SolarWinds NPM vs VMware Aria Operations for Applications comparison

SolarWinds and Broadcom are both solutions in the Cloud Monitoring Software category. SolarWinds is ranked #8 with an average rating of 8.5, while Broadcom is ranked #12 with an average rating of 8.8. SolarWinds holds a 4.4% mindshare in CMS, compared to Broadcom’s 2.2% mindshare. Additionally, 92% of SolarWinds users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 93% of Broadcom users who would recommend it.

SolarWinds NPM

Read 160 SolarWinds NPM reviews

20,239 Views
7,488 Comparison Views

92% willing to recommend

VMware Aria Operations for ...

Read 14 VMware Aria Operations for Applications reviews

6,376 Views
2,805 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

SolarWinds NPM

VMware Aria Operations for ...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 9, 2024

SolarWinds NPM and VMware Aria Operations for Applications are competitors in the network and application performance management industry. SolarWinds NPM has an edge due to its broader feature set and competitive pricing, while VMware Aria Operations for Applications is appreciated for its integration capabilities with container platforms.

Features: SolarWinds NPM includes advanced network fault and availability management, integration with multiple vendors, and robust alerting. It provides real-time visibility into network performance and modular pricing options. VMware Aria Operations for Applications focuses on integrating with container platforms, supporting open-source technologies, and offering real-time visibility with in-depth insights into application health.

Room for Improvement: SolarWinds NPM users note issues with network discovery, alert configuration, and licensing flexibility. Improvements in reporting, security, and support responsiveness could enhance usability. VMware Aria Operations for Applications could improve integration with diverse IT environments, setup processes, and prediction capabilities.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SolarWinds NPM supports on-premises, hybrid, and cloud environments but faces setup challenges. Customer service is generally good, with concerns about sales tactics and support consistency. VMware Aria Operations for Applications integrates with cloud solutions and receives positive feedback on customer service and resource deployment.

Pricing and ROI: SolarWinds NPM offers competitive pricing but costs can rise with additional modules. Users report substantial ROI through proactive network management. VMware Aria Operations for Applications, while flexible, incurs high integration costs, making it a cost-intensive option despite offering consolidation benefits.

To learn more, read our detailed SolarWinds NPM vs. VMware Aria Operations for Applications Report (Updated: June 2026).

Buyer's Guide

SolarWinds NPM vs. VMware Aria Operations for Applications

June 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 900,747 peers since 2012

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

SolarWinds NPM

Ranking in IT Infrastructure Monitoring

4th

Ranking in Cloud Monitoring Software

8th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

160

Ranking in other categories

Network Monitoring Software (2nd)

VMware Aria Operations for ...

Ranking in IT Infrastructure Monitoring

17th

Ranking in Cloud Monitoring Software

12th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability (16th), Container Monitoring (5th)

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Cloud Monitoring Software category, the mindshare of SolarWinds NPM is 4.4%, up from 4.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Aria Operations for Applications is 2.2%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Cloud Monitoring Software Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
SolarWinds NPM	4.4%
VMware Aria Operations for Applications	2.2%
Other	93.4%

Cloud Monitoring Software

Featured Reviews

Vivek Jaiswal

Manager IT at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Central monitoring has improved outage alerts and now needs smarter detection and modern dashboards

Regarding the automated network topology and mapping feature in SolarWinds NPM, I am not satisfied with it. For static monitoring, it is acceptable. However, if it is possible, I would need a feature in SolarWinds in the future for some kind of malfunctioning detection, such as malware attacks or that type of environment. We did not have any facility to detect that in SolarWinds. I think it would be better to incorporate those types of features. Regarding customization options in SolarWinds, the ability to customize the dashboard has room for improvement. The dashboard is quite old, and we need some improvement in it. Nowadays, we have multiple tools with AI-based monitoring and web-based dashboards. SolarWinds also has a web-based dashboard, but I think there is scope for improvement in the UI. There may be other areas I would like to improve in SolarWinds NPM.

Read full review

Ajay Shukla

Consultant at HCLTech

Automation and insightful diagnostics elevate operations while improvements are welcome

The new version 8.18 has brought significant improvements. The main purpose of using this tool is having a single console to manage all entities. The cloud integration capabilities, including private, public, and hybrid, are already well-implemented. The ability to manage multiple vCenters across different geographical locations is very effective. The new Skyline health feature and certificate and licensing management are particularly useful improvements. The dashboard's overview tab provides comprehensive information about current vCenter status, resizable amounts, reclamation opportunities, anomalies, diagnostics, licensing, and certificates. However, there is room for improvement in application analysis. The current functionality lacks detailed monitoring at the kernel level, focusing mainly on CPU, memory, and storage matrices. Enhanced application monitoring capabilities, including tracking downtime for specific types of applications such as transactional or e-commerce applications, would be beneficial.

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

"The ability to quickly identify downtime is the most valuable."

"Being a global company with many highly-sensitive manufacturing lines and process control environments, SolarWinds consistently delivers real-time and accurate views into the deepest parts of our environment."

"Solarwinds network performance monitor is a strong product that combines management (SNMP), monitoring (SYSLOG) and configuration of routers and switches."

