phpIPAM Review: Overview, Features, Pricing & Alternatives in 2025

Tired of chasing scattered IP addresses everywhere?

If you’re researching IP address management solutions, you’re probably overwhelmed by the hassle of tracking and organizing subnets, devices, and users across spreadsheets and outdated tools.

The reality is, manual tracking causes daily confusion and risky address conflicts—it slows down troubleshooting and exposes your network to preventable errors.

phpIPAM steps in with a streamlined, web-based platform designed to centralize all your IPv4/IPv6 management, automate subnet scanning, and bring clarity with visual mapping and granular permissions. Unlike bloated enterprise tools, phpIPAM focuses on delivering what admins actually need, without adding unwanted complexity.

In this review, I’ll break down how phpIPAM can bring order and accuracy to your network planning and documentation, so you can stop fighting your tools.

In this phpIPAM review, you’ll discover its features, pricing, integrations, usability, and where it stands compared to other IPAM options—all from a real user’s perspective.

Count on learning the features you need to confidently pick the right solution for your network and your workflow.

Let’s get started.

phpIPAM Overview

I’ve found phpIPAM to be a standout open-source project since its start around 2011. Its mission is refreshingly simple: provide a lightweight, modern, and genuinely user-friendly IP address management tool for network admins.

It’s built for network administrators across industries, especially for those who want control without enterprise costs. I find it’s the perfect fit where you have the technical skill for self-hosting but lack the budget for a hefty commercial license that comes with tools like SolarWinds.

As an open-source project, its development is entirely community-driven, with recent updates consistently enhancing its powerful API and device integration options. You’ll see the impact of this steady improvement through this phpIPAM review.

Unlike its complex commercial competitors, phpIPAM isn’t trying to be a massive, all-in-one network toolkit. I believe its true value is its dedicated and user-friendly IPAM focus, feeling like it was actually built by network admins for network admins.

You’ll find it used by a huge range of organizations, from small IT departments and universities to large internet service providers who require a flexible, self-hosted solution for managing their core infrastructure.

From what I’ve seen, their strategic priority remains on strong core IPAM functionality and robust API extensibility. This allows you to integrate it into your custom automation workflows instead of getting locked into a single vendor’s ecosystem.

Now let’s examine their core capabilities.

phpIPAM Features

Still managing IPs with spreadsheets?

phpIPAM features are designed to give you a modern, web-based solution for IP address management. Here are the five main phpIPAM features that solve common network administration headaches.

1. IPv4/IPv6 IP Address and Subnet Management

Struggling to keep track of every IP?

Without a centralized system, managing your IPv4 and IPv6 addresses becomes a tangled mess, leading to conflicts and wasted time.

phpIPAM provides a single, organized platform to manage both, allowing you to create sections and subnets hierarchically. What I appreciate is how effortlessly you can break down large networks into smaller, manageable segments, giving you instant clarity on available IP space. This feature makes it easy to visualize your entire network.

This means you can instantly see your network’s structure, reducing errors and saving you from endless searching.

2. Automatic Subnet Scanning and IP Status Checks

Tired of manual IP checks?

Manually verifying IP statuses is a time-consuming chore that often leads to outdated records and potential network issues.

This feature automates subnet scanning and IP status checks, keeping your database always current. From my testing, it excels at identifying used, free, and conflicting IPs in real-time, eliminating the need for tedious manual pings. It’s a huge time-saver.

The result is you get an accurate, up-to-date view of your IP usage without lifting a finger, preventing costly conflicts.

3. VLAN and VRF Management

Is your network segmentation a mystery?

Without clear documentation, managing VLANs and VRFs can become a confusing mess, increasing the risk of network misconfigurations.

phpIPAM helps you effectively document and organize your network’s logical structure, associating subnets with specific VLANs. This is where phpIPAM shines; it gives you a clear overview of your segmented network, helping prevent IP overlaps across different broadcast domains.

This means you gain complete visibility into your network’s logical layout, simplifying troubleshooting and enhancing security planning.

4. Domain Authentication and Permissions

Worried about unauthorized access to your IP data?

Without robust access controls, sensitive network information can be vulnerable, creating security risks and management headaches.

phpIPAM supports authentication with AD, LDAP, and RADIUS, letting users log in with existing credentials. It also offers per-group section/subnet permissions, meaning you can control who views or modifies specific IP ranges. This feature ensures that only authorized personnel can access critical network data.

So your team gets secure, granular control over network data, enhancing security and streamlining user management.

5. REST API and Custom Fields

Need to tailor your IPAM to unique needs?

