Sniffnet vs vnStat
Sniffnet
sniffnet.appvnStat
humdi.netSide by side
| Figure | Sniffnet | vnStat |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 1 |
| Spec score · Bandwidth Monitoring Software | 8.1 (#11) | 7.1 (#28) |
| Purpose | Sniffnet is a network monitoring app for keeping track of Internet traffic, checking bandwidth usage, and inspecting network activity. | vnStat is a console-based network traffic monitor that logs traffic for selected interfaces. |
| Security | A 2025 security audit covered static analysis, dependency checking, code analysis and fuzzing, dynamic analysis on most supported platforms, and interactive testing; its only relevant finding was low severity and had been fixed. | Because vnStat reads kernel-provided interface statistics, the maker says it does not sniff network traffic. |
| Support | The download page directs users with persistent installation problems or doubts to open an issue. | The maker suggests GitHub for bug reports, improvement ideas, feature requests, and pull requests, and also lists email and IRC contact options. |
Plans
In their own words
Sniffnet
Sniffnet is a free network monitoring app for Linux, macOS, and Windows. It displays overall internet traffic statistics and real-time charts, and can show which programs use bandwidth. Users can choose a network adapter, filter observed traffic, and import or export PCAP capture reports. Sniffnet identifies local network connections, shows remote hosts’ geographical locations, and finds host domain names and ASNs. It recognizes more than 6,000 upper-layer services, protocols, trojans, and worms. Users can configure notifications for network events and import custom IP blacklists to highlight potentially dangerous connections. The app supports live capture, display filters, protocol dissectors, and offline trace analysis; it reads PCAPNG and CAP files as well as PCAP. Custom themes and 26 languages are available. The listed Sniffnet plan is free and the software is open-source under MIT or Apache-2.0. A 2025 security audit reported one low-severity finding, which had been fixed. Most functionality uses offline databases, while reverse DNS lookups provide hostnames for IP addresses.