6 BEST Bandwidth Monitoring Software (2025)

Monitoring your system’s bandwidth is important. But wait a minute! Bandwidth is not your regular internet speed that many users often mistakenly associate with. To better understand the concept, Bandwidth is the amount of information you can send within a stipulated time frame through your internet connectivity.

Bandwidths are calculated in Mbps or Megabits per second. Well, bandwidths certainly play a significant role in influencing the speed of the internet but placing them in the same box is incorrect. In simpler terms, bandwidth and internet speed are not the same. Henceforth, it is crucial to monitor the performance of your bandwidth.

Choosing a bad or improper bandwidth monitoring tool will certainly affect your network’s performance. You may experience productivity issues, and your work will be affected big times. If the network speed is not monitored in real-time, it will negatively impact your performance level. Therefore, you must consider using a best reliable bandwidth monitoring tool since it plays a significant role in rerouting the traffic in your network as per the scenario.

Continue reading to learn about the best networking tools to monitor your bandwidth. Read more…

Best Network Bandwidth Monitoring Tools & Software (Free & Paid)

Provider Name	Real-time Monitoring	Network Traffic Analysis	Alerts	Free Trial	Link
👍 ManageEngine NetFlow Analyzer	Yes	Yes	Yes	30 days	Learn More
👍 ManageEngine OpManager	Yes	Yes	Yes	30 days	Learn More
👍 Auvik	Yes	Yes	Yes	14 days	Learn More
Paessler PRTG Bandwidth Monitor	Yes	Yes	Yes	30 days	Learn More
NetworX Traffic Monitoring Tool	Yes	Yes	Yes	30 days	Learn More

1) ManageEngine NetFlow Analyzer

In my professional evaluation, the ManageEngine NetFlow Analyzer excels as a top-tier network monitoring tool. Its adeptness at dissecting flow data from NetFlow, sFlow, and IPFIX sources has significantly enhanced our understanding of network bandwidth performance and utilization.

This product, a brainchild of ManageEngine by Zoho Corporation, has become a cornerstone in our suite of IT management solutions, bridging gaps across security, networking, and cloud applications with remarkable efficiency.

Features:

• Traffic analysis: Identifies top applications, users, and websites consuming bandwidth through exhaustive analysis of flow records for troubleshooting bottlenecks.
• Bandwidth monitoring: Provides interface-level bandwidth utilization of physical/logical ports on all network devices for capacity planning and optimization.
• Monitor traffic in routers/switches: This tool extensively monitors the flow of traffic in different switches, routers, Firewalls, and WLCs. It also offers in-depth security analysis to prevent chances of network issues.
• CISCO AVC monitoring: With the CISCO AVC Monitoring feature, you will be able to delve deeper into the network traffic, thus observing their performance and taking necessary steps to improve their performance.
• Deep Packet Inspection: This feature makes it easier for you to read or capture network packets from the server. You can also use this tool to translate these raw packets accordingly.
• Geo-location tracking: Maps source and destination IPs on network traffic to identify geographic source and bandwidth expenditure, which helps plan infrastructure.
• Security/DHCP monitoring: Provides visibility into unidentified applications/protocols in use and rogue devices communicating over the network for threat detection.
• Traffic volume forecasting: Analyses historical trends to predict future bandwidth needs and capacity requirements to plan network upgrades timely.
• Role-based access: Fine-grained user roles and privileges ensure the safety of sensitive internal network data as per the organization’s security policies.

Pricing:

Editions Available (with pricing):

1. Standard ($8595 for 500 Interfaces)
2. Professional ($595 for 10 Interfaces)
3. Enterprise ($1,045 for 10 Interfaces)

Each of these editions comes with a 30-day Free Trial Period with all the features intact.

Visit ManageEngine >>

30-Days Free Trial

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2) ManageEngine OpManager

In my professional evaluation, ManageEngine OpManager stands out as a comprehensive network monitoring platform that excels in bandwidth monitoring and network performance management. This powerful tool provides end-to-end visibility into network infrastructure, making it an essential solution for organizations seeking robust bandwidth monitoring capabilities.

OpManager’s sophisticated monitoring engine continuously tracks bandwidth utilization across all network devices, offering real-time insights that enable proactive network management and optimization for optimal performance.

