Side by side

The Dude vs WhatsUp Gold

Both stand on network performance monitoring software. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.

WhatsUp Gold brings infrastructure monitoring, topology mapping, automation, and integrations into one product. Its deployment and licensing limits are worth checking against the size and platform requirements of an environment.

Visit WhatsUp Gold

The facts

	The Dude	WhatsUp Gold
Free plan	Yes	A free trial
Open source	Not published	Not published
Runs on	Windows	API, Self-hosted, Web, Windows
Lowest paid plan	Free or on request	Network Detection & Response Lite: $866 a year
Plans published	1	6
Maker	Not published	Not published
Website	mikrotik.com	whatsupgold.com
On network performance monitoring software	#16 of 24	#19 of 24

The Dude: what it does well

WhatsUp Gold: what it does well

Monitors networks, servers, applications, storage, and cloud resources.
Topology maps show relationships, dependencies, and device status.
Can automate common fixes with scripts and policies.
Integrates with AWS CloudWatch and Azure Monitor.

What to know first

Server software requires Windows Server 2019, 2022, or 2025.
Business costs $1,229 a year for 50 devices.
A single server can poll at most 100,000 metrics.

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