IPAM Software · holds the record
IPAM software for admins who have outgrown the spreadsheet
The IP spreadsheet usually fails quietly. Someone assigns 10.20.4.22 to a new label printer on a Friday, forgets to add a row, and on Monday the reception printer and the label printer take turns dropping off the network. Nobody lied to the workbook; it simply had no way of knowing. That gap between what is written down and what is actually configured is the problem IP address management software exists to close.
An IPAM tool keeps the authoritative register: supernets and the prefixes carved from them, VLAN and VRF context, reservations, DHCP ranges, the owner and purpose of each static address, and ideally the DNS name that goes with it. The better ones also check that register against the network — by pinging and scanning their own subnets, by reading lease tables from DHCP servers, or by pulling ARP and MAC tables from routers and switches over SNMP — and tell you where the two disagree.
That second half is how this comparison is ordered. Every product here can store addresses. What separates them is reconciliation: whether a live host that is missing from the record gets flagged, whether a reservation that has not answered in months stands out, whether a DHCP scope approaching exhaustion raises its hand before the helpdesk does. The table below follows that yardstick, and the full criteria are on the methodology page.
6 IPAM tools side by side
Ordered by how directly each product reconciles its record with the live network out of the box, weighted by how much setup that takes for a small IT team. NetBox sits mid-table because it models intent superbly but leaves discovery to add-ons and integrations. Tool names lead to our register entry for that product; the vendor link leaves for the publisher’s own site.
| Tool | Licence | Platforms | What it records well | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| phpIPAMphpIPAM project | GPLv3 | Self-hosted web app (PHP on Apache or nginx + MySQL/MariaDB) on Linux; Docker | Subnet tree with scheduled ping/scan agents that flag live hosts missing from the record | Small teams replacing an IP spreadsheet without buying a licence |
| SolarWinds IP Address ManagerSolarWinds | Commercial · trial | Windows Server 2012 R2–2025 with SQL Server; web console | Subnet scans plus Microsoft, ISC, Kea, Cisco and Infoblox DHCP/DNS integration, with conflict and scope alerts | Windows-centric shops with Microsoft DHCP/DNS that want alerts, not just a list |
| NetBoxNetBox Labs | Apache 2.0 + paid | Self-hosted (Python/Django + PostgreSQL + Redis on Linux) or NetBox Cloud | Prefix hierarchy with VRFs, VLANs and utilisation, tied to a DCIM model and a full REST and GraphQL API | Teams that treat the network record as a source of truth for automation |
| MicetroBlueCat (formerly Men & Mice) | Commercial · trial | Linux or Windows server (VM, bare metal or cloud); overlays existing DNS/DHCP | Overlay DDI: manages the DNS and DHCP servers you already run instead of replacing them | Mixed estates with Microsoft, BIND, Kea and cloud DNS (Route 53, Azure) that need one IPAM view |
| ManageEngine OpUtilsManageEngine (Zoho Corp.) | Free edition + paid | Windows or Linux server; web console | IP address manager paired with a switch port mapper, so a live address leads to a physical port | Admins who need to trace an address to a switch port as well as record it |
| GestioIPGestioIP | GPLv3 | Self-hosted web app (Perl + Apache/mod_perl + MySQL/MariaDB) on Linux; Docker Compose | Discovery that fills the register from routing tables, SNMP, DNS and ping, plus DHCP lease import | Admins who want an open-source IPAM that populates itself from the network |
TechScan365 compiled this table independently: we are none of the vendors listed, and no row was paid for. Licence and platform details were matched to each publisher’s website on the date in the byline.
How to choose
- Decide what counts as the source of truth
Some teams want the IPAM to describe what should exist and push that into automation; others want it to describe what does exist and alert on drift. NetBox leans towards the first model, SolarWinds and OpUtils towards the second, phpIPAM and GestioIP sit in between. Pick the model before the product.
- Check how it learns about the live network
Ping sweeps catch hosts that answer ICMP; ARP tables from the router catch the ones that do not; DHCP lease imports catch devices that were offline during the sweep. Ask which of those the tool uses natively, which need a plugin or agent, and how often each runs.
- Look at DHCP and DNS integration honestly
Reading Microsoft DHCP scopes or ISC/Kea leases is common; writing to them is rarer and deserves a test on a lab scope first. If your pain is scope exhaustion or stale A and PTR records, weight this criterion above almost everything else.
- Count the hosting and upkeep, not just the licence
A free self-hosted IPAM still needs a Linux VM, a database, backups, TLS and upgrades that do not break schema migrations. A commercial product on Windows Server brings its own database sizing and patching. Budget the hours as well as the invoice.
- Make sure the register can be fed and exported
Migrations begin with a CSV import of the old spreadsheet and end, one day, with an export to whatever replaces the tool. A documented API and clean CSV or Excel export protect you both ways, and let scripts keep the record current without anyone typing.
Open source, open core and commercial in this category
phpIPAM is GPLv3 and entirely free to self-host. GestioIP’s core is GPLv3 as well, but its API is sold as a commercial add-on alongside paid support. NetBox Community is Apache 2.0; NetBox Labs sells NetBox Cloud, NetBox Enterprise and discovery and assurance add-ons on top. SolarWinds IP Address Manager, ManageEngine OpUtils and BlueCat Micetro are commercial products, and their vendors quote or publish pricing on their own terms. Whatever the licence, obtain the software from the project or vendor directly; our where-to-get page lists every official address.
Vendor pages: phpIPAM phpipam.net · SolarWinds IP Address Manager solarwinds.com · NetBox netboxlabs.com · Micetro bluecatnetworks.com · ManageEngine OpUtils manageengine.com · GestioIP gestioip.net
Questions we get about IPAM tools
Do I really need IPAM for a network of a few hundred addresses?
Not always. A disciplined spreadsheet can cope with a single /24 and one admin. The case for IPAM grows with the number of people assigning addresses, the number of subnets and VLANs, and how often conflicts or exhausted scopes cost you a morning. Two admins, several sites or any DHCP-heavy segment usually tips the balance.
What is the difference between IPAM and DDI?
IPAM is the register of address space. DDI adds management of the DNS and DHCP services themselves — creating scopes, reservations and records from the same interface. Micetro is built as an overlay DDI product; SolarWinds IPAM manages Microsoft, Cisco and ISC DHCP/DNS to varying degrees; phpIPAM and NetBox mostly document rather than configure those services.
Can an IPAM tool detect IP address conflicts?
Several can, in different ways. Tools that read MAC addresses from ARP tables or scans can notice one address answering from two MACs, or a MAC appearing where the record says something else lives. Pure documentation tools will not notice unless a scan or integration feeds them live data.
Is NetBox an IPAM or a DCIM?
Both. NetBox models racks, devices, cables and circuits as well as prefixes, IP ranges, addresses, VLANs and VRFs, and ties them together. If you only want an address register, that breadth is more to learn; if you plan to drive configuration from the record, it is the point.
How do I migrate from an Excel sheet?
Clean the sheet first: one row per address, consistent subnet notation, owner and description columns. Create the parent subnets in the IPAM, import addresses from CSV, then run a discovery scan and treat every mismatch as a line to resolve. Our guide on moving IP tracking off the spreadsheet walks through it in phpIPAM.
Keep going
Other categories
- Address Discovery Scanners — reads the wire
- Subnet Planning & Calculators — draws the plan
Disclosure: every vendor link here points directly at the publisher’s official site, and we are paid nothing when you use one. Details are in our affiliate disclosure.