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Best Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) Alternatives in 2026

Updated

20 tools from network simulation software ranked against Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) on the same published basis.

  1. 1
    OMNeT++ Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWin Free7.7
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs OMNeT++
  2. 2
    EVE-NG Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWebWin Free7.6
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs EVE-NG
  3. 3
    IMUNES Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWebWin Free7.6
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs IMUNES
  4. 4
    Cisco Modeling Labs Free plan LinuxMacWebWin Free7.3
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Cisco Modeling Labs
  5. 5
    GNS3 Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWebWin Free7.3
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs GNS3
  6. 6
    Kathará Free plan apiLinuxMacself-hostedWin Free7.3
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Kathará
  7. 7
    Mininet Free plan apiLinuxMacself-hostedWin Free7.3
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Mininet
  8. 8
    ns-3 Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWin Free7.3
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs ns-3
  9. 9
    OMNEST Free trial apiLinuxMacself-hostedWin 7.3
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs OMNEST
  10. 10
    Containerlab Free plan apiLinuxMacself-hostedWeb Free7.2
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Containerlab
  11. 11
    PNETLab Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWebWin Free7.2
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs PNETLab
  12. 12
    Cisco Packet Tracer Free plan LinuxMacWin Free7.1
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Cisco Packet Tracer
  13. 13
    Marionnet Free plan LinuxMacWin Free7.1
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Marionnet
  14. 14
    NetSim by Tetcos Free plan Win Free7.1
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs NetSim by Tetcos
  15. 15
    QuNetSim Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWin Free7.1
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs QuNetSim
  16. 16
    Cloonix Free plan LinuxWeb Free7.0
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Cloonix
  17. 17
    EMANE Free plan Linuxself-hosted Free7.0
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs EMANE
  18. 18
    Netropy Network Emulator Free trial apiLinuxself-hostedWeb 7.0
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Netropy Network Emulator
  19. 19
    MIMIC Simulator Free trial Linuxself-hostedWin 6.9
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs MIMIC Simulator
  20. 20
    Telephone Free plan Mac Free6.9
    Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) vs Telephone

Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) alternatives compared

#ToolScoreFree planFromRuns on
1OMNeT++7.7Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
2EVE-NG7.6Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
3IMUNES7.6Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
4Cisco Modeling Labs7.3Free planFreeLinux, Mac, Web, Windows
5GNS37.3Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
6Kathará7.3Free planFreeAPI, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
7Mininet7.3Free planFreeAPI, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
8ns-37.3Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
9OMNEST7.3No—API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
10Containerlab7.2Free planFreeAPI, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
11PNETLab7.2Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
12Cisco Packet Tracer7.1Free planFreeLinux, Mac, Windows
13Marionnet7.1Free planFreeLinux, Mac, Windows
14NetSim by Tetcos7.1Free planFreeWindows
15QuNetSim7.1Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
16Cloonix7.0Free planFreeLinux, Web
17EMANE7.0Free planFreeLinux, self-hosted
18Netropy Network Emulator7.0No—API, Linux, self-hosted, Web
19MIMIC Simulator6.9No—Linux, self-hosted, Windows
20Telephone6.9Free planFreeMac
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Questions about Common Open Research Emulator (CORE) alternatives

What is the best alternative to Common Open Research Emulator (CORE)?

OMNeT++, number 1 in network simulation software with a score of 7.7 out of 10. The others here: EVE-NG, IMUNES, Cisco Modeling Labs and 16 more.

What is the best free alternative to Common Open Research Emulator (CORE)?

OMNeT++ is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 17 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.

How are these alternatives ranked?

Ranked on what each maker publishes, the fullest spec sheet first: how deeply the product is documented, the platforms it runs on, a free tier or trial to test it, and its standing.