I Examined 30+ Cloud Monitoring Instruments: Right here Are My Picks

I’ve spent the final three years writing about IT and cloud safety, speaking to DevOps groups, IT admins, and safety professionals about their greatest cloud complications. One factor is evident: managing cloud infrastructure with out the proper cloud monitoring instruments is like flying blind.

I’ve heard tales of groups scrambling to diagnose downtime, coping with infinite alerts that lead nowhere, and combating shock cloud payments. Should you’re right here, you’re in all probability dealing with the identical points. You want a cloud infrastructure monitoring software program that doesn’t simply flood you with knowledge however helps you are taking motion earlier than issues break.

So, I did what I do finest. I researched. I additionally talked to the individuals who depend on these instruments probably the most: cloud engineers, DevOps groups, and safety professionals. Their insights helped me separate the actually helpful cloud monitoring instruments from the noise.

Whether or not you’re attempting to forestall outages, optimize efficiency and prices, or strengthen safety, I’ve researched 30+ instruments to search out one of the best cloud monitoring instruments for 2025. Right here’s what it’s good to know.

5 finest cloud monitoring instruments I like to recommend  

Should you individuals ask me, “What precisely do cloud monitoring instruments do?” I wish to maintain it easy: they provide you a real-time window into your cloud setting, so that you’re not flying blind.

From my conversations with IT admins and DevOps groups, I’ve realized that cloud monitoring is all about visibility and management. You don’t simply need uncooked knowledge. You want insights that truly assist you take motion earlier than points spiral into full-blown outages.

What makes one of the best cloud monitoring instruments: My standards

To separate one of the best from the remaining, I centered on key elements that outline efficient, dependable, and scalable cloud monitoring. 

• Actual-time efficiency monitoring: Cloud environments are dynamic, and efficiency bottlenecks can escalate shortly. I appeared for instruments that present real-time visibility into CPU, reminiscence, community site visitors, and storage utilization throughout cloud workloads. The perfect options supply granular monitoring on the occasion, container, and Kubernetes pod ranges to detect anomalies earlier than they impression functions.
• Clever alerting and automation: Alert fatigue is an actual drawback. cloud monitoring instrument ought to prioritize important alerts and suppress noisy, low-priority ones. I appeared for platforms that help AI-driven anomaly detection, threshold-based alerting, and auto-remediation capabilities, corresponding to auto-scaling sources or restarting failed cases with out handbook intervention.
• Multi-cloud and hybrid cloud help: Most companies use a number of cloud suppliers, however not all monitoring instruments can deal with that complexity. I prioritized options that natively help AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and hybrid deployments with out requiring extreme configuration. Cross-cloud visibility, unified dashboards, and API integrations had been key elements on this analysis.
• Safety and compliance monitoring: Cloud environments introduce new assault surfaces, so monitoring ought to embody safety posture evaluation, misconfiguration detection, and compliance auditing for frameworks like SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, and PCI DSS. The perfect instruments transcend fundamental logs and embody risk detection, id monitoring, and automatic safety coverage enforcement.
• Log administration and distributed tracing: In trendy cloud-native environments, logs and traces present important insights. I appeared for options that help centralized log aggregation, real-time log evaluation, and distributed tracing to pinpoint bottlenecks in microservices architectures. The perfect platforms combine with ELK Stack, OpenTelemetry, or native log companies like AWS CloudTrail.
• Ease of deployment and integration: A monitoring instrument ought to work out of the field with out requiring hours of setup. I prioritized options with agentless monitoring choices, easy API-based integrations, and help for containerized workloads in Kubernetes environments. The power to combine with DevOps instruments like Terraform, Prometheus, and CI/CD pipelines was additionally a key issue.
• Price optimization and useful resource administration: Cloud payments can spiral uncontrolled with out correct monitoring. I appeared for instruments that supply value analytics, anomaly detection for sudden spikes, and useful resource right-sizing suggestions to remove wasted cloud spend. The perfect platforms present predictive insights that assist IT groups optimize resource allocation earlier than prices escalate.

With this in thoughts, I explored 30+ cloud infrastructure monitoring options and located the highest 5 that ticked off a lot of the packing containers. Whereas they may not be excellent in each sense, they convey some distinctive strengths to the desk. 

The listing under comprises real consumer opinions from the cloud infrastructure monitoring software program class. To be included on this class, an answer should:

• Monitor the efficiency of cloud-based functions or companies.
• Visually map or show sources and cloud infrastructure.
• Determine irregular exercise or efficiency.
• Present finest practices to make sure optimum efficiency.

*This knowledge was pulled from G2 in 2025. Some opinions might have been edited for readability.  