Features:

• Real-time bandwidth monitoring: Continuously monitors interface utilization and bandwidth consumption across all network devices with instant alerts for threshold breaches.
• Network device discovery: Automatically discovers and maps network topology including routers, switches, firewalls, and servers for comprehensive visibility.
• Performance analytics: Provides detailed performance metrics, historical trends, and capacity planning insights for optimal network resource allocation.
• Traffic analysis: Analyzes network traffic patterns to identify bandwidth-intensive applications and users affecting network performance.
• SNMP monitoring: Leverages SNMP protocols to collect detailed performance data from network devices for comprehensive monitoring coverage.
• Network mapping: Creates visual network topology maps showing device relationships, connectivity, and real-time status for better network understanding.
• Fault management: Proactive fault detection and notification system ensures quick identification and resolution of network issues.
• Multi-vendor support: Supports devices from all major vendors including Cisco, HP, Dell, Juniper, and many others for heterogeneous environments.
• Customizable dashboards: Configurable dashboards and reports provide personalized views of network performance metrics and bandwidth utilization.
• Mobile monitoring: Mobile app enables network monitoring and management from anywhere, ensuring continuous network oversight.

Pricing:

Editions Available (with pricing):

1. Standard ($245 for 25 devices)
2. Professional ($345 for 25 devices)
3. Enterprise ($11545 for 250 devices)

Each of these editions comes with a 30-day Free Trial Period with all the features intact.

Visit OpManager >>

30-Days Free Trial

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3) Auvik

In our experience, Auvik shines as a robust network monitoring tool, delivering crucial insight into bandwidth utilization within complex network infrastructures. With networks growing in size and intricacy, manually tracking bandwidth usage across myriad devices is daunting.

Auvik’s seamless integration with routers, switches, and firewalls facilitates the collection of detailed bandwidth information without needing agents. My team appreciates how it archives bandwidth and interface stats, offering them through clear dashboards and reports. This enables us to promptly identify anomalies, refine resource management, and strategically plan for infrastructure enhancements, maintaining optimal network performance.

Features:

• Device discovery: Automatically detects network devices and collects interface-level data without requiring agents for complete visibility.
• Interface monitoring: Provides bandwidth usage details of physical ports, VLANs, and aggregated links on all devices.
• Application visualization: Identifies top bandwidth-consuming apps and clients to troubleshoot bottlenecks.
• Usage trends: Long-term historical reporting assists in capacity planning by analyzing growth patterns.
• Configuration auditing: Validates configurations and tracks changes to detect misconfigurations.
• Alerting: Smart alerts notify on bandwidth thresholds, failures, or usage spikes via email, SMS, etc.
• Context-based search: Find relevant devices, configurations, or issues across extensive inventory quickly.
• Reporting APIs: Customizable REST APIs allow third-party integration for centralized monitoring.

Pricing: Contact Customer Support for Pricing

Visit Auvik >>

14-Days Free Trial

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4) Paessler PRTG Bandwidth Monitor

In my professional judgment, PRTG Network Monitor by Paessler AG is a cornerstone in network administration. It effortlessly tracks network performance, including traffic, devices, services, and applications, thus averting potential disruptions.

The instant notification feature is crucial, informing my team and me promptly of network issues. This tool streamlines our operations and enriches our bandwidth utilization insights, ensuring our network runs smoothly and efficiently.

Features:

• Bandwidth usage on interfaces: Sensors track the amount of data transferred in and out of network cards over time.
• Traffic flow between devices: PRTG can display the bandwidth/throughput between any two points in the network infrastructure.
• Dashboard and reports: The main dashboard shows the current stats of all devices. Custom reports showing historical bandwidth data can be automatically generated on a schedule.
• Alerts: Thresholds trigger emails or other alerts if bandwidth exceeds limits, ensuring admins are promptly notified of network performance issues.
• Multiple technology supported: Supports almost every crucial technology. It also supports most of the flow protocols like sFlow, NetFlow, jFlow, and IPFIX.
• PRTG map designer: Using the PRTG Map Designer, you will be able to develop a dynamic dashboard with ease. You will also be able to track bandwidth live status from real-time maps.

Pricing:

Editions Available (with pricing):

• PRTG Network Monitor ($1899/license) (Perpetual) (1 server)
• PRTG Enterprise Monitor ($17599/year) (annually) (Unlimited server)
• PRTG Hosted Monitor ($1699/year) (annually and monthly) (1 server)

For a demonstration, you can contact the sales department directly.

Visit Paessler >>

30-Days Free Trial

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5) NetworX Traffic Monitoring Tool

We’ve leveraged NetWorX in our extensive networks, valuing its agentless approach for real-time data gathering and trend analysis. This tool significantly aids in proactive issue identification and optimizing resource distribution.

Its compatibility with key network devices for detailed bandwidth insights and the capacity to store and review historical metrics through customizable dashboards underscores its essential role in our network management strategy, enhancing our operational efficiency.

