Amazon CloudWatch vs SolarWinds AppOptics comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and SolarWinds are both solutions in the Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #20 with an average rating of 7.9, while SolarWinds is ranked #56. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 1.1% mindshare in APM, compared to SolarWinds’s 0.8% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 80% of SolarWinds users who would recommend it.

Amazon CloudWatch

Read 48 Amazon CloudWatch reviews

7,119 Views
3,702 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

SolarWinds AppOptics

Read 9 SolarWinds AppOptics reviews

3,114 Views
1,931 Comparison Views

80% willing to recommend

Amazon CloudWatch

SolarWinds AppOptics

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 18, 2024

Amazon CloudWatch and SolarWinds AppOptics compete as key cloud monitoring tools. Users favor SolarWinds AppOptics for its efficiency and detailed performance insights, making it a preferred choice despite CloudWatch's strong AWS integration.

Features: Amazon CloudWatch provides detailed metrics, real-time data management, and real-time alerts within the AWS ecosystem, which aids scalability, simplicity, and security. SolarWinds AppOptics offers advanced network performance monitoring, application performance management, and robust reporting capabilities, suitable for users demanding detailed visibility.

Room for Improvement: Amazon CloudWatch could improve its monitoring for non-AWS services and refine its pricing model. Users also seek better report generation capabilities. SolarWinds AppOptics may benefit from integrating solutions, simplifying Unix application monitoring, and providing a unified console for multiple applications.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Amazon CloudWatch supports broad public cloud and hybrid deployments with multiple technical support tiers. SolarWinds AppOptics, despite offering simpler support systems, centralizes troubleshooting queries. Amazon's customer service stands out for specialization and accessible support tiers.

Pricing and ROI: Amazon CloudWatch is seen as reasonably priced, especially when included with AWS services, using a pay-as-you-go model which suits predictable cost management through AWS integration. SolarWinds AppOptics uses a traditional license-based structure, which sometimes lacks flexibility compared to competitors. Both tools provide substantial ROI through effective monitoring and management.

To learn more, read our detailed Amazon CloudWatch vs. SolarWinds AppOptics Report (Updated: June 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Amazon CloudWatch vs. SolarWinds AppOptics

June 2026

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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

Amazon CloudWatch

Ranking in Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

20th

Ranking in Cloud Monitoring Software

14th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Log Management (17th)

SolarWinds AppOptics

Ranking in Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

56th

Ranking in Cloud Monitoring Software

43rd

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

IT Infrastructure Monitoring (62nd)

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability category, the mindshare of Amazon CloudWatch is 1.1%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SolarWinds AppOptics is 0.8%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Amazon CloudWatch	1.1%
SolarWinds AppOptics	0.8%
Other	98.1%

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

Featured Reviews

Azam S M

Infrastructure Lead at Danat Fz LLC

Has provided reliable monitoring and alerting through extensive metric tracking and dashboard configuration

Amazon CloudWatch itself provides a lot of data. However, for visualization, we need to use third-party tools. We are in a process of integrating Grafana, Loki, and Prometheus to have better visualization on Amazon CloudWatch. We are also integrating Grafana with the application itself to get the application data and logs. Alternatively, there is AWS Kinesis and Glue where you can scrape the logs and have visualization, but a more easy option is Grafana. If you want to get a proper visual representation to see what is happening, then you need to integrate a third-party tool. Amazon CloudWatch has all the data, but to see what is happening, you need some third-party tool.

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John Yuko

Assistant Manager ICT - Projects at I&M Bank Ltd

Unique features allow consolidating and combing metrics into a single dashboard, but don't monitor mobile solutions

I would like to see more granular information provided on Unix applications. Also, the integration with Unix services should be a bit more straightforward in terms having an agent to retrieve your credentials rather than having to enter or save them for SSH on SolarWinds. From the outset, we had to set some commands to log into the search console, and they are saved on the solution, which presents a challenge in terms of exposure. The solution is unable to monitor APK solutions completely because we'd then be forced to break down the APK and provide the APIs or go through the source code. They don't have a module that can analyze an application that is maybe under-used.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The monitoring features are valuable."

"The product helps us collect and store various metrics to set test alarms."

"The tool's UI is good. One can scroll through the logs very easily."

