My 7 Picks for Finest Utility Efficiency Monitoring Instruments

I’m no stranger to functions crashing, freezing, or throwing errors on the worst potential instances. However in terms of software monitoring itself, I needed to take a more in-depth have a look at what works.

Working at G2 means I get entry to one thing even higher than advertising and marketing claims: actual suggestions from IT operations groups, DevOps engineers, and SREs who use these instruments day-after-day.

So, I dug into tons of of opinions to seek out the finest software efficiency monitoring instruments that customers constantly belief to maintain their programs operating easily. 

The consequence? This checklist of the highest 7 APM software program instruments, all backed by real-world experiences (not simply product guarantees).

7 finest software efficiency monitoring instruments as per G2 opinions

Recognizing a problem is one factor. Fixing it earlier than it impacts customers is one other. Actual groups care about that distinction, and I centered on it whereas evaluating these instruments.

I wasn’t in search of platforms that simply throw dashboards on the drawback. I paid shut consideration to how briskly customers may hint points throughout companies, how clear the basis causes turned, and the way a lot pointless noise obtained filtered out.

Some instruments packed in infinite metrics, however left groups guessing. Others helped customers repair what mattered with out including new points. Those that made this checklist stood out as a result of they didn’t simply monitor apps; they helped individuals keep forward of issues.

What I prioritized when evaluating APM instruments

I thought of the next elements when evaluating one of the best software efficiency monitoring instruments.

• Finish-to-end distributed tracing: I prioritized instruments that might hint transactions throughout each a part of the applying stack, from frontend experiences to backend companies and databases. With the ability to comply with a consumer journey or API name in real-time throughout all dependencies is essential for diagnosing slowdowns and failures rapidly.
• Actual consumer monitoring (RUM): Seeing how actual customers expertise software efficiency, not simply simulated check visitors, provides important context. I gave additional weight to platforms that built-in RUM alongside backend metrics for a whole image of app well being.
• Clever alerting and noise discount: Nothing feels pressing when every little thing generates an alert. I centered on instruments that supplied sensible, context-driven alerting, surfacing significant points with out overwhelming groups with false positives or minor fluctuations.
• Utility dependency mapping: In advanced, cloud-native environments, understanding how companies join (and the place bottlenecks emerge) is significant. I seemed carefully at how every platform mechanically (and precisely) mapped service dependencies with out tons of guide setup.
• Ease of setup and integration: Monitoring should not require months of onboarding or customized engineering work. I prioritized instruments that customers stated had been comparatively straightforward to deploy, configure, and combine with CI/CD pipelines, cloud suppliers, and third-party observability stacks.
• Log and metric correlation: Leaping between logs, metrics, and traces wastes time. One of the best APM platforms unify these alerts, permitting groups to troubleshoot quicker with out searching throughout a number of instruments.
• Scalability for high-volume environments: Lastly, I paid shut consideration to suggestions from bigger groups operating large environments. One of the best instruments scaled simply, with out lagging, dropping hint information, or crashing underneath heavy masses.

The checklist beneath comprises real consumer opinions from the APM software program class web page. To be included on this class, an answer should:

*This information was pulled from G2 in 2025. Some opinions might have been edited for readability.

Dynatrace is a full-stack software efficiency monitoring platform designed to assist groups troubleshoot advanced programs quicker and extra clearly. Based mostly on what I noticed in G2 opinions, Dynatrace stood out for the way a lot it automates from tracing consumer journeys to detecting anomalies throughout giant, dynamic apps.

One of many greatest strengths customers referred to as out was PurePath, Dynatrace’s distributed tracing engine. It stands out as a result of it mechanically traces each consumer transaction from begin to end throughout microservices, databases, APIs, and exterior dependencies with out guide tagging or customized configuration. Meaning groups get instant context round what occurred and the place issues slowed down with out leaping between instruments. It helped scale back the time spent constructing and sustaining hint logic.

One other widespread theme was the Davis AI engine, which analyzes telemetry information to floor potential issues and counsel seemingly root causes. Customers talked about that it helped filter out noise and gave them a centered place to begin for investigations, particularly throughout important incidents. As a substitute of simply getting alerts, groups stated they had been getting insights. Whereas not each suggestion was good, it was sufficient to shift how groups approached problem-solving.

