Researched by RouterFreak | Sources checked October 2026 | Not tested in our lab
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Paessler PRTG ranks #8 in our best network monitoring tools ranking, with a rating of 7.6 out of 10. It is one of the easiest tools to get running, with hundreds of sensor types and published pricing.
| UI/UX | Scalability, support & security | Features | Integration | Value | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7.6 |
Overview
PRTG monitors network devices, servers, applications, bandwidth, and more through “sensors,” each of which checks one metric or service. It comes as PRTG Network Monitor (on-premises), PRTG Hosted Monitor (SaaS), and PRTG Enterprise Monitor for large, multi-server deployments.
The big change of the last two years: on July 1, 2024, Paessler moved PRTG Network Monitor to subscription-only licensing. Perpetual licenses are no longer sold, and if you cancel a subscription you lose access to the installation when the term ends. Existing perpetual licenses with active maintenance keep running.
Noteworthy features
- Auto-discovery: finds devices and creates sensors automatically.
- Hundreds of sensor types: bandwidth, SNMP, flow, applications, virtualization, and hardware health.
- Remote probes: distributed monitoring for multiple sites.
- Cluster failover: every on-premises license includes a failover node that keeps monitoring running if the core server fails (not available in Hosted Monitor).
- Maps, dashboards, and mobile apps: custom maps plus iOS and Android apps.
- APIs and custom sensors: integrate with other systems or script your own checks.
Pricing
PRTG Network Monitor subscriptions are priced by sensor count, per month and paid annually: PRTG 500 at $200, PRTG 1000 at $358, PRTG 2500 at $742, PRTG 5000 at $1,300, and PRTG 10000 at $1,642. Paessler maps those tiers to roughly 50, 100, 250, 500, and 1,000 devices. Enterprise Monitor starts at $1,671 per month for 10,000 sensors. A free version covers 100 sensors, which is about 10 devices.
Pros
- One of the fastest tools to set up and start getting value from
- Broad coverage from a single product
- Published pricing and a usable free tier
- On-premises or hosted options
Cons
- Sensor-based licensing gets expensive as you add interfaces and metrics
- The core server can consume significant resources in large deployments
- Subscription-only licensing for new customers
- Windows-based core server
User interface
Bottom line
PRTG is still one of the best ways to get broad monitoring running in an afternoon, and it fits small and mid-size networks well. Larger networks will hit sensor limits and server load sooner than with the tools ranked above it.
See how it compares with ten other tools in our best network monitoring tools ranking.
How we researched this
We have not run PRTG in our lab, so this is not a hands-on review. It is based on Paessler’s product, pricing, and help pages, and user reviews, checked in October 2026. Prices change often, so confirm them with Paessler before you buy.
- PRTG pricing
- PRTG Network Monitor FAQ (subscription licensing, failover cluster)
- PRTG Enterprise Monitor
