Automations

7 Best PRTG Alternatives to Consider in 2025

7 Best PRTG Alternatives to Consider in 2025: 1. Level 2. Checkmk 3. Zabbix 4. LogicMonitor 5. ManageEngine OpManager 6. Datadog 7. Dynatrace

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Wednesday, March 19, 2025

7 Best PRTG Alternatives to Consider in 2025

PRTG is one of the most widely known network monitoring solutions on the market. It is used by IT teams to monitor devices, servers, applications, and databases across on premises, cloud, and hybrid environments. Its broad feature set and long history make it a common starting point for organizations looking to gain visibility into network performance.

However, despite its popularity, many businesses eventually look for alternatives to PRTG. Cost concerns, performance limitations at scale, interface complexity, and platform rigidity often push IT teams to explore more modern options.

This guide reviews the top PRTG alternatives and competitors for 2025. You will also learn how network monitoring tools differ, what features matter most, and how to choose the right solution for your environment.

What is PRTG?

Paessler PRTG
Source: Paessler.com

PRTG Network Monitor is developed by Paessler and is designed to provide real time visibility into network performance. It uses sensors to track metrics across devices, applications, traffic flows, databases, and cloud services.

Key capabilities include customizable dashboards, distributed monitoring through probes, proactive alerts, reporting tools, and mobile access. PRTG supports a wide range of protocols, including SNMP, WMI, NetFlow, and packet sniffing.

While these features make PRTG powerful, they also contribute to its complexity and cost structure.

Limitations of PRTG

Pricing Complexity and Cost Growth

PRTG uses a sensor based pricing model that can become expensive as environments scale. Larger networks often require thousands of sensors, which quickly increases annual costs and makes budgeting unpredictable.

User Interface and Usability

Many users report that PRTG’s interface feels dated and unintuitive. Navigation, dashboard customization, and report interpretation can require significant onboarding time.

Performance at Scale

As the number of monitored devices grows, PRTG installations may experience slower performance, delayed alerts, or server strain, particularly in self hosted deployments.

Limited Native Linux and macOS Support

Monitoring Linux and macOS systems often requires additional probes and configuration. Compared to newer cloud native platforms, this adds operational overhead.

What to Look for in a PRTG Alternative

When evaluating alternatives, focus on these core criteria:

  • Real time monitoring with reliable alerting
  • Multi platform support across Windows, macOS, Linux, and cloud
  • Scalable pricing that grows predictably
  • Modern UI and faster onboarding
  • Automation and remediation capabilities
  • Strong security and compliance features

Legacy tools like MRTG are still referenced for basic traffic graphing, but modern teams require far more than static bandwidth charts.

Top 7 PRTG Alternatives and Competitors in 2025

If you think that PRTG is not the right network monitoring tool for your needs, you can consider the following alternatives instead:

1. Level

Level homepage

Level is a modern remote monitoring and management platform designed for internal IT teams and MSPs. It delivers real time network monitoring alongside endpoint visibility, automation, and secure remote access.

Unlike legacy tools, Level is browser based and requires no on premises infrastructure. IT teams can monitor devices across Windows, macOS, Linux, and IoT environments from a single interface.

Key features include threshold based alerts, background management, automated workflows, patching, and asset inventory. Level is particularly well suited for teams that want monitoring combined with action, not just visibility.

Pricing starts at $2 per endpoint per month with transparent billing.

2. Checkmk

Checkmk
Source: Checkmk.com

Checkmk is a flexible monitoring platform used in IT operations and DevOps environments. It offers deep visibility into servers, applications, networks, and cloud infrastructure.

With over 2,000 built in plugins and support for synthetic monitoring, Checkmk works well for complex environments. It supports Kubernetes, Nutanix, and major cloud providers.

Checkmk offers both self hosted and SaaS plans, making it adaptable but more technical to deploy than simpler platforms.