Regardless of its depth, many opinions talked about that Dynatrace was comparatively straightforward to make use of, particularly for fundamental monitoring and visualization. The onboarding course of is well-documented, and several other customers famous that auto-discovery of companies labored out of the field with minimal setup. Dashboards and metrics had been accessible nearly instantly, which helped groups get early wins.

That stated, the deeper you go, the steeper the educational curve turns into. Customized dashboards, superior metric evaluation, and creating customized alerts had been all talked about as areas that required both trial-and-error or assist from documentation and assist. Some individuals stated that the interface obtained tougher to navigate when you began fine-tuning the device.

Pricing additionally got here up as a frequent ache level. Some reviewers talked about that whereas Dynatrace supplied clear worth, the associated fee scaled rapidly relying on what number of companies or containers you monitored. Others stated the pricing construction wasn’t very clear, which made it laborious to forecast bills over time. A couple of opinions talked about shock payments or lowering utilization to remain inside finances. It appeared extra manageable for enterprise groups, however each purchaser ought to concentrate on it early on.

What I dislike about Dynatrace:

• As soon as customers began customizing dashboards and metrics, the educational curve jumped considerably. A number of opinions identified that the platform wasn’t as intuitive on the deeper ranges.
• Pricing stood out as a barrier for smaller groups. Many customers stated the platform had worth, however as utilization grew, it turned costly to keep up.

What G2 customers dislike about Dynatrace:

“They know the worth they supply and cost you accordingly. It may be very tough to digest the price of the device, and it may be tough to handle your group’s consumption of licensing.”

– Dynatrace Evaluate, Andrew H.

LogRocket helps groups perceive precisely how customers expertise their functions. It’s particularly common with product and engineering groups trying to replay consumer periods, monitor efficiency metrics, and catch bugs that conventional APM instruments typically miss.

Probably the most praised function by far was session replay. Reviewers constantly talked about how priceless it was to observe a visible playback of what customers really did earlier than encountering a bug, whether or not that meant misclicks, kind errors, or UI glitches. As a substitute of counting on obscure consumer suggestions or guessing what might need gone mistaken, groups may see the issue precisely because it occurred. Whereas session replay isn’t new, the way in which LogRocket ties it on to community logs and console errors made a noticeable distinction.

One other power that got here up typically was how effectively LogRocket handles frontend efficiency metrics. It tracks key indicators like time-to-interactive, structure shifts, and web page load delays from the angle of actual customers. Customers appreciated that efficiency and conduct information had been introduced side-by-side, making it simpler to correlate slowdowns with real-world affect.

LogRocket additionally earned reward for surfacing actionable insights, not simply information. Critiques highlighted the way it flagged irregular consumer behaviors or utilization patterns, making it simpler to identify when one thing within the product wasn’t working as supposed. Some talked about utilizing these insights to enhance onboarding flows, clear up complicated UI components, or catch failed conversions. Throughout use instances, it appeared to supply extra than simply error monitoring; it helped groups perceive why customers had been getting caught.

However not every little thing got here straightforward. The session filtering and search expertise was one of the regularly talked about challenges. Some customers stated discovering a selected session or isolating a problem took too many steps. Others needed extra superior filtering choices to slim issues down by consumer kind, occasion, or stream. Whereas the information was there, the interface generally made it really feel buried. A couple of opinions famous that the dashboards might be complicated with out prior expertise or documentation.

Pricing was one other widespread theme within the suggestions. Smaller firms, particularly, stated LogRocket felt costly as soon as they began utilizing it at scale. Customers felt that whereas the device delivered worth, the pricing mannequin didn’t provide sufficient flexibility. There have been additionally mentions of options being locked behind larger pricing tiers, which made the entry-level expertise really feel restricted.

What I dislike about LogRocket:

• A number of customers stated filtering periods felt sluggish, particularly when attempting to isolate particular flows or consumer sorts.
• Pricing was a recurring difficulty for smaller groups, these scaling utilization, or attempting to unlock superior options.

What G2 customers dislike about LogRocket:

“LogRocket can get a bit dear, particularly as your app scales and session quantity will increase. Whereas the insights are top-notch, the pricing mannequin primarily based on periods somewhat than customers could make it tougher to foretell prices. Nonetheless, you probably have the finances, the worth it supplies when it comes to quicker debugging and higher product selections is completely value it.”

