NetAlertX vs WatchYourLAN
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted monitoring & status options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
NetAlertX
Network presence scanner and intrusion detection
VS
WatchYourLAN
Lightweight network IP scanner with web UI
| Feature | NetAlertX | WatchYourLAN |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 91 · Excellent | 49 · Fair |
| Category | Monitoring & Status | Monitoring & Status |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Python | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 7,194 | ★ 7,634 |
| First released | 2021 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Fing | Fing, Angry IP Scanner |
What are NetAlertX and WatchYourLAN?
NetAlertX
NetAlertX scans your local network and notifies you when new devices connect or known devices disappear. It acts as a lightweight presence and intrusion-detection tool for home networks.
- New device detection
- Presence tracking
- Many notification channels
- Network device inventory
WatchYourLAN
WatchYourLAN is a lightweight network IP scanner with a web UI that tracks devices appearing and disappearing on your LAN. It logs history and can notify on changes.
- LAN device scanning
- Online/offline history
- Web UI
- Notification hooks
NetAlertX vs WatchYourLAN: key differences
NetAlertX is written in Python, while WatchYourLAN is built with Go. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for NetAlertX versus MIT for WatchYourLAN. WatchYourLAN is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for NetAlertX.
Why pick each one
Choose NetAlertX if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 7.2k GitHub stars
Choose WatchYourLAN if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 7.6k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is NetAlertX or WatchYourLAN better?
Neither is universally better. WatchYourLAN has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are NetAlertX and WatchYourLAN free and open-source?
Yes. NetAlertX is licensed under GPL-3.0 and WatchYourLAN under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run NetAlertX and WatchYourLAN with Docker?
NetAlertX: yes. WatchYourLAN: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, NetAlertX or WatchYourLAN?
WatchYourLAN has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for NetAlertX. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.