3. Zabbix

Zabbix
Source: Zabbix.com

Zabbix is an open source monitoring solution popular with enterprises that need deep customization. It supports agent based and agentless monitoring across a wide range of platforms.

Zabbix excels at flexible metric collection and synthetic monitoring but requires strong technical expertise to deploy and maintain. Support and training are paid add ons.

4. LogicMonitor

LogicMonitor
Source: LogicMonitor.com

LogicMonitor is a SaaS based observability platform focused on hybrid and cloud environments. It uses an agentless architecture and provides topology mapping, anomaly detection, and dynamic alerting.

It integrates with thousands of technologies and offers strong automation features. Pricing is resource based and can become costly for large environments.

5. ManageEngine OpManager

ManageEngine OpManager
Source: ManageEngine.com

OpManager provides centralized monitoring for routers, switches, firewalls, servers, and virtual machines. It supports thousands of metrics and includes root cause analysis tools.

Its Probe Central architecture allows it to scale to large environments, though deployment and licensing can become complex at scale.

6. Datadog

Datadog
Source: Datadog.com

Datadog combines infrastructure monitoring, application performance monitoring, log management, and security monitoring into a single platform.

It is especially popular in cloud native environments and DevOps teams. Datadog excels at visualization and analytics but can become expensive as data volume grows.

7. Dynatrace

Dynatrace
Source: Dynatrace.com

Dynatrace offers full stack observability with AI driven analytics. It covers infrastructure, applications, user experience, and security monitoring.

Its AI engine analyzes dependencies and root causes automatically, making it powerful but more complex and costly than traditional monitoring tools.

Legacy Monitoring Tools vs Modern Platforms

Older tools like MRTG were designed primarily for bandwidth monitoring using SNMP. While MRTG is still useful for basic traffic graphing, it lacks real time alerting, automation, and multi dimensional visibility.

Modern platforms expand far beyond what MRTG was built to do. They combine monitoring with remediation, automation, security, and reporting in a single system.

How to Choose the Right Alternative

Assess Your Environment

Identify whether your infrastructure is on premises, cloud, or hybrid. Choose tools that natively support your architecture.

Match Features to Needs

Some teams need deep application visibility, while others prioritize network device monitoring and automation.

Evaluate Pricing Models

Avoid tools where cost scales unpredictably with sensors or data volume.

Test Performance and Usability

Free trials help validate alert accuracy, interface usability, and onboarding effort.

Review Security and Compliance

Ensure encryption, role based access, MFA, and audit logs are included.

Why Many Teams Move Away From PRTG

As environments grow more dynamic, static monitoring approaches become limiting. Teams want tools that not only detect issues but also help resolve them automatically.

While MRTG and PRTG laid important groundwork in network monitoring history, modern IT operations demand platforms that integrate monitoring, automation, and endpoint management.

Why Level Stands Out

Level is designed for speed, clarity, and action. It provides:

  • Real time network and endpoint monitoring
  • Secure peer to peer remote access
  • Automation without complex scripting
  • Native multi platform support
  • Transparent and predictable pricing

For teams seeking a modern alternative without legacy overhead, Level offers a strong balance between power and simplicity.

Final Thoughts

Choosing the right PRTG alternative depends on scale, complexity, and operational goals. Legacy tools like MRTG still have niche use cases, but modern IT teams require broader visibility, faster response, and automation built in.

By evaluating your environment carefully and testing modern platforms, you can move beyond reactive monitoring and toward proactive, efficient operations in 2025.

Level: Simplify IT Management

At Level, we understand the modern challenges faced by IT professionals. That's why we've crafted a robust, browser-based Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) platform that's as flexible as it is secure. Whether your team operates on Windows, Mac, or Linux, Level equips you with the tools to manage, monitor, and control your company's devices seamlessly from anywhere.

Ready to revolutionize how your IT team works? Experience the power of managing a thousand devices as effortlessly as one. Start with Level today—sign up for a free trial or book a demo to see Level in action.