1. Datadog

Datadog is a kind of instruments you could’t ignore when on the lookout for cloud monitoring options, it’s in all places, and for good motive. It provides real-time dashboards, deep observability, and strong integrations, making it a powerful alternative for cloud infrastructure monitoring.

One of many greatest advantages I see is how a lot visibility it offers in cloud environments. The power to deploy Datadog throughout multi-cloud and on-premise environments and get detailed insights into infrastructure, community site visitors, and software efficiency is a big plus. 

Primarily based on my analysis and actual consumer suggestions, deploying Datadog is straightforward, due to its easy agent set up and in depth pre-built integrations.

I might say one of many greatest benefits is its big selection of integrations. It connects seamlessly with NGINX, Kubernetes, Docker, AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and CI/CD pipelines. For incident administration and alerting, it syncs with ServiceNow, Slack, Microsoft Groups, Jira, and different instruments, so alerts and points get directed to the proper individuals in actual time.

And I extremely worth how its options work collectively. The tight integration between logs, metrics, software efficiency monitoring (APM), database monitoring (DBM), profiling, real-time consumer monitoring (RUM), and Synthetics means one can simply bounce between totally different knowledge factors with out switching instruments or piecing insights collectively manually. Whether or not you might be troubleshooting an software slowdown or investigating an infrastructure problem, every thing flows seamlessly, making the entire expertise much more environment friendly.

One other factor I respect probably the most is Datadog’s alerting system. It’s extremely versatile, permitting customers to set alerts primarily based on customized circumstances. Should you tune it proper, it makes an enormous distinction in lowering alert fatigue.

However not each instrument is ideal and Datadog additionally has some quirks. The largest ache level I’ve heard from customers? The associated fee. Many have identified that it will get costly quick, particularly for rising groups or large-scale deployments. Whereas the pricing is usage-based, it shortly provides up. So, whereas it’s nice, it’s not low cost.

One other problem I’ve noticed is the overwhelming UI. Whereas it’s highly effective, it may be so much to soak up, particularly for those who’re new to cloud monitoring. Navigating the interface and organising customized dashboards can really feel clunky at instances.

That being mentioned, Datadog stands out because the gold commonplace for cloud monitoring instruments. Would I like to recommend it? Completely, however with a caveat. Should you’re a big enterprise or a DevOps crew managing a fancy cloud setting, Datadog’s visibility and automation can prevent time and forestall pricey outages.

However for those who’re a small crew or engaged on a decent finances, you may end up watching your monitoring prices as intently as your cloud efficiency metrics.

What I dislike about Datadog:

• From what I noticed, it’s highly effective however not low cost. The pricing is usage-based, and for those who’re monitoring a big infrastructure, the prices can skyrocket earlier than you even notice it.
• Primarily based on my analysis, whereas Datadog provides tons of knowledge, navigating the dashboard could be intimidating, particularly for brand spanking new customers. Some customization choices really feel a bit clunky.

What G2 customers dislike about Datadog: 

“Generally, the UI could be very overwhelming, particularly at the start. So many buttons and options make the platform very advanced to make use of, so the training curve is a bit onerous at the start. When you be taught to make use of it, it’s actually easy and intuitive.” 

– Datadog Evaluation, Diego P.

2. LogicMonitor

In terms of cloud monitoring options that “simply work” out of the field, LogicMonitor stands out to me. It provides automated discovery of cloud sources, pre-configured monitoring templates, and built-in integrations with AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and hybrid infrastructure.

On the similar time, if the default setup isn’t sufficient, there’s loads of room to customise. In actual fact, what actually units it aside for me is its flexibility. LogicMonitor offers groups the flexibility to fine-tune nearly each side of their monitoring setup.

You possibly can customise dashboards, create customized monitoring scripts, modify alert thresholds, and combine with third-party instruments like ServiceNow, Slack, and PagerDuty. The pliability permits groups to scale and adapt LogicMonitor to their particular wants whereas nonetheless benefiting from its ease of deployment, in my view.

However customization comes with a tradeoff, each by way of value and complexity. From what I’ve gathered, whereas LogicMonitor makes customization attainable, it doesn’t all the time make it simple. Organising superior customized monitoring requires time and experience, and the UI isn’t all the time intuitive.

LogicMonitor upgraded its UI in late 2023, however customers have blended emotions about it from what I discovered. Whereas some discover it an enchancment, whereas others really feel it has added pointless friction to their workflow. 

And like Datadog, value is one other issue that steadily comes up when evaluating LogicMonitor. From what I’ve gathered, it’s not probably the most budget-friendly possibility available on the market. After all, it replaces a number of monitoring instruments, consolidating observability right into a single platform. For bigger enterprises, this could justify the associated fee, however for smaller groups with easier wants, it may be tough. 

