Then] it would go through its process of recommendation that took some time to complete, while [on] other hand other software's took lot of time to install and configure. And features were also missing, which resulted in decision in favor of [PRTG Network Monitor].
Read full review
SolarWinds
MS is meant for windows monitoring and up/down for mostly everything else. Moved away from MS System Center. Now we have better visibility and management can get reports. The other teams have added Linux to Solarwinds and also see improvements in monitoring. Whether you use snmp (v3), wmi or some other credentials to connect to you system, Solarwinds will more than likely be able to manage and monitor it.
Read full review
Return on Investment
Paessler
  • The ability to analyze multiple pieces of information in one place, especially with historical data, has saved our IT department time and headaches. It would be so much more difficult to trace an issue without PRTG, just relying on event logs and an open task manager window.
  • The cost is not cheap, so it's an expense that hits the bottom line like everything else. Figure in hardware costs as well, ideally a server outside of your main environment.
  • I keep saying this, but the historical data piece is worth so much. There's really no good way to collect all of that information in one place without something like PRTG. And that definitely saves time and money in the long run.
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SolarWinds
  • Reduced site visits and recurring issues by 25 to 35%
  • Enables proactive warning, thereby reducing downtime caused by unforeseen issues
  • Provides a central panel for monitoring the entire network at a glance
  • Allows for SLA management thereby increasing accountability by 50%
  • Reduced time to repair by 35% as techs are more informed of root cause
Read full review
ScreenShots