"It's stable, the performance is good, it's reliable, there are no bugs or glitches, and it doesn't crash or freeze."

"Task automation through Amazon CloudWatch has improved the company's overall efficiency in terms of the time to resolve issues, so the tool has been beneficial."

"Most of it's around optimizing utilization, their cloud utilization. They're making sure that they're getting the most out of their in-cloud environments and their instances. Making sure that there's no strange behavior in the environment."

"The solution effectively monitors golden signals like CPU, page requests, and queues."

"It is a robust analytical tool and it goes beyond mere functionality and extends into the realm of providing comprehensive insights."

More Amazon CloudWatch pros

"The reporting of the solution is very good."

"With minimal effort on our part, TraceView provides extraordinary visibility into the requests that flow through our SOA applications."

"The sum solution, NTA, and DPA."

"AppNeta provides a range of products, all based around intelligent network testing algorithms."

"Customer service is exceptional, as they are very much in tune with our service needs and are always in contact for both enhancement requests and overall satisfaction."

"I have found the most valuable feature is application performance management."

"It's a solid application."

"Technical support is always live and they're supportive."

More SolarWinds AppOptics pros

Cons

"We find this product lacking and this is why we want to look for a new service that can cover our needs."

"The solution's auto-scaling could be improved."

"I do not know whether or not CloudWatch can be integrated with on-prem services."

"Amazon CloudWatch charges extra for custom metrics, which is a significant disadvantage."

"CloudWatch doesn’t monitor disk throughput by default."

"Even though the product works well with most AWS, it is a nightmare to use with Snowflake."

"Improvement of SSSD logs would be beneficial."

"When customers want to see the CPU or memory utilization there is a cost. This should be free to see the utilization."

More Amazon CloudWatch cons

"We had a stability issue with a portion of the installation (Sequencer) when it was first introduced and have chosen not to install that specific function."

"The implementation needs improvement. It needs to get modernized with the newer cloud scenario in both public and private deployment models."

"The integration with Unix services should be a bit more straightforward."

"I would like to see more integration with other tools that are available on the market."

"In terms of the technology, I think they need to put some more advanced troubleshooting into SolarWinds, in terms of AI capabilities. That's the next generation, especially in the cases of APIs which have already adopted AI capabilities into their products."

"The solution should be more user-friendly."

"Because of its inability to monitor mobile solutions, I would rate this solution as a seven out of ten."

"AppOptics would benefit from having a much more centralized view."

More SolarWinds AppOptics cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Amazon CloudWatch is reasonable for detailed basic monitoring."

"The pricing can be considered reasonable, especially when already operating on a cloud platform."

"The product's cost is relatively inexpensive."

"Amazon CloudWatch is a cheap solution."

"What's were using is the free service of Amazon CloudWatch, so they're not charging us. As for hidden fees, we're not aware of them because we're using what our clients provided us."

"Its pricing is reasonable. It is sometimes tricky, but it is reasonable as compared to others."

"Amazon CloudWatch has very cheap pricing, and it hardly costs my company $25-$30 a month for fifty systems, so it's pretty affordable."

"It’s an open-source solution."

More Amazon CloudWatch pricing and cost advice

"I believe the current licensing cost is reasonable."

"Since it's a negotiable rate, I would rate the pricing as a five out of five."

"Mostly, it's a perpetual license. We don't have any customers using the subscription right now—it's mostly a perpetual license that the customers purchase. The licensing is based on the number of elements, whereas other solutions are node-based."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

15%

Manufacturing Company

Transportation Company

Computer Software Company

Construction Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Outsourcing Company

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	17
Midsize Enterprise	8
Large Enterprise	25

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	7

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Amazon CloudWatch?

No specific setup costs were mentioned.

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What needs improvement with Amazon CloudWatch?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Amazon CloudWatch?

Amazon CloudWatch is a very small service that AWS provides. It is a monitoring service for applications within the AWS cloud, and we can integrate external applications using the APIs or SDK. The ...