Regardless of these limitations, LogicMonitor is a powerful contender in case your crew wants deep customization and is prepared to put money into fine-tuning.

What I dislike about LogicMonitor:

• From my remark, the UI redesign is a blended bag. Whereas some customers discover it an enchancment, others say it provides pointless friction to workflows
• I agree that LogicMonitor is undeniably an ideal instrument, and that comes with a premium price ticket. Whereas the worth is there for bigger enterprises that want deep customization and hybrid monitoring, smaller groups with easier wants may discover it onerous to justify the associated fee

What G2 customers dislike about LogicMonitor:

“The brand new interface stinks. It is quirky. Hiding Datasources underneath LogicModules makes it harder to view the small print.

Most annoying is the navigation of the Useful resource Tree whatever the interface. If a tool is in a number of high-level teams and also you navigate backward, it doesn’t convey you to the folder construction that you simply used to navigate down.“

– LogicMonitor Evaluation,  Tad G. 

3. IBM Instana

From what I realized, IBM Instana has a strong fame as a real-time observability and software efficiency monitoring instrument for contemporary hybrid and multicloud environments. It’s easy to deploy with a single Instana agent that routinely displays your entire tech stack. 

One other main benefit is how properly Instana offers real-time suggestions. In contrast to some monitoring instruments that introduce delays in surfacing points, Instana delivers on the spot visibility into latency issues, slowdowns, and repair failures. This makes troubleshooting considerably sooner as a result of groups don’t must dig by way of logs manually to pinpoint the issue.

From what I discovered, Instana excels in root trigger evaluation by routinely correlating software points with infrastructure efficiency, making it simpler to trace down the precise element or service inflicting the issue. As a substitute of simply displaying uncooked knowledge, it maps out dependencies between companies, traces transactions throughout distributed techniques, and highlights bottlenecks in actual time.

This stage of automation eliminates a lot of the guesswork, serving to DevOps groups scale back imply time to decision (MTTR) and tackle points earlier than they escalate into full-blown outages, for my part

In terms of UI, although, the suggestions is blended primarily based on what I discovered.  Whereas the instrument is straightforward to make use of, the UI may use some enhancements. Discovering particular options or configuring dashboards isn’t as easy accurately. Additionally, I feel it might probably present deeper customization on the subject of alerts and dashboards. Not having this may be irritating for groups that require deeper customization to match particular workflows. 

One other disadvantage I discovered is there’s an preliminary adjustment interval to stand up to hurry with Instana.  The preliminary complexity might require further coaching or onboarding, which could be a problem for groups that want an out-of-the-box answer. 

 General, I might say IBM Instana is a good alternative for real-time software efficiency monitoring.

What I dislike about IBM Instana:

• Whereas Instana is straightforward to deploy, I noticed totally mastering its options takes time. Superior configurations, integrations, and monitoring guidelines aren’t all the time intuitive, and groups may have additional coaching to unlock the platform’s full potential.
• Primarily based on what I heard from customers, Instana’s alerting system works properly for fundamental monitoring, but it surely doesn’t supply sufficient granularity for fine-tuned notifications. Should you want extremely custom-made alert circumstances and thresholds, it might probably really feel restrictive in comparison with different options.

What G2 customers dislike about IBM Instana: 

“Initial complexity may require further time and coaching for groups to totally exploit the platform’s capabilities. Relying on the dimensions of the deployment, the associated fee might change into a big issue for some customers.” 

– IBM Instana Evaluation, Yannick Okay. 

4. Site24x7

Site24x7 by ManageEngine was a brand new discover for me on this listing. It provides an entire suite of monitoring options, from web sites, servers, and functions to cloud infrastructure and networks, multi functional place.

I actually respect its means to keep watch over a number of sources concurrently. I feel it is especially helpful for smaller IT groups or organizations that want inexpensive, all-in-one observability. It reduces instrument sprawl and makes it simpler to trace every thing from a single pane of glass. 

One other energy I noticed is how simple it’s to arrange and combine. The onboarding course of is fast. It helps agent-based and agentless monitoring, and as soon as deployed, it routinely discovers new sources and begins amassing knowledge. 

Price-effectiveness can also be a significant component that makes Site24x7 stand out in my view. In comparison with high-end instruments like Datadog, which may get costly quick, Site24x7 provides a way more budget-friendly different. It’s particularly interesting for startups, SMBs, and IT groups that want sturdy monitoring with out enterprise-level pricing. It could not have all of the superior options of extra premium options, however for many organizations, the price-to-performance ratio makes it a beautiful alternative.

