Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

PingPlotter VS iperf

Compare PingPlotter VS iperf and see what are their differences

PingPlotter logo PingPlotter

PingPlotter is a troubleshooting tool that helps IT professionals and neophytes identify, diagnose, and resolve network issues.

iperf logo iperf

A TCP, UDP, and SCTP network bandwidth measurement tool
  • PingPlotter Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-09-13
  • iperf Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-17

PingPlotter features and specs

  • Detailed Network Diagnostics
    PingPlotter provides advanced network diagnostics by visualizing latency and packet loss over time, helping identify problematic areas in the network.
  • Historical Data
    The tool allows users to save and review historical data, which is invaluable for troubleshooting intermittent network issues that are not easily reproducible.
  • Ease of Use
    PingPlotter offers an easy-to-use interface that makes it accessible even for users who aren't network experts, allowing them to quickly start diagnosing issues.
  • Customizable Alerts
    Users can set up customizable alerts to notify them when latency or packet loss exceeds certain thresholds, providing timely insights into network performance issues.
  • Multi-Platform Support
    PingPlotter is available on Windows, Mac, and iOS, which offers flexibility for different types of users and environments.

Possible disadvantages of PingPlotter

  • Cost
    PingPlotter is not free, and the cost can be prohibitive for individuals or small businesses, especially for the Pro version which offers more advanced features.
  • Resource Intensive
    Running PingPlotter for extended periods can consume significant system resources, which might be a concern for users with lower-end hardware.
  • Limited Free Version
    The free version of PingPlotter has limited functionality, which may not be sufficient for diagnosing more complex network issues.
  • Learning Curve
    While the basic functions are user-friendly, some of the more advanced features and data interpretation can have a learning curve, requiring users to invest time to fully utilize the tool.
  • No Linux Support
    PingPlotter does not support Linux, which can be a drawback for network administrators working in a Linux-dominated environment.

iperf features and specs

  • Cross-Platform Compatibility
    iperf is compatible with a variety of operating systems including Windows, Linux, and macOS, making it a versatile tool for network performance testing across different environments.
  • Comprehensive Performance Metrics
    Provides detailed metrics such as bandwidth, jitter, and packet loss, which are essential for in-depth network analysis and troubleshooting.
  • Client-Server Model
    Utilizes a client-server model that allows for measuring the maximum TCP and UDP bandwidth between two endpoints, making it suitable for both local and remote testing.
  • Open Source
    Being open-source, iperf allows users to review, modify, and contribute to the codebase, ensuring transparency and fostering community involvement.
  • Customizable Test Parameters
    Allows users to customize tests with various parameters such as port number, buffer size, and test duration, offering flexibility to perform targeted network evaluations.

Possible disadvantages of iperf

  • Complexity for Beginners
    The command-line interface and numerous parameters might be overwhelming for beginners who are not familiar with network testing tools.
  • Limited Graphical Interface
    While powerful in functionality, iperf lacks a native graphical user interface, which could be a disadvantage for users who prefer visual tools over command-line utilities.
  • Resource Consumption
    iperf can consume substantial network resources and CPU power during testing, potentially affecting other applications running on the same network or device.
  • Manual Deployment Required
    Users need to manually deploy iperf on both client and server machines, which may be cumbersome for those looking for out-of-the-box network testing solutions.
  • Security Considerations
    Running iperf in server mode might expose a system to network attacks if not secured properly, necessitating careful consideration of security measures.

PingPlotter videos

Analyzing PingPlotter Data

More videos:

  • Review - Use PingPlotter to identify poor QoS or intermittent connectivity issues.
  • Tutorial - How to Use PingPlotter to Dignose Server Network Issues

iperf videos

Using Iperf to measure network speed / bandwidth

More videos:

  • Tutorial - How to use iperf to test local network LAN speed in Windows 10
  • Review - [HOWTO] Test My Network Speed?! [iPerf & JPerf]

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to PingPlotter and iperf)
Monitoring Tools
43 43%
57% 57
OS & Utilities
100 100%
0% 0
Log Management
29 29%
71% 71
SSH
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using PingPlotter and iperf. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, iperf should be more popular than PingPlotter. It has been mentiond 4 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

PingPlotter mentions (2)

  • Understanding missed attestations, understanding low effectiveness and improving your setup
    Once you have those in place, there is little more you can do to help. There might be some marginal benefits in connecting with more peers at the cost of higher resources usage, especially bandwidth. Under normal circumstances, the default peers count from your clients should be good. Monitoring Internet quality with tools like those from pingman can help pinpoint the cause of some of these missed attestations if... Source: over 2 years ago
  • Packet Loss with PingPlotter
    I'm attempting to use PingPlotter to find the problem but I'm fairly new with it - The Packet Loss is occurring on IP 192.168.1.1 while testing 8.8.8.8, pingman.com, google.com, akamai.com however it does not show any PL for www.google.com. Source: over 3 years ago

iperf mentions (4)

  • Microsoft: Don't Use Iperf3 on Windows
    Just some clarification: IPerf 2 is different from the iperf3 found at https://github.com/esnet/iperf. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Yet Another Bench Script (YABS): evaluate Linux server performance with this simple Bash script and utility
    Network - network throughput (both incoming and outgoing) is tested using iperf3 on several geographically diverse public iperf servers. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Speed testing Visible with a modem
    File transfer using iperf3 over Tailscale. I noticed that the bandwidth to my home computer (on a 500/500 fiber connection) was higher than with speedtest.net. For the first few days I was getting downloads and uploads of 28Mbps (+/- std dev of 6Mbps) and 150ms latency (+/- 35ms). After somewhere around 100GB total transfer (maybe half of that over Tailscale), it is now downloading and uploading at 10Mbps (+/-... Source: about 3 years ago
  • FTP upload speed isn't great
    I can add to this. I have two mini self contained projects to create multiarch static bins of mtr and iperf3 for general usage. Source: almost 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing PingPlotter and iperf, you can also consider the following products

FileZilla - FileZilla is an FTP, or file transfer protocol, client. It lets individuals transfer single files or batches to a web server. For many years, FTP was the standard for website design. Read more about FileZilla.

JPerf - This project gives a better UI and new functionalities to the initial JPerf 1.

PuTTY - Popular free terminal application. Mostly used as an SSH client.

netperf - Netperf is a benchmark that can be used to measure the performance of many different types of networking. It provides tests for both unidirectional throughput, and end-to-end latency. - HewlettPack...

SmokePing - Smokeping is a tool for measuring latency.

TamoSoft Throughput Test - TamoSoft Throughput Test is a utility for testing the performance of a wireless or wired network.