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Checkmk

checkmk.com

From $275/mo Free plan Open source WebWindowsmacOSLinuxiOSAndroid
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Spec score 9.4 #1 of 54 in Kubernetes Monitoring

What it is

Checkmk monitors cloud, hybrid, and data center infrastructure, including containers and networks. For web, mail, and database servers, it combines more than 2,000 smart checks with automatic discovery and network mapping. Monitoring can use native agents for Windows, Linux, and other systems, agentless SNMP and TCP/UDP checks, or API-based checks over HTTP/XML, SSH, or TELNET. Cloud coverage includes AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud Platform, with automatic component detection and Quick Setup. One instance can monitor thousands of servers, while distributed monitoring supports horizontal scaling. Community includes more than 2,000 integrations and is intended for smaller environments, scaling to approximately 100 hosts. The software can run on customer hardware or virtualized infrastructure, with Linux distribution packages, Docker, and a Virtual Appliance. The Community plan is free forever and includes community support. The pricing note lists paid plans from €190/mo (annual) and a 30-day trial. Other listed plan prices use USD: Pro is $275 a month, Cloud is $290 a month, and Ultimate is $400 a month. Platforms include API, Linux, macOS, self-hosted, web, and Windows.

Spec sheet

What it does
Checkmk provides unified infrastructure monitoring and observability across servers, networks, applications, databases, cloud, containers and user experience.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Deployment
Checkmk can run on customer hardware or virtualized, with packages for major Linux distributions, Docker and Virtual Appliance.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
API
The REST API is designed to cover functionality exposed by the GUI and command line, with OpenAPI documentation generated from the same source as the software.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.checkmk.com
Integrations
Checkmk advertises more than 2,000 built-in integrations covering hardware, networks, applications, operating systems and cloud or container platforms.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Support
The Pro plan includes professional support for 8h x 5d, while Ultimate includes 10h x 5d and can be upgraded to 24h x 5d.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Headquarters
Munich, GermanyRead 23 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Founded
2007Read 23 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Agent requirements
Linux or Unix agents require Bash 4.2 or newer, ksh 93 or newer, Perl 5.14 or newer and systemd or xinetd; supported Windows agents are 64-bit releases 2016 through 2025.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.checkmk.com
API versioning
REST API v1 ships with Checkmk 2.5, while older major versions remain temporarily usable after a new major release.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.checkmk.com
Cloud coverage
Checkmk supports AWS, Azure and Google Cloud Platform monitoring, including automatic cloud-component detection and Quick Setup.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Community limits
Checkmk Community is designed for small infrastructures and is described as easily scalable up to approximately 100 hosts.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Company facts
LinkedIn lists Checkmk as privately held, founded in 2007, headquartered in Munich, with 201–500 employees.Read 14 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Company history
Mathias Kettner founded a Munich consulting business in 2007 that later became Checkmk GmbH, and Checkmk Raw launched in 2012.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Documentation
The User Guide is intentionally comprehensive and explains concepts and implementation approaches in addition to procedures.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.checkmk.com
Extensibility
Developers can create custom checks, agent plug-ins, local checks and other extensions; the documentation points to the Checkmk Exchange.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.checkmk.com
Feature: alerting
Community edition includes context-rich email alerting intended to reduce alert noise.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Feature: dashboards
The platform offers customizable dashboards, historical charts and time-series analysis views.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Feature: discovery
Automated discovery identifies hosts and services and proposes monitoring configuration.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Feature: OpenTelemetry
Checkmk 2.5 adds native OpenTelemetry ingestion and correlation of application and infrastructure telemetry in Ultimate and Cloud.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Feature: synthetic monitoring
Synthetic Monitoring simulates user actions and tracks user-flow KPIs, with three tests shown as free.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Free trial
Checkmk offers a free 30-day trial with access to all features; self-hosted use becomes free with limited features after the trial.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Integration examples
Official pages list integrations such as AWS, Azure, Grafana, Prometheus, ServiceNow, Jira, PagerDuty and Opsgenie.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Legal entity and owner
Crunchbase lists the legal name as Checkmk GmbH, founder Mathias Kettner, Munich headquarters and PSG Equity as the investor.Read 14 Oct 2026 · crunchbase.com
Licence
Checkmk Community code is described as GPL v2 licensed, while commercial editions add proprietary enterprise functionality.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Limit: application monitoring
A G2 reviewer asks for stronger application performance monitoring and improved SSO capabilities.Read 14 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Limit: scale and performance
A G2 reviewer reports that large environments can become slow and that some configuration limits do not scale well.Read 14 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Limit: upgrades and compatibility
A G2 reviewer reports that upgrades can make some features or plug-ins incompatible or disappear.Read 14 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Mobile app availability
The independent CheckWatch iOS app provides push alerts, QR pairing, host and service views, acknowledgements and downtime management for Checkmk editions.Read 14 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Mobile app limitation
The Google Play listing identified as Unofficial CheckMK Monitoring is explicitly unofficial and states that its data is not encrypted and cannot be deleted.Read 14 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Monitoring methods
The product supports native agents for Windows, Linux and other operating systems, agentless SNMP and TCP/UDP monitoring, and API-based checks using HTTP/XML, SSH or TELNET.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Praise: coverage and flexibility
G2 reviewers praise broad monitoring coverage, effective agents and SNMP, extensibility and the ability to monitor thousands of services.Read 14 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Praise: support and value
Reviewers on Capterra and TrustRadius describe easy setup, helpful support, strong community resources and good value from the free edition.Read 14 Oct 2026 · trustradius.com
Product purpose
Checkmk provides advanced monitoring of cloud, hybrid, and data center infrastructures, as well as containers and networks.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Rating on Apple App Store
No rating overview is displayed because the app has not received enough ratings or reviews.Read 14 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Rating on G2
4.7 out of 5 from 306 reviews.Read 14 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Rating on Gartner Peer Insights
4.5 out of 5 from 138 reviews.Read 14 Oct 2026 · gartner.com
Rating on TrustRadius
9.1 out of 10 from 18 reviews and ratings.Read 14 Oct 2026 · trustradius.com
Rating on TrustRadius comparison
8.7 out of 10 from 19 reviews and ratings in a Checkmk versus Dynatrace comparison.Read 14 Oct 2026 · trustradius.com
Release news
Checkmk 2.5 launched on April 28, 2026 with unified observability, OpenTelemetry, redesigned dashboards and AI-assisted alert analysis.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Scalability
One Checkmk instance can monitor thousands of servers and scale horizontally with distributed monitoring.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Security architecture
Checkmk Ultimate provides zero-inbound, fully encrypted monitoring through push agents and Checkmk Relay.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Security certifications
The Trust Center lists ISO 27001:2022, SOC 2 Type I, GDPR, SIG, EU AI Act and DORA badges.Read 14 Oct 2026 · trust.checkmk.com
Security practices
The Trust Center states that Checkmk performs annual third-party penetration testing and maintains security, vulnerability-management and access-control policies.Read 14 Oct 2026 · trust.checkmk.com
Self-hosting
Checkmk can run on customer hardware or virtualized infrastructure with packages for major Linux distributions, Docker and a virtual appliance.Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Server monitoring
Checkmk monitors web, mail, and database servers using more than 2,000 smart checks, auto-discovery, and network mapping.Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
System requirements
Checkmk 2.5 server packages support Debian 12/13, RHEL 8/9/10, SLES 15 variants and Ubuntu 22.04/24.04/26.04 on x86_64.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.checkmk.com

Plans and prices

Community Free forever free of charge 2000+ integrations · up to ~100 hosts · community support Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Synthetic Monitoring Free billed annually $0.00/test · 3 free tests · available with Pro and Ultimate Read 30 Sep 2026 · checkmk.com
Pro $275 a month billed annually ~3,000 services · professional support 8h × 5d · distributed monitoring Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Cloud $290 a month monthly billing 1,000 services shown · 50,000-service cap · 99.5% availability · 20 users Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com
Ultimate $400 a month billed annually ~3,000 services · full-stack observability · multi-tenancy option · professional support 10h × 5d Read 14 Oct 2026 · checkmk.com

Every Checkmk plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • More than 2,000 smart checks and integrations
  • Supports agent, agentless, and API-based monitoring
  • Monitors AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud Platform
  • Distributed monitoring supports horizontal scaling
  • Can run on customer hardware or virtualized

Limits

  • Community is intended for smaller infrastructures
  • Community support is provided on the free plan
  • Pro support is listed as 8h x 5d
  • Ultimate's listed support is 10h x 5d, upgradeable to 24h x 5d

Who it suits

Checkmk suits teams monitoring infrastructure across cloud, hybrid, and data center environments, including servers, networks, and containers. Community is aimed at smaller infrastructures of approximately 100 hosts; distributed monitoring supports larger setups.

Checkmk in depth

Read the full write-up

Checkmk monitors infrastructure across cloud, hybrid and data-center environments, including servers, networks and containers. It suits IT teams responsible for varied estates that need several ways to collect monitoring data. Its breadth and deployment flexibility are compelling, but the free Community edition is intended for small environments and paid plans use different currencies and billing terms.

Overview

Checkmk covers web, mail and database servers with more than 2,000 smart checks, automatic discovery and network mapping. Native agents, agentless checks and API-based checks let teams choose an approach for each system rather than relying on a single collection method. That is useful in mixed environments, although the range of methods and deployment choices will matter less to teams with a narrow monitoring scope.

A single instance can monitor thousands of servers, and distributed monitoring supports horizontal scaling. Checkmk can run on customer hardware or in virtualized environments, with packages for major Linux distributions, Docker and a Virtual Appliance. These options make it suitable for organizations that want control over deployment as well as room to grow; Community, by contrast, is designed for small infrastructures and scales to approximately 100 hosts.