However there are some downsides. The UI, whereas practical, feels outdated, and I feel it may use a refresh. Navigation and configuration aren’t as intuitive or user-friendly as I’d like, making some workflows take longer than needed. Organising dashboards and fine-tuning alerts, specifically, may very well be extra streamlined.

I additionally observed that it’s tough to get began and onerous to know, particularly when configuring superior monitoring settings. Whereas onboarding is pretty fast, getting probably the most out of Site24x7 takes effort. As soon as every thing is about up, it runs easily, however tweaking settings and discovering particular options can really feel extra sophisticated than it needs to be.

No matter these points, Site24x7 remains to be a strong alternative for IT groups and companies on the lookout for a flexible, multi-cloud monitoring answer, particularly for these on a finances. 

What I dislike about Site24x7:

• Whereas the UI will get the job completed, it isn’t as trendy or polished. Navigation and customization may very well be smoother, and a few workflows take longer than they need to, primarily based on my observations.
• Fantastic-tuning alerts and superior monitoring settings isn’t as intuitive as I’d hoped. Getting began is straightforward, however totally optimizing the platform takes effort and time.

What G2 customers like about Site24x7: 

“Enhancing consumer settings on Site24x7 could be a bit cumbersome and fewer intuitive than anticipated, requiring a number of steps that may very well be streamlined for higher usability.”

– Site24x7 Evaluation, Yuvraj G.

5. Dynatrace

Dynatrace stands out to me for its depth, automation, and AI-driven insights. From what I discovered, it’s a powerhouse for full-stack observability, making it an ideal alternative for big enterprises that want deep visibility into advanced infrastructures.

From what I gathered, it’s simple to combine Dynatrace’s observability instruments with present infrastructure, making it a great match for hybrid and multi-cloud environments. As soon as deployed, the platform offers real-time insights into software efficiency, infrastructure well being, and safety dangers, all from a single dashboard. It additionally helps groups maintain a pulse on system availability, lowering the chance of sudden outages.

I was impressed by the extent of intelligence it brings to monitoring with its Davis AI, an AI engine, and Grail, its database for storing logs, metrics, traces, occasions, and many others. The Issues app, with AI-driven drawback detection, routinely identifies efficiency points and pinpoints root causes with out requiring groups to sift by way of infinite logs, making troubleshooting considerably sooner.

One other main energy is Dynatrace’s request tracing capabilities, which give deep visibility into service dependencies and transaction flows throughout cloud environments. This permits groups to search out bottlenecks, optimize efficiency, and forestall points from cascading into bigger failures.

However Dynatrace takes time to grasp. Whereas Davis AI simplifies troubleshooting in the long term, the platform’s sheer depth of options can really feel overwhelming at first, requiring coaching and a structured onboarding course of.

Additionally, the pricing construction is a bit obscure. Whereas Dynatrace provides versatile, per-hour pricing for numerous options and functionalities, understanding the general value could be difficult with no clear grasp of your particular utilization patterns. It will possibly make it tough to foretell bills precisely. And like LogicMonitor and Datadog, if in case you have high-volume monitoring wants, the value can shortly go up. 

Nonetheless, I might suggest Dynatrace for enterprises that want deep observability, AI-driven automation, and full-stack monitoring. 

What I dislike about Dynatrace:

• I might say Dynatrace isn’t the simplest instrument to be taught instantly so many options and settings. Whereas automation makes issues simpler over time, navigating and fine-tuning dashboards, metrics, and alerts takes effort to totally grasp.
• Primarily based on what I noticed, Dynatrace’s pricing construction could be a bit tough to know, particularly if you’re simply beginning out. The pliability of per-hour pricing for various options is nice, however with no clear understanding of utilization patterns, prices can add up sooner than anticipated. 

What G2 customers dislike about Dynatrace: 

“They know the worth they supply and cost you accordingly, it may be very tough to digest the price of the instrument, and it may be tough to handle your group’s consumption of licensing.”

– Dynatrace Evaluation, Andrew H.

If value is your main concern, or in case you are a small or medium enterprise with a fairly manageable cloud infrastructure, I might counsel going with open-source choices like Prometheus, Grafana Labs, Zabbix, or Nagios. These instruments might require extra handbook setup and upkeep, however they provide comparatively good monitoring capabilities with out recurring subscription charges.

Continuously requested questions (FAQ) on cloud monitoring instruments

1. What’s cloud monitoring?

Cloud monitoring is the method of monitoring and analyzing cloud infrastructure, functions, and companies to make sure efficiency, safety, and availability. Utilizing cloud monitoring instruments, IT groups can detect points like slowdowns, outages, and safety vulnerabilities earlier than they impression customers. These instruments present real-time insights into cloud sources corresponding to servers, databases, and networks.