– LogRocket Evaluate, Iván Sebastián M.

IBM Instana is designed to present groups complete visibility into software efficiency. It’s typically utilized in environments the place pace issues, from fast-moving DevOps groups to giant enterprises operating microservices.

One of the constant factors of reward was Instana’s potential to mechanically monitor efficiency throughout the total software stack. Customers regularly highlighted how the platform detects companies, dependencies, and points with little guide configuration. As a substitute of spending time tagging companies or creating advanced guidelines, groups stated Instana dealt with most of that work behind the scenes.  

One other theme was real-time monitoring. Many reviewers stated that among the best issues about Instana was how rapidly it surfaced efficiency issues. Not like instruments that depend on batch information or delayed alerts, Instana streams metrics with second-level granularity, which helps groups catch anomalies as they occur. I additionally seen a number of opinions that stated they relied on Instana throughout deployments to validate efficiency in close to real-time.

Customers additionally appreciated that the setup was comparatively painless. Many opinions talked about how rapidly they may get visibility into their programs after deploying the agent. Instana’s auto-discovery course of was a major time-saver, particularly when working with advanced architectures like Kubernetes or multi-cloud environments. Even for groups with out a lot expertise in APM instruments, onboarding wasn’t a main hurdle.

The most typical downside I got here throughout was across the consumer interface. Whereas it’s useful, a number of customers stated the UI felt unintuitive, notably as they began diving deeper into options. Some discovered it tough to filter or visualize the particular information they wanted with out leaping by way of a number of steps. Others talked about that customizing dashboards wasn’t as versatile as they’d hoped, and that discovering related traces or metrics required extra clicks than crucial. There have been additionally a couple of mentions of sluggish load instances in sure views. Whereas none of this appeared like a dealbreaker, it did affect general usability.

The second large problem was the educational curve when you transcend the fundamentals. Regardless that the setup is straightforward, mastering the device takes time. Quite a lot of customers talked about struggling to configure customized alerts or perceive how one can interpret a few of the extra technical metrics. Documentation helped in some instances, however not all reviewers discovered it intuitive or thorough. A couple of additionally stated they needed to lean on IBM assist to get solutions.

What I dislike about IBM Instana:

• The UI doesn’t all the time sustain with the remainder of the platform; filtering and navigation had been generally flagged as difficult.
• A number of groups talked about that whereas setup was simple, configuring alerts or making customizations afterward concerned extra of a studying curve than anticipated.

What G2 customers dislike about IBM Instana:

“I believe the flexibleness of alerting and customized metrics is perhaps enhanced. I might favor extra exact management as a CRO to set risk-specifc thresholds and customise alerts for our explicit enterprise surroundings.”

– IBM Instana Evaluate, Marawan E.

New Relic provides groups perception into software efficiency, infrastructure, and consumer expertise in a single place. Based mostly on what I noticed in G2 opinions, New Relic made the checklist for the way rapidly groups can begin monitoring what issues.

Many reviewers praised New Relic’s full-stack observability. It’s clear from the information that customers worth having the ability to monitor every little thing from software traces and frontend efficiency to server well being and infrastructure metrics inside a single device. This consolidation helped scale back context switching, particularly for groups juggling a number of companies and environments. A couple of opinions talked about how useful it was to hint points throughout companies with out counting on a number of distributors or stitched-together tooling. Whether or not customers had been troubleshooting backend slowdowns or monitoring third-party API latency, New Relic appeared to ship a constant view of all the system.

Actual-time monitoring was additionally regularly talked about. Many reviewers favored how rapidly information appeared in dashboards, making it simpler to reply to points as they occurred. The second-level granularity allowed groups to catch efficiency dips and slowdowns with out ready for batch stories. A couple of customers additionally highlighted that alerts kicked in quick, giving them sufficient context to behave with out digging by way of logs manually.

The third standout function was the customizable dashboard expertise. G2 opinions stated New Relic’s interface felt clear, versatile, and user-friendly. Customers favored how they may tailor views primarily based on their workflows, whether or not infrastructure well being, service efficiency, or frontend UX. Some individuals additionally referred to as out the power to arrange dashboards for particular groups or elements, which helped make the information extra actionable.