Key features

Flexible checks: Native agents cover Windows, Linux and other operating systems. Agentless SNMP and TCP/UDP monitoring help where installing an agent is unsuitable, while API-based checks using HTTP/XML, SSH or TELNET provide additional routes into systems.

Cloud monitoring: AWS, Azure and Google Cloud Platform coverage includes automatic detection of cloud components and Quick Setup. This makes Checkmk a plausible option for teams combining public cloud with data-center or other infrastructure.

Integrations and automation: Community includes more than 2,000 built-in integrations, with REST APIs and custom automation scripts also supported. That breadth can reduce the need to build basic integrations from scratch, while the ability to script leaves room to adapt monitoring to local workflows.

Secure remote monitoring: Ultimate provides zero-inbound, fully encrypted monitoring through push agents and Checkmk Relay. That is a meaningful choice for environments where inbound access is undesirable, but this capability is specifically tied to Ultimate.

Service and VM monitoring: Checkmk supports both, alongside infrastructure monitoring. Metrics retention is custom, so buyers should consider their own retention requirements when assessing fit.

Pricing

Checkmk uses a freemium model. Community is free forever at free, with 2,000+ pre-built integrations, support from the community and coverage for up to approximately 100 hosts. It is the natural starting point for small environments that can work without professional support; its host scope makes it a poor fit for larger estates.

Pro costs $275 a month, billed annually, from $275/month. It covers the equivalent of approximately 3,000 services, with pricing as low as ~$2.75/host per month and professional support for 8h x 5d. This is the paid option for teams that need a larger service scope and business-hours support. Ultimate costs $400 a month, billed annually, from $400/month; it covers the equivalent of approximately 3,000 services, can be as low as ~$4.00/host per month, and includes 10h x 5d professional support, upgradeable to 24h x 5d. Its higher price is most defensible when that support window or its zero-inbound encrypted monitoring matters.

Cloud costs $290 a month with monthly billing, at approximately $8.70/host per month. Its stated scope is 1K–50K services, with 99.5% availability; at 1 host to approximately 30 services, buyers should match the service allowance to their estate rather than compare host counts alone. Synthetic Monitoring is free, billed annually, at $0.00/test with 3 free tests, and is available with Pro and Ultimate.

The pricing note gives paid plans from €190/mo (annual) and a 30-day trial. Individual plan prices use USD, so the stated euro starting point and the USD plan figures are not directly interchangeable.

Platforms

Checkmk supports API, Linux, macOS, self-hosted, web and Windows. Its hybrid deployment model, multiple operating-system coverage and agentless monitoring support make it relevant to teams spanning managed infrastructure and systems where agents are not an option.

Who it's for

Checkmk is best suited to infrastructure teams that need to monitor a mix of servers, cloud components, networks, containers and services, and that value a choice between agents, agentless checks and APIs. Community suits a small estate that can rely on community support. Growing or larger environments can consider paid plans, with Pro or Ultimate for annual billing and professional support, or Cloud for monthly billing and its stated service range. Teams looking for a narrowly scoped tool, or a free edition for substantially more than approximately 100 hosts, should look elsewhere.

Pros and cons

Pro: More than 2,000 checks and integrations, plus multiple collection methods, give mixed environments broad monitoring coverage.

Pro: One instance can monitor thousands of servers, with distributed monitoring for horizontal scaling as infrastructure grows.

Pro: Customer-hardware, virtualized, Docker and Virtual Appliance deployment options give teams meaningful control over where Checkmk runs.

Con: Community is limited to small infrastructures and approximately 100 hosts, so larger deployments need a paid plan.

Con: Plan prices are expressed in USD while the pricing note starts at €190/mo (annual), complicating direct price comparisons.

Con: Professional support is tied to paid tiers, and the stated support windows differ between Pro and Ultimate.

Alternatives

For teams comparing monitoring categories, see Infrastructure Monitoring, Cloud Monitoring, Container Monitoring, Metrics Monitoring Tools, and Hardware Monitoring Software. Managed service providers can also browse Managed Service Provider Software.

Breeze is worth considering for a free self-hosted option with unlimited devices and all 64 modules. ManageEngine MSP Central may suit buyers seeking a per-device network monitoring and management plan. Atera, Pulseway, Site24x7 MSP, Liongard, SuperOps and Hudu are other alternatives to compare.

Verdict

Choose Checkmk if you need broad monitoring across mixed infrastructure, want a choice of collection methods and deployment models, and expect to grow beyond a small estate. Its free Community edition makes a small deployment accessible, while paid tiers add defined service scopes and professional support. Look elsewhere if you need a free plan beyond approximately 100 hosts or need a single, directly comparable price across its plan options.

Verdict

Checkmk offers several monitoring methods, cloud coverage, and deployment options, with a free Community edition for smaller environments. The pricing note lists paid plans from €190/mo (annual), while individual plan listings use USD.

Where Specifiction places it

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