SolarWinds has updated its pricing strategy, shifting to a 'subscription-first' model like many other software vendors. Additionally, they have simplified their licensing by introducing a node-based license.
For organizations monitoring a complete infrastructure, the total cost of ownership (TCO) is now more favorable compared to the previous element-based licensing.
With this change, the SAM component is now available at a fraction of the cost, as the new Observability license includes not only SAM but also other key features like Server Config Monitoring, Virtualization Management, Log Analyzer, and more.
Founder|End-to-End Performance Monitoring|DevOPS | AI |FRS|VAR|Cyber Security|IoT - "HIRING NOW" at TouchForce IT Solutions LLC
Real User
Top 5
Apr 2, 2024
The price is too high. The tool is overpriced. We don't need all the features. The product must minimize the features and reduce the price. It all comes down to pricing. The customers find it pretty costly. It costs us $100,000 to $400,000 per year.
Licenses for SAM can be really expensive if you go by the traditional model of calculating "monitors" per server. These are typically individual parameters being monitored by the SAM module. The "newer" licensing model takes away the pain of calculating the individual components that need to be monitored and is simply a node based license. The higher the number of nodes the better your pricing will be.Â
The newer license model gives you the flexibility to start small, as low as 10 nodes and scale upwards to 1000's of nodes.Â
Among the major monitoring solutions, especially considering that free monitoring tools are available, it is relatively affordable. When compared to other licensed models in the market, it stands out as one of the more cost-effective options.
Learn what your peers think about SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2025.
We are on an annual license to use the solution. The price of the solution is expensive. The price is based on a bunch of factors, such as the number of engines and elements. I rate the cost of SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor a one out of five.
SolarWinds have marketized their pricing, so it depends on the number of devices you have. For example, there's a specific price for zero to 100 devices, then another price for 100 to 300. There are also differences in pricing depending on which modules you want to include. I think SolarWinds' pricing is very decent compared to other competitors in the market.
Systems Architect at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Aug 26, 2020
Price can always be lower. It is neither on the expensive side nor on the cheap side. We have worked with them for a lot of years, so we get a discount due to the size of the installation.
Pricing is quite cheap. It starts at 2,440 euros. For that, you have the ability to monitor a couple of nodes. You also get one year of maintenance and support included in the price.
Enterprise Solutions & Services Head at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Nov 13, 2019
The licenses start from USD 3000.00 and go up to USD 20,000.00 for the year. It's a perpetual license. Nothing is free in SolarWinds, anything that you need is an additional cost. When you compare SolarWinds to Broadcom, Broadcom has a simpler policy, you can install it and you don't have the complex licensing where you need a separate license for every little thing. Customers don't understand the complexity of the licensing when you need a separate license for the application and storage as an example. With SolarWinds, you have to pay for every feature.
SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor (SAM) delivers powerful application and server monitoring capabilities for IT pros, enabling them to diagnose and troubleshoot performance issues faster. Do not let slow applications and downtime impact your end-users and business services. Pinpoint the root cause of application issues across various layers of the IT stack. SolarWinds SAM is affordable and easy to deploy, use, and customize. You can automatically discover your system's environment...
SolarWinds has updated its pricing strategy, shifting to a 'subscription-first' model like many other software vendors. Additionally, they have simplified their licensing by introducing a node-based license.
For organizations monitoring a complete infrastructure, the total cost of ownership (TCO) is now more favorable compared to the previous element-based licensing.
With this change, the SAM component is now available at a fraction of the cost, as the new Observability license includes not only SAM but also other key features like Server Config Monitoring, Virtualization Management, Log Analyzer, and more.
The initial cost is quite high, but the renewal cost is reasonable.
The product is expensive.
The price is too high. The tool is overpriced. We don't need all the features. The product must minimize the features and reduce the price. It all comes down to pricing. The customers find it pretty costly. It costs us $100,000 to $400,000 per year.
Licenses for SAM can be really expensive if you go by the traditional model of calculating "monitors" per server. These are typically individual parameters being monitored by the SAM module. The "newer" licensing model takes away the pain of calculating the individual components that need to be monitored and is simply a node based license. The higher the number of nodes the better your pricing will be.Â
The newer license model gives you the flexibility to start small, as low as 10 nodes and scale upwards to 1000's of nodes.Â
Among the major monitoring solutions, especially considering that free monitoring tools are available, it is relatively affordable. When compared to other licensed models in the market, it stands out as one of the more cost-effective options.
I rate the pricing an eight out of ten. There are no additional costs associated with the solution.
The solution is overpriced in terms of application management.
I would rate the pricing for this solution a three out of five.
We are on an annual license to use the solution. The price of the solution is expensive. The price is based on a bunch of factors, such as the number of engines and elements. I rate the cost of SolarWinds Server and Application Monitor a one out of five.
We pay for licenses. It's less expensive than AppDynamics, which requires you to pay for each node.
SolarWinds have marketized their pricing, so it depends on the number of devices you have. For example, there's a specific price for zero to 100 devices, then another price for 100 to 300. There are also differences in pricing depending on which modules you want to include. I think SolarWinds' pricing is very decent compared to other competitors in the market.
Its licensing is on a yearly basis. It is just the standard price, but it can vary depending on the current rate of the dollar.
We had a yearly license, and the pricing could be improved.
The cost should be a bit less. It's high right now, or higher than it should be.
Price can always be lower. It is neither on the expensive side nor on the cheap side. We have worked with them for a lot of years, so we get a discount due to the size of the installation.
I like the pricing for this SolarWinds product.
I don't have any information on pricing, as that is handled by our procurement team.
Pricing is quite cheap. It starts at 2,440 euros. For that, you have the ability to monitor a couple of nodes. You also get one year of maintenance and support included in the price.
The licenses start from USD 3000.00 and go up to USD 20,000.00 for the year. It's a perpetual license. Nothing is free in SolarWinds, anything that you need is an additional cost. When you compare SolarWinds to Broadcom, Broadcom has a simpler policy, you can install it and you don't have the complex licensing where you need a separate license for every little thing. Customers don't understand the complexity of the licensing when you need a separate license for the application and storage as an example. With SolarWinds, you have to pay for every feature.
The product might cost you $30,000 USD to buy, but scaling this solution requires the purchase of additional polling engines at $20,000 USD each.
The price is reasonable. The price of the package we bought was a differentiating factor in choosing this solution.
I can't say what the exact pricing is, but I know it's not too expensive.