"A product that is well-tested and trusted in demanding situations."

"I like the tracking feature to track devices and see where they are connected, which is very practical."

"The connectivity of the solution is very good."

"The solution is very user-friendly."

"SolarWinds Orion NPM tracks bottlenecks in your network infrastructure and lets you troubleshoot them before a disaster happens."

More SolarWinds NPM pros

"It significantly improves application performance management by offering recommendations for resource allocation to avoid wastage or overcommitment."

"I find VMware Aria Operations for Applications to be very stable, and I would rate it a ten out of ten."

"This solution will give you a single pane of glass for everything, and centralized monitoring."

"It has a familiar interface, which makes it easy to get started."

"I gladly recommend VMware Aria Operations for Applications because it is cost effective and has commendable AI response capabilities."

"Tanzu itself, integrated with multiple solutions, bestows support and security upon a container platform, especially when it comes to managing open-source container platforms such as Kubernetes."

"Using Wavefront, we have been able to reduce the complexity of our pipeline."

"The stability of Aria Operations for Applications has improved significantly over the years."

More VMware Aria Operations for Applications pros

Cons

"This is a complex product to set up and I think it's really too detailed and could be simplified."

"Each model has different features, so clients need to purchase a separate model for SQL monitoring, database monitoring, network traffic analyzer, HTTP traffic, etc. So each feature they need is in a different model, but customers would prefer an all-in-one solution."

"Real-time analytics is the major weakness of the SolarWinds NPM platform today. They've done a fantastic job enabling the collection of data. Users are now demanding the ability to generate their own graphs, views, and so on; all of this must be done by an admin today."

"There have been some versions that have had stability issues, but the current version seems pretty stable."

"New, web-based interface lacks some features of traditional GUI."

"With regards to suggested areas of improvement for the product, I would like to see the price come down, and in addition I think the network element mapping tool is not as robust as it should be."

"If they did some type of synthetic monitoring, it would have been better."

"I think Solar Winds NPM needs to create a profile with documentation responsibility."

More SolarWinds NPM cons

"They just need more capability. A few areas still need more enhancements in the technology capability space."

"The documentation and integration with Kubernetes could be improved."

"They could make it more easy to plug-in data so that a nontechnical person will be able to use it, like accountants or finance people. That way they don't have to ask us."

"It could use a URL document server. Everything in the market is moving towards automation and everybody's looking for the single click operations as well relational data locality."

"The initial setup should be easier and more seamless."

"The solution could be expensive, which might be a limiting factor."

"The main problem I have is that the license cost is very high."

"Its billing model is consumption-based. I understand the consumption-based model, but it is not necessarily easy to estimate and guess how many points or how much we are going to consume on a specific application up until we get to that point. So, for us, it would be helpful to have more insights or predictability into what we can expect from a cost perspective if we are starting to use specific features. This can potentially also drive our consumption a bit more."

More VMware Aria Operations for Applications cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"SolarWinds NPM is very expensive, and we pay ten thousand yearly."

"Licenses depend on the number of devices, but all license levels come with technical support."

"The licensing is based on the number of nodes, interfaces, and volumes."

"I would rate the pricing a five out of ten"

"There's standard licensing, and then it depends on the size of the customer."

"We pay approximately $700 per year for renewal of the license."

"The cost is based on the number of nodes, so it is expensive when you have a lot of them."

"It is expensive."

More SolarWinds NPM pricing and cost advice

"The licensing costs are very high, particularly when you consider that we have to purchase a level 1 license for every integration, such as the load balancer, HAProxy, and the MSSP. And if you want to use vSAN, that's another license. Then, of course, Tanzu Observability has its own separate license."

"I don't have the details. In our case, there is a mixture in place. We have production usage, and we are also doing training for VMware. So, we also have a training instance. It is worth the money you would spend on it. That's because if you were to build all of this yourself by using some of the open source tools, then you would need a lot of time."

"Different locations require different setups. In your terms, around 300 to around 400K USD."

"I would rate the pricing as three out of five."

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Cloud Monitoring Software solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

900,747 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Comparison Review

it_user174738

IT Developer at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

May 31, 2015

Nagios vs. Zabbix vs. PRTG vs. Spiceworks vs. Solarwinds Network Performance Monitor

I have researched a quite a few network monitoring tools which can be used for various monitoring purposes of not only the servers, but the intermediate routers as well. There are majorly three types of these softwares. Ones which are completely open-source, you can do almost anything you want…

Read full review

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Construction Company

Government

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Government

Construction Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	59
Midsize Enterprise	33
Large Enterprise	86

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	10

Questions from the Community

What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?

It actually depends on the exact purpose or kind of devices (network devices, servers, something else). Some tools are better for only network devices while others are better for a cloud monitoring...

See all answers

What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?

From my point of view, SolarWind is the best tool.

See all answers

What is the best network monitoring software for large enterprises?

We are partners with SolarWinds and we sell a lot of Network management to large enterprises also because of scalability, products like Network Performance Monitor & Netflow Traffic Analyzer ar...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Tanzu Observability by Wavefront?