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Comparisons

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Compared 5% of the time

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Compared 5% of the time

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Datadog vs Amazon CloudWatch

Compared 4% of the time

Grafana vs Amazon CloudWatch

Compared 4% of the time

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Compared 11% of the time

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Compared 7% of the time

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Compared 6% of the time

Splunk AppDynamics vs SolarWinds AppOptics

Compared 6% of the time

OpenText Real User Monitoring vs SolarWinds AppOptics

Compared 5% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Amazon CloudWatch

June 2026

Download Amazon CloudWatch product report

Buyer's Guide

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

May 2026

Download SolarWinds AppOptics product report

Also Known As

No data available

AppOptics, SolarWinds TraceView, Librato

Overview

Amazon CloudWatch integrates seamlessly with AWS, providing real-time monitoring and alerting features. Its interface supports task automation, enhancing troubleshooting and analytics capabilities, while offering strong security and scalability at a cost-effective rate.

Amazon CloudWatch is an impactful platform for monitoring AWS resources and managing application performance. It simplifies infrastructure performance monitoring by providing comprehensive analytics capabilities, including application insights and event scheduling. Users appreciate CloudWatch for its detailed metrics, dashboards, and support in issuing alerts to detect anomalies. It efficiently tracks performance, optimizes resource utilization, and ensures service availability. CloudWatch is recognized for its robust alerting features and integration with other AWS services, further supporting its resource monitoring capabilities. However, there is room for improvement in dashboard customization, log streaming speed, and integration with non-AWS services. Enhancements in API integration, machine learning features, and support for third-party tools are also desired.

What features does Amazon CloudWatch offer?

Seamless Integration: Works effortlessly with AWS for cohesive service management.
Advanced Metrics: Provides detailed monitoring of CPU, memory, and more.
Real-time Monitoring: Offers up-to-the-minute alerts on infrastructure status.
Dashboards: User-friendly and informative for quick insights.
Automation: Supports task automation for efficient troubleshooting.

What benefits does Amazon CloudWatch provide?

Cost-effectiveness: Efficient resource monitoring without high costs.
Scalability: Easily adapts to growing infrastructure needs.
Security: Strong protocols for safe monitoring activities.
Improved Performance: Enhances application insights and operational efficiency.
Operational Insights: Provides comprehensive logging and performance analysis.

Industries implementing Amazon CloudWatch often focus on optimizing IT infrastructure. Companies in sectors like finance and e-commerce rely on its monitoring and alerting capabilities to ensure service uptime and performance. The platform's automation and analytics features empower teams to proactively manage performance and detect potential issues promptly.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

SolarWinds AppOptics offers powerful network performance monitoring and application insights, aiding enterprises in optimizing operations.

SolarWinds AppOptics provides comprehensive tools for network and application performance management. This platform enhances real-time monitoring capabilities, offering topology discovery and hop-by-hop performance analysis. With a focus on minimal configuration, users gain extraordinary visibility into service-oriented architecture applications and are equipped to identify performance issues efficiently. The dashboard's integration capabilities streamline application performance data, empowering organizations with robust reporting features. The deployment is popularly on-premises, yet improvements are desired in pricing strategy and integrations with existing tools.

What are the important features of SolarWinds AppOptics?

Topology Discovery: Facilitates understanding of network structure and connections.
Real-Time Monitoring: Delivers current data to monitor system performance live.
Heat Maps: Provides visual insights into network traffic patterns and performance metrics.
Pathview Monitoring: Enables tracking and evaluation of network performance per segment.
Integration Capabilities: Supports metrics integration for comprehensive system monitoring.

What benefits and ROI should users expect?

Efficiency in Issue Resolution: Swift identification of network bottlenecks and performance issues.
Enhanced Reporting: In-depth reports facilitating data-driven decisions.
Increased Visibility: Comprehensive insights into application and network activities.
Minimal Configuration: Quick setup enabling immediate utility and productivity.

SolarWinds AppOptics is widely used in network operations within enterprises, also extending to server and application monitoring. Deployed to track servers and network devices, it aids in analyzation of logs and data across environments, and is essential for service management. Specific industries benefit from detailed deployment inventory and management portfolios enabled by AppOptics.

SolarWinds

Sample Customers

AirAsia, Airbnb, Aircel, APUS, Avazu, Casa & Video, Futbol Club Barcelona (FCBarcelona), National Taiwan University, redBus

TraxoCovea Insurance BTE TechnologyDatarista

Buyer's Guide

Amazon CloudWatch vs. SolarWinds AppOptics

June 2026

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