2. What are one of the best cloud monitoring instruments?

The finest cloud monitoring instruments supply real-time efficiency monitoring, automated alerting, safety monitoring, and price optimization options. Some prime choices embody Datadog, AWS CloudWatch, Dynatrace, and LogicMonitor. The best instrument is determined by whether or not you want cloud software monitoring instruments, cloud safety monitoring instruments, or cloud infrastructure monitoring instruments for multi-cloud environments.

3. How do cloud monitoring companies work?

Cloud monitoring companies acquire and analyze efficiency metrics from cloud-based sources corresponding to digital machines, containers, and functions. These instruments use log administration, community monitoring, and anomaly detection to supply visibility into cloud well being and safety. Some platforms, like AWS CloudWatch and Azure Monitor, are cloud-native, whereas others, like New Relic and Datadog, help multi-cloud monitoring.

4. How do cloud efficiency monitoring instruments enhance effectivity?

Cloud efficiency monitoring instruments monitor key metrics like CPU utilization, reminiscence consumption, disk I/O, and software response instances to make sure optimum efficiency. They assist forestall slowdowns, scale back downtime, and routinely scale sources primarily based on demand, making them important for DevOps and IT operations groups.

5. What are multi-cloud monitoring instruments?

Multi-cloud monitoring instruments permit IT groups to handle and monitor workloads throughout a number of cloud suppliers, corresponding to AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud, from a single dashboard. These instruments supply cross-platform efficiency monitoring, value evaluation, and safety monitoring, serving to companies keep constant efficiency throughout totally different cloud environments.

6. What are one of the best AWS cloud monitoring instruments?

The perfect AWS cloud monitoring instruments embody each native AWS companies and third-party options. AWS CloudWatch offers built-in efficiency monitoring and logging for AWS sources, whereas AWS CloudTrail focuses on safety and compliance by monitoring API exercise. Different native instruments include AWS  Config, Inspector, and Safety Hub.

For extra superior monitoring, third-party instruments like Datadog, New Relic, Dynatrace, and LogicMonitor supply deeper observability, AI-powered insights, and multi-cloud help.

7. What are one of the best Azure cloud monitoring instruments?

Like AWS, one of the best Azure cloud monitoring instruments embody each native Azure companies and third-party options. Azure Monitor is the first built-in instrument for monitoring efficiency, safety, and logs throughout Azure sources, whereas Azure Safety Heart focuses on risk detection and compliance monitoring. For extra superior observability, third-party instruments like Datadog, New Relic, Dynatrace, and LogicMonitor supply deeper insights, AI-driven anomaly detection, and multi-cloud compatibility.

8. What are one of the best open-source cloud monitoring instruments?

A number of the finest open-source cloud monitoring instruments embody Prometheus, Zabbix, Nagios, Grafana, and VictoriaMetrics.

Prometheus is broadly used for metrics-based monitoring in cloud-native environments, whereas Zabbix and Nagios supply full-stack infrastructure monitoring.

Grafana is a strong visualization instrument that integrates with numerous knowledge sources, and VictoriaMetrics offers a high-performance different to Prometheus for large-scale monitoring.

Whereas these instruments remove licensing prices, they require handbook setup, upkeep, and configuration, making them ultimate for groups with the sources to handle an open-source answer.

Eyes on the cloud

In terms of the cloud, I agree that the extra advanced the setting, the simpler it’s to lose monitor of prices, efficiency bottlenecks, and safety dangers. However I strongly insist that affordability and necessity ought to information your alternative of a cloud monitoring instrument.

Ask your self: Why do you want monitoring? What are you monitoring? And what worth do you anticipate from it? These non-functional facets are onerous to cost however important for budgeting.

Should you’re monitoring a single app producing $10K/month, a $2K/month monitoring instrument won’t be justified. However for those who’re managing a dozen apps driving $500K/month, that funding may repay by enhancing uptime, lowering upkeep prices, and scaling effectively.

For big-scale enterprises, premium options like Dynatrace or Datadog automate workflows and enhance response instances. But when value is a priority, open-source choices like Prometheus, Grafana Labs, Zabbix, or VictoriaMetrics are higher.

On the finish of the day, selecting a cloud monitoring instrument isn’t nearly options. It’s about aligning together with your operational wants, finances, and long-term technique. The best instrument ought to offer you confidence in your infrastructure, not simply one other dashboard to stare at.

Nonetheless on the hunt? Discover our classes of monitoring software program, from software efficiency to community, to search out the proper match to your wants.