The solution includes cost drivers that can be configured according to your environment. You can input server-wise, CPU-wise, storage, and memory costs per hour or day. Once cost drivers are provid...

See all answers

What needs improvement with VMware Tanzu Observability by Wavefront?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for VMware Tanzu Observability by Wavefront?

I have been involved in several projects where I had to implement automation and monitoring alerting. I performed automation using VMware Aria Operations for Applications. There is an automation ta...

See all answers

Comparisons

ManageEngine OpManager vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 3% of the time

Nagios XI vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 3% of the time

DX Spectrum vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 3% of the time

Zabbix vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 3% of the time

PRTG Network Monitor vs SolarWinds NPM

Compared 2% of the time

More SolarWinds NPM Competitors

Datadog vs VMware Aria Operations for Applications

Compared 6% of the time

LogicMonitor vs VMware Aria Operations for Applications

Compared 5% of the time

Splunk Observability Cloud vs VMware Aria Operations for Applications

Compared 4% of the time

Dynatrace vs VMware Aria Operations for Applications

Compared 3% of the time

Nagios XI vs VMware Aria Operations for Applications

Compared 3% of the time

More VMware Aria Operations for Applications Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

SolarWinds NPM

May 2026

Download SolarWinds NPM product report

Buyer's Guide

VMware Aria Operations for Applications

May 2026

VMware Aria Operations for Applications report

Download VMware Aria Operations for Applications product report

Also Known As

Solarwinds Network Performance Monitor, SolarWinds Network Bandwidth Analyzer

Tanzu Observability, Wavefront, Wavefront by VMware, VMware Tanzu Observability

Overview

SolarWinds NPM is a network performance monitoring tool offering a user-friendly interface with customizable dashboards. It provides real-time tracking of device health, latency, and bandwidth utilization, supporting diverse integration and scalability needs.

SolarWinds NPM's robust features include real-time monitoring of network performance and efficient tracking of device health, latency, and bandwidth utilization. The tool is appreciated for its ease of deployment, scalability, and support for integration with other tools. Features like SNMP monitoring, NetPath, and comprehensive reporting enhance its diagnostic capabilities and network visibility. However, users identify areas for improvement such as real-time analytics, advanced customization options, and enhanced scalability for larger enterprises. Better customer support, improved integrations, and security measures are also desired.

What are the key features of SolarWinds NPM?

User-Friendly Interface: Simplifies navigation and operation.
Customizable Dashboards: Allows personalized data views.
Real-Time Monitoring: Provides instant updates on network performance.
Strong Alerting Capabilities: Offers immediate notifications for issues.
Scalability: Supports growth with ease.
Integration: Works smoothly with other tools for comprehensive monitoring.
SNMP Monitoring: Tracks device stats effectively.
NetPath: Helps visualize network paths and performance.

What benefits and ROI can users expect?

Improved Network Visibility: Enables proactive issue resolution.
Enhanced Diagnostics: Facilitates quicker troubleshooting.
Real-Time Performance Data: Supports informed decision-making.
Ease of Deployment: Reduces setup time and complexity.
Infrastructure Monitoring: Ensures network stability and reliability.
Custom Integration: Adapts to existing IT environments.

In enterprise environments, SolarWinds NPM is deployed to monitor network health and device status, sending alerts for any issues. It provides visibility into network performance, tracking bandwidth utilization and server metrics efficiently. Its applications span from monitoring routers, switches, and firewalls to supporting infrastructure monitoring across industries.

SolarWinds

VMware Tanzu Observability by Wavefront is a powerful tool for monitoring and analyzing the performance and availability of applications and infrastructure in real-time.

With its comprehensive monitoring capabilities, visualizing and analyzing data becomes effortless. The real-time alerting system ensures timely issue resolution, while scalability and a user-friendly interface provide a seamless experience for smooth operations.

Broadcom

Sample Customers

Microsoft, Federal Express, Hewlett-Packard, and MasterCard

1. Atlassian 2. Cisco 3. Databricks 4. DigitalOcean 5. Equinix 6. Fidelity Investments 7. Google 8. Hewlett Packard Enterprise 9. Honeywell 10. IBM 11. Intel 12. JetBlue Airways 13. LinkedIn 14. Lyft 15. Mastercard 16. Microsoft 17. MongoDB 18. Netflix 19. Nvidia 20. Oracle 21. PayPal 22. Pinterest 23. Qualcomm 24. Red Hat 25. Salesforce 26. SAP 27. Spotify 28. Square 29. TMobile 30. Twitter 31. Uber 32. VMware

Buyer's Guide

SolarWinds NPM vs. VMware Aria Operations for Applications

June 2026

Free Report: SolarWinds NPM vs. VMware Aria Operations for Applications

Find out what your peers are saying about SolarWinds NPM vs. VMware Aria Operations for Applications and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.

DOWNLOAD NOW

900,747 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our SolarWinds NPM vs. VMware Aria Operations for Applications report.

See our list of best Cloud Monitoring Software vendors and best IT Infrastructure Monitoring vendors.

We monitor all Cloud Monitoring Software reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.