Standard IPAM solutions often lack flexibility, making it hard to integrate with existing tools or track specific, non-standard information.

phpIPAM offers a REST API for integration with other systems like DNS and DHCP, enabling automation. Additionally, the ability to add custom fields is incredibly powerful, letting you store specific details about devices or subnets. This means you can truly customize the system to fit your organization’s unique requirements.

What you get is a highly adaptable system that integrates with your existing infrastructure and stores all the data critical to your operations.

These phpIPAM features work together to create a complete and flexible IP address management solution. What a relief to have all your IP data organized.

phpIPAM Pricing

Worried about unexpected software costs?

phpIPAM pricing is entirely free and open-source, providing a highly cost-effective solution for IP address management without any licensing fees.

Plan	Price & Features
Core Software	Free & Open-Source • IPv4/IPv6 IP Address and Subnet Management • Automatic Subnet Scanning and IP Status Checks • VLAN and VRF Management • Domain Authentication (AD, LDAP, RADIUS) and Permissions • REST API and Custom Fields

1. Value Assessment

Incredible value, zero licensing cost.

From my cost analysis, phpIPAM offers a robust feature set that directly competes with paid IPAM solutions, but without any recurring subscription fees. This means your budget gets to focus on hosting and operational costs, significantly lowering your total cost of ownership compared to commercial alternatives.

This allows you to allocate resources to other critical IT infrastructure projects rather than software licenses.

2. Trial/Demo Options

Try it immediately, no barriers.

phpIPAM doesn’t offer a traditional trial because the entire software is available for free download and self-hosting. What I found valuable is how you can immediately deploy and test its full capabilities in your environment without any sales engagements or time limits.

This lets you fully validate its fit for your network before committing any resources beyond your existing infrastructure.

3. Plan Comparison

One powerful, free solution.

Unlike most software, phpIPAM doesn’t have different pricing tiers; you get all features from the single, free open-source distribution. What stands out is how this eliminates the need for complex feature comparisons between plans, ensuring you have access to everything you need from day one.

This helps you match pricing (or lack thereof) to actual usage requirements without artificial limitations.

My Take: phpIPAM’s free and open-source model makes it an unparalleled value proposition for organizations of all sizes, offering enterprise-grade features without the price tag.

The overall phpIPAM pricing reflects unbeatable value with zero software licensing fees.

phpIPAM Reviews

What do real customers actually think?

My analysis of phpIPAM reviews provides insights into real user experiences, helping you understand what actual customers think about this IP address management software and its real-world performance.

1. Overall User Satisfaction

Users seem quite pleased, given the cost.

From my review analysis, overall user satisfaction with phpIPAM is generally positive, especially considering it’s a free, open-source solution. What I found in user feedback is how its ability to replace manual spreadsheets is frequently celebrated, providing immediate value without licensing costs.

This indicates you can expect a functional solution that significantly improves IP management.

2. Common Praise Points

The open-source nature is a huge plus.

Users consistently highlight phpIPAM’s cost-effectiveness, emphasizing its free and open-source model. From customer feedback, the comprehensive feature set for IPAM—including IPv4/IPv6, VLAN, and subnet management—is frequently lauded, especially for a no-cost solution.

This means you’ll get a robust IPAM tool without the typical commercial software price tag.

3. Frequent Complaints

Installation often proves challenging.

A recurring complaint in phpIPAM reviews is the complexity of its installation and the steep learning curve, particularly for those unfamiliar with Linux environments or server configurations. What stands out in user feedback is how technical expertise is often required for setup, which can be a barrier for new users.

These issues often require dedicated IT resources or technical proficiency to overcome.

The overall phpIPAM reviews reflect a solution offering great value, provided you have the technical know-how for initial setup.

Best phpIPAM Alternatives

Which IPAM solution best fits your needs?

The best phpIPAM alternatives include several strong options, each better suited for different business situations, budget considerations, and network management priorities you might have.

1. SolarWinds IP Address Manager (IPAM)

Prioritizing robust automation and professional support?

SolarWinds IPAM excels for larger enterprises needing extensive automation, deep integration with other network tools, and a highly polished UI. What I found comparing options is that SolarWinds offers a more “set-it-and-forget-it” experience for core IPAM tasks, often gathering more comprehensive data than phpIPAM.

Choose SolarWinds if your budget allows for a commercial solution and you need extensive vendor support.

2. Infoblox DDI

Seeking enterprise-grade, integrated DDI and security?

Infoblox DDI is ideal for large organizations requiring a tightly integrated DNS, DHCP, and IPAM solution with advