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Nagios Core vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor comparison

Nagios and SolarWinds are both solutions in the Network Monitoring Software category. Nagios is ranked #12 with an average rating of 8.3, while SolarWinds is ranked #30 with an average rating of 7.8. Nagios holds a 2.5% mindshare in NMS, compared to SolarWinds’s 0.6% mindshare. Additionally, 80% of Nagios users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 95% of SolarWinds users who would recommend it.
Nagios Core
Read 51 Nagios Core reviews
  • 3,994 Views
  • 3,475 Comparison Views
80% willing to recommend
SolarWinds Network Device M...
Read 23 SolarWinds Network Device Monitor reviews
  • 835 Views
  • 802 Comparison Views
95% willing to recommend
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 10, 2024

SolarWinds Network Device Monitor and Nagios Core compete in network monitoring solutions. Nagios Core is generally seen as having the upper hand due to its comprehensive features and customization flexibility, while SolarWinds is favored for its ease of use and support.

Features: SolarWinds Network Device Monitor is known for easy setup, real-time network performance monitoring, and user-friendly alerts with a polished dashboard. Nagios Core offers open-source flexibility, extensive customization options, and a wide range of monitoring features, making it appealing for those seeking in-depth customization.

Room for Improvement: SolarWinds can improve in areas like advanced customization, integration capabilities, and scalability for larger enterprises. Nagios Core could benefit from simplified deployment, enhanced user interface, and more accessible support options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SolarWinds Network Device Monitor is praised for its quick and straightforward deployment process and strong customer support. Nagios Core's deployment is more complex, requiring technical expertise, but it allows for deeper customization.

Pricing and ROI: SolarWinds Network Device Monitor offers competitive pricing, making it attractive to smaller organizations seeking immediate returns, supported by comprehensive customer service. Nagios Core, being open-source, presents cost-effective initial setup and potential for long-term savings with its customization capabilities.

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To learn more, read our detailed Nagios Core vs. SolarWinds Network Device Monitor Report (Updated: September 2025).
Buyer's Guide
Nagios Core vs. SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
September 2025
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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Nagios Core
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
12th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
51
Ranking in other categories
IT Infrastructure Monitoring (11th)
SolarWinds Network Device M...
Ranking in Network Monitoring Software
30th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
23
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Network Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of Nagios Core is 2.5%, down from 3.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SolarWinds Network Device Monitor is 0.6%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Monitoring Software Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Nagios Core2.5%
SolarWinds Network Device Monitor0.6%
Other96.9%
Network Monitoring Software
 

Featured Reviews

Nishith-Vyas - PeerSpot reviewer
Valuable reporting and alert system with room for PDF export improvements
The NetEase reporting structure needs improvement, especially the availability report, which is weak. It should be generated automatically with minimal human intervention and should be exportable as a PDF. Besides that, an integrated PDF export feature for reports is necessary. Also, the alert mechanism and graphing mechanism need to be integrated properly into Nagios Core. Currently, integrating these requires advanced Linux knowledge. Integration of more visualization tools like Grafana and Prometheus for better graphing and visualization is also recommended.
Read full review
Vijay Samant - PeerSpot reviewer
Monitor network utilization and manage bandwidth efficiently with live monitoring and reliable fault management capabilities
I use SolarWinds Network Device Monitor for monitoring network utilization, bandwidth utilization, uptime, and downtime. It also assists in incident management SolarWinds Network Device Monitor provides live monitoring capabilities, which are very useful. Its fault management capabilities are…
Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"I like the way the solution sends alerts and how it keeps on escalating them."
"It has made the life of the network operations staff more proactive in managing the resources of the infrastructure. It prevents disasters long before they can take place."
"Key features include the GUI interface, its notification capabilities, and the real-time reporting."
"The solution is quite efficient."
"The solution's most valuable feature is that it offers proper alerting capabilities."
"I like that it's very simple to install, easy to manage and deploy, and easy to use for monitoring."
"The good thing about Nagios Core is it covers everything."
"Nagios monitors our servers, so we know if anything goes wrong and can solve the problem before it happens."
More Nagios Core pros
"Overall, I rate SolarWinds Network Device Monitor ten out of ten."
"You can create an attractive dashboard and create a hierarchy."
"I rate the product's initial setup process a nine on a scale of one to ten, where one means it is a difficult phase and ten is an easy process."
"This product proactively tells us about issues before the users notice."
"The alerts we are getting when we start losing connection access have been helpful."
"There are vital features of auto-plugin core ports"
"The solution and its interface are elaborate and fully integrate all monitored items for easy analysis and troubleshooting."
"The product is useful for switches and IP phones."
More SolarWinds Network Device Monitor pros
 