Features:

• Automatic device discovery: Automatically detects network devices of any vendor and types on the fly without agents.
• Interface monitoring: Granular visibility into usage of physical/logical ports and VLANs across all devices.
• Application visualization: Identifies top bandwidth-consuming apps client devices to troubleshoot bottlenecks.
• Bandwidth forecasting: Analyses historical trends to forecast growth and plan infrastructure needs in advance.
• Configuration review: Validate configs and track changes made to quickly detect misconfigurations.
• Cross-network search: Find relevant devices, configurations or issues across extensive, distributed inventory.

Pricing:

Editions Available (with pricing):

1. Home Edition: $25 (5 devices), $49 (10 devices)
2. Business Edition: $49 (5 devices), $99 (10 devices)

Each of these editions comes with a 30-day Free Trial Period with all the features intact.

Link: https://www.softperfect.com/order/

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6) Progress WhatsUp Gold

In my experience, WhatsUp has proven to be an indispensable tool for monitoring network bandwidth. Developed by Ipswitch, it offers network administrators a comprehensive view of our network’s bandwidth usage and performance. WhatsUp provides real-time insights into network availability, traffic flow, and device configurations, enhancing our network management capabilities. Its support for PowerShell and VBScript is particularly beneficial, enabling precise database monitoring through SQL queries.

Moreover, the tool’s ability to scrutinize every aspect of our network—virtual, wired, or wireless—has significantly improved our understanding and oversight of the network’s layout.

Features:

• Deep Monitoring: Performs deep monitoring of critical folders and files to determine whether they have been changed or altered.
• Dynamic Performance Maps: The presence of Dynamic Performance Maps helps address performance problems faster.
• Ability to discover devices: With this tool, you can automatically discover the devices available on your network.
• Configurable NOC viewer: Configurable NOC viewer scrutinizes potential and current issues by cycling through different data screens.
• SNMP deep query: The tool uses SNMP for deep query of every device to have a clear understating of the inventory.

Pricing:

Price: Contact Customer Support for Pricing

Link: https://www.progress.com/network-monitoring

How do I Monitor Bandwidth Per Device?

To monitor bandwidth per device on your network, you can use tools like NetFlow or IPFIX for more sophisticated monitoring. On a home network, enable the bandwidth monitoring feature in your router’s settings. Most consumer routers let you view data usage per device connected to your network. Other free options include installing bandwidth monitoring software like NetWorx or NetScan on your PC. They let you see the bandwidth consumption of individual devices connected to your local network.

How can I Monitor my Network for Free?

There are many free ways to monitor your network without spending money on commercial tools. On Windows, the built-in Resource Monitor shows the bandwidth usage of processes and apps in real time. On a Mac, the Activity Monitor performs the same function. For network-wide monitoring, you can analyze router logs manually or use free Network Monitoring Software like PRTG or Zabbix. They offer basic monitoring of bandwidth, traffic, and device connectivity for free. Options like GlassWire are also free for personal use to monitor individual PCs.

What is the Best Way to Identify Traffic Flow on an Existing Network?

The best way to identify traffic flow patterns on an existing network is to install a network usage monitoring appliance. Tools like Cisco Stealthwatch or Netscout can capture and analyse network traffic passively without affecting performance. For a smaller network, open-source tools like Wireshark or TCPdump on routers/switches can help track traffic flows based on ports and protocols.

How do I Know Which App Uses more Bandwidth?

To see which apps are using the most bandwidth on individual devices, check your operating system’s built-in tools – on Windows, use the Resource Monitor. On Mac, use Activity Monitor. On a network-wide level, check router logs and reports to see which devices are uploading/downloading the most data. Commercial network monitoring tools also let you configure filters to track bandwidth consumed by different protocols and ports used by apps.

How does Network Bandwidth Work?

Once you pick a suitable network bandwidth monitoring tool, it allows you the option to have a close look at the bandwidth performance. It will help you identify any issues that may cause a disruption to your internet performance. A reliable tool will help you handle issues that may well be caused due to some external factors, configuration problems, or human errors and fix them before the situation gets ugly. With the right kind of tool, the problems associated with bandwidth, faulty networks, and lack of network speeds are resolved.

Verdict

By now, you have understood the best options for bandwidth monitoring and network traffic measurement. However, if you ask me to have my top 3 picks from the list, I will go with ManageEngine NetFlow Analyzer, ManageEngine OpManager, and Auvik. Although there remains room for improvement for these and every other tool discussed, these three tools are more feature-rich and certainly meet my purpose of usage.