Best Shadow Alternatives in 2026
Updated
20 platforms from network testing software ranked against Shadow on the same published basis.
- 1Shadow vs PingPlotter
- 2Shadow vs TRex
- 3Shadow vs LibreSpeed
- 4Shadow vs EVE-NG
- 5Shadow vs Cisco pyATS
- 6Shadow vs Netpicker
- 7Shadow vs Flent
- 8Shadow vs Ostinato
- 9Shadow vs GNS3
- 10Shadow vs Netperf
- 11Shadow vs iperf3
- 12Shadow vs IP Fabric
- 13Shadow vs perfSONAR
- 14Shadow vs OpenSpeedTest
- 15Shadow vs iPerf2
- 16Shadow vs NetBeez
- 17Shadow vs M-Lab NDT
- 18Shadow vs PacketForge
- 19Shadow vs Pktgen-DPDK
- 20Shadow vs Tessabyte
Shadow alternatives compared
| # | Platform | Score | Free plan | From | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PingPlotter | 8.0 | Free plan | $29/mo | iOS, Linux, Mac, Web, Windows |
| 2 | TRex | 7.5 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| 3 | LibreSpeed | 7.4 | Free plan | Free | Android, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| 4 | EVE-NG | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| 5 | Cisco pyATS | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, self-hosted |
| 6 | Netpicker | 7.1 | Free plan | $625/mo | API, Linux, self-hosted, Web |
| 7 | Flent | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac |
| 8 | Ostinato | 7.0 | No | $12/mo | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 9 | GNS3 | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| 10 | Netperf | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Mac, Windows |
| 11 | iperf3 | 6.8 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted |
| 12 | IP Fabric | 6.7 | No | — | API, Linux, self-hosted, Web |
| 13 | perfSONAR | 6.6 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, self-hosted |
| 14 | OpenSpeedTest | 6.3 | Free plan | Free | Android, iOS, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| 15 | iPerf2 | 6.0 | No | — | Windows, Mac, Linux, Android |
| 16 | NetBeez | 6.0 | No | — | Linux, Mac, Web, Windows |
| 17 | M-Lab NDT | 5.9 | No | — | Web, Android |
| 18 | PacketForge | 5.9 | No | — | Web, Windows |
| 19 | Pktgen-DPDK | 5.9 | No | — | Linux |
| 20 | Tessabyte | 5.9 | No | — | Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS |
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Questions about Shadow alternatives
What is the best alternative to Shadow?
PingPlotter, number 1 in network testing software with a score of 8.0 out of 10. The others here: TRex, LibreSpeed, EVE-NG and 16 more.
What is the best free alternative to Shadow?
PingPlotter is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 12 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How are these alternatives ranked?
Ranked on how quickly a newcomer can get going: documentation depth, a free tier or trial, and the platforms it runs on.