Cons

"I would like to see more training videos."
"Nagios Core could improve by adding a user interface. If you want the user interface you have to use Nagios XI."
"The NetEase reporting structure needs improvement, especially the availability report, which is weak."
"I believe Nagios Core will need to provide an option for big data platforms in the future."
"The scalability needs improvement, it's not scalable at this time."
"The mapping is a little hard."
"We're using the free version, which limits us in terms of the things that we can do. If we had the paid version, a lot of our issues would probably go away. For example, we can't isolate instances that are being built or updated with the production ones. When they're being built, on Nagios, they're showing in red. It'd be nice to be able to partition those off until they're all green, and then we can bring them into the environment. This is probably because we've got the free version and not the paid version. If we went for the paid version, it would probably allow us to do exactly what we want to or remove the restrictions that we have, but if we are able to isolate instances in the free version, it would make life much easier."
"I would like to see a sensor that shows the traffic of a user and what they're doing on the network."
More Nagios Core cons
"When an organization's network grows, the complexity of the dashboard becomes an area of concern where improvements are required."
"It would be beneficial if SolarWinds Network Device Monitor could provide a feature to monitor CRC errors specifically on individual interfaces rather than the entire device. This would help in detecting intermittent issues and packet drops on main links more accurately, especially when there are CRC errors. It's important for us to be aware of these issues to avoid any voice quality problems or interruptions on our MTS links."
"SolarWinds Network Device Monitor could improve the features. We don't have the complete model for the database, and the monitoring for the database is up and down. We expect that we could monitor the blocking items on the database but we don't have that feature."
"In terms of price, it could be less expensive."
"If everything were in the package so that everything was ready to go out of the box, that would be ideal."
"SolarWinds pricing is on the higher side, and in India, every customer is cautious about commercial aspects."
"The solution should have AI-powered issue-resolving capabilities"
"SolarWinds Network Device Monitor could improve by being more user-friendly. The network has so many features which make it difficult to find how to configure how to use it. It is not simple to customize."
More SolarWinds Network Device Monitor cons
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We have saved a lot of time, money, and effort in reducing disaster times, which is owed to Nagios quick alerting."
"The enterprise version has technical support. The version we are using is free."
"We are using the free version."
"The Nagios Core (PNP4Nagios + Core) is free and can be setup by Netadmin within a few hours. The only additional cost is the cloud server."
"It's free."
"We are using the free version of Nagios Core."
"Nagios Core is an open source solution, and there are no licensing fees."
"Lessening the price point would be an improvement."
More Nagios Core pricing and cost advice
"The product is expensive."
"I rate the product's price as three to three and a half or on a scale of one to ten, where one means low price, and ten means high price."
"I find the cost of SolarWinds Network Device Monitor reasonable for our company. Though, I'm not aware of the exact licensing cost."
"The price of the SolarWinds Network Device Monitor is good."
"SolarWinds Network Device Monitor is not an expensive solution."
"When compared with other solutions SolarWinds is more expensive."
"Thankfully, it doesn't take a lot of manpower to install and deploy."
"The enterprise license is good for the SolarWinds Network Device Monitor. However, it is expensive, they should reduce their price."
More SolarWinds Network Device Monitor pricing and cost advice
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
9%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise11
Large Enterprise22
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise14
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Nagios Core?
What I like about Nagios Core is that it helps me ensure everything is running smoothly by checking the status of hosts and services.
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Nagios Core?
Nagios Core is a free and open-source product. We don't charge for the product itself, but we charge for the man-hour costs related to installation, configuration, ongoing operation, and maintenance.
See all answers
What needs improvement with Nagios Core?
The dashboard should be improved. It's very simple. I don't have a very clear or specific suggestion. You can change the skin of the dashboard, however, it's good for me.
See all answers
What do you like most about SolarWinds Network Device Monitor?
I rate the product's initial setup process a nine on a scale of one to ten, where one means it is a difficult phase and ten is an easy process.
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SolarWinds Network Device Monitor?
I am not a positive person regarding SolarWinds Network Device Monitor.
See all answers
What needs improvement with SolarWinds Network Device Monitor?
There are solutions that can perform better, but due to pricing for our corporate implementation, we had to stay with this solution. It accomplishes the necessary tasks, but there is room for impro...
See all answers
 

Comparisons

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Nagios XI vs Nagios Core Logo
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Compared 14% of the time
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Zabbix vs Nagios Core
Compared 12% of the time
Centreon vs Nagios Core Logo
Centreon vs Nagios Core
Compared 7% of the time
Checkmk vs Nagios Core Logo
Checkmk vs Nagios Core
Compared 6% of the time
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ScienceLogic vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor Logo
ScienceLogic vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Compared 25% of the time
FortiMonitor vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor Logo
FortiMonitor vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Compared 16% of the time
IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor Logo
IBM SevOne Network Performance Management (NPM) vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Compared 15% of the time
ThousandEyes vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor Logo
ThousandEyes vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Compared 9% of the time
Checkmk vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor Logo
Checkmk vs SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Compared 8% of the time
More SolarWinds Network Device Monitor Competitors
 

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide
Nagios Core
September 2025
Nagios Core reportDownload Nagios Core product report
Buyer's Guide
SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
September 2025
SolarWinds Network Device Monitor reportDownload SolarWinds Network Device Monitor product report
 

Also Known As

No data available
Network Device Monitor
 

Overview

This is IT infrastructure monitoring's industry-standard, open-source core. Free without professional support services.

Nagios
Network Device Monitor is a free tool that makes it easy to monitor the real-time performance and health of a single device on your network with a desktop dashboard that alerts you when your device is in trouble.
SolarWinds
 

Sample Customers

Airbnb, Cisco, PayPal, FanDuel
Air Rarotonga
Buyer's Guide
Nagios Core vs. SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
September 2025
Free Report: Nagios Core vs. SolarWinds Network Device Monitor
Find out what your peers are saying about Nagios Core vs. SolarWinds Network Device Monitor and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
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