Nevertheless, configuration complexity was mentioned in numerous opinions. Whereas the platform provides a whole lot of energy, customers stated it took time to grasp how one can configure every little thing appropriately. Some reviewers talked about that organising alerts, tuning thresholds, or constructing exact queries required a little bit of trial and error. The depth is there, but it surely’s not all the time simple. A number of groups identified that whereas the fundamentals had been straightforward, unlocking the total potential took extra effort than anticipated.

As with different instruments on this class, pricing was a priority with New Relic, too. I learn opinions that whereas the platform delivered worth, the pricing restrictions for smaller groups had been actual. There have been additionally mentions of key options being locked behind higher-tier plans, which added friction throughout analysis. In comparison with some options, customers stated they needed to make tradeoffs or scale back utilization to remain inside finances.

What I dislike about New Relic:

• A number of opinions talked about that configuring alerts, queries, and views might be irritating with out steerage, particularly for customized use instances.
• Pricing got here up repeatedly, with groups flagging considerations about scalability, retention, and have entry in decrease tiers.

What G2 customers dislike about New Relic:

“Some integrations are tougher to arrange than they need to be. Whereas New Relic helps a variety of instruments, the documentation can really feel outdated or assume an excessive amount of prior information. I’ve needed to do extra troubleshooting than anticipated simply to get fundamental metrics working.”

– New Relic Evaluate, Viren L.

Datadog is a full-stack observability platform that helps groups monitor infrastructure, functions, logs, and extra from a central location. It’s broadly utilized by DevOps, SRE, and IT operations groups trying to unify their monitoring workflows throughout advanced, cloud-native environments.

One of the complimented options within the opinions was Datadog’s customizable and efficient dashboards. Customers highlighted how they may tailor visualizations to their actual wants, whether or not they had been monitoring service efficiency, system metrics, or software well being. The dashboards had been described as versatile, combining a number of information sources into clear, actionable views.  

Log administration was one other standout power that got here up throughout many opinions. Customers valued how Datadog integrates log information straight into the monitoring expertise, making correlating occasions, metrics, and traces in a single place simpler. A number of groups talked about that this integration saved them time investigating incidents as a result of they didn’t depend on separate logging instruments. The power to look, filter, and analyze logs alongside real-time metrics made Datadog particularly helpful for incident response workflows.

The third benefit I seen in G2 opinions was the ease of integration. Datadog connects with varied companies, cloud suppliers, and third-party instruments. Integrations labored easily out of the field, with useful documentation and prebuilt templates to get began. This integration depth was a significant win for groups working throughout a number of platforms, serving to them centralize their observability.

Nevertheless, for a lot of customers, the problem wasn’t getting Datadog linked; it was studying how one can profit from its superior capabilities. G2 reviewers stated that organising advanced alerts, fine-tuning dashboards, or absolutely leveraging all of the accessible instruments wasn’t all the time intuitive. Many leaned closely on documentation or reached out to assist when navigating superior workflows. 

Pricing is a typical theme amongst most of the merchandise I’ve listed to this point, and it additionally confirmed up for Datadog. Whereas the platform provides robust performance, prices can add up rapidly at scale. Whereas this wasn’t distinctive to Datadog, each purchaser ought to hold it in thoughts when evaluating observability instruments.

What I dislike about Datadog:

• Critiques regularly flagged the educational curve for superior options. It’s straightforward to start out, but it surely takes time to totally grasp dashboards, alerts, and configurations.
• Pricing was a recurring concern, with a number of groups declaring that prices elevated rapidly as they scaled their use.

What G2 customers dislike about Datadog:

“As our utilization grows and we monitor extra hosts and companies, processing prices additionally enhance. There’s a studying curve concerned in creating customized queries throughout the log administration interface.”

– Datadog Evaluate, Bikash S.

Rakuten SixthSense Observability supplies IT groups with a centralized place to trace points, perceive efficiency patterns, and act on alerts.

Many reviewers underlined monitoring capabilities as considered one of Rakuten SixthSense’s strongest factors. The device successfully tracks software efficiency and surfaces points throughout distributed programs. Critiques famous that the platform helped them rapidly spot bottlenecks or irregular conduct. The power to observe a number of functions and companies in actual time was stated to be a key power.

One other generally highlighted side was how user-friendly the platform is. Reviewers famous that the dashboard and interface had been straightforward to navigate, even for groups new to observability instruments. Many customers talked about that SixthSense made it easy to floor the suitable info with out overwhelming them with noise. The visible readability of the dashboards was typically referred to as out, serving to groups get a fast sense of general well being at a look. Individuals appreciated that the educational curve was comparatively light, with fundamental workflows feeling intuitive straight away.

The alerting system additionally stood out as a optimistic. Many customers favored how the device surfaced real-time alerts, permitting their groups to reply rapidly to rising points. Some reviewers famous that the alerts had been well-integrated with their workflows, making it simpler to coordinate responses and keep away from downtime. There have been additionally optimistic mentions of how the alerting system helped groups prioritize points by severity or urgency.

Regardless of the appreciation the alert function will get, a number of opinions identified that it might be improved. Some customers famous operating into false positives or noisy alerts. A couple of reviewers additionally stated they wanted to spend additional time fine-tuning thresholds or filters to get the alerts to work as supposed. Others expressed a need for extra superior alerting choices or integrations that might assist scale back guide triage work.

One other space the place reviewers noticed potential was within the documentation. Whereas many customers praised the assist group’s responsiveness, some famous that stronger documentation may assist them navigate superior configurations and troubleshooting extra independently. A couple of additionally talked about that having deeper guides or extra detailed examples would make it simpler to tailor the platform to their distinctive environments.

What I dislike about Rakuten SixthSense Observability:

• I learn throughout opinions that the alerting nonetheless wanted refinement, with occasional false positives or restricted customization.
• Documentation was additionally recognized as an space for enchancment, notably relating to superior configurations and troubleshooting.

What G2 customers dislike about Rakuten SixthSense Observability:

“ There are sometimes some false optimistic alerts, and for log monitoring, it is advisable to set up further dependencies.”

– Rakuten SixthSense Observability Evaluate, Nimesh D.

Google Cloud Console isn’t a specialised APM device, but it surely provides customers centralized entry to handle and monitor functions operating on Google Cloud Platform (GCP).

One of the constant strengths customers emphasised was real-time monitoring. Reviewers appreciated having the ability to see stay efficiency information for his or her GCP companies, monitor useful resource utilization, and spot system points as they emerged. A number of opinions famous that the platform made it straightforward to remain on prime of system well being with out counting on separate monitoring instruments. Whereas it’s not a full-featured APM platform, the monitoring it provides nonetheless supplied many groups with important operational insights.

Person-friendliness got here up as one other benefit. Many reviewers stated they discovered the console intuitive and simple to navigate, even when juggling a number of companies. The visible design of the dashboards and efficiency views made it simpler for groups to rapidly perceive what was occurring while not having to dive deep into logs or metrics.

The third standout level was buyer assist. A number of reviewers referred to as out Google’s assist group as responsive and useful when points did come up. Whether or not it was assist organising monitoring workflows or troubleshooting system alerts, customers felt that they had dependable backup after they wanted it.

That stated, GSC isn’t a purpose-built APM device. Whereas it supplies stable monitoring for GCP companies, it doesn’t provide the deep software tracing, superior alerting, or fine-grained efficiency analytics you’d discover in devoted APM platforms. Customers in search of full-stack observability would wish to pair GSC with extra specialised options.

One other space the place some reviewers needed enchancment was the UI. Whereas the console was usually seen as user-friendly, there have been mentions of inconsistent components, particularly when navigating throughout advanced service architectures. Whereas these weren’t dealbreakers, they added some friction to day-to-day use.

What I dislike about Google Cloud Console:

• Whereas it provides robust GCP monitoring, it isn’t as APM-focused, requiring further instruments for deep software insights.
• Some customers identified inconsistent UI components that added friction when managing advanced environments.

What G2 customers dislike about Google Cloud Console:

“Its documentation continues to be enhancing, they usually need to scale their area and availability zones.”

– Google Cloud Console Evaluate, Ankur V.

Able to act in your APM insights? Discover the finest incident administration instruments to assist your group reply quicker, coordinate fixes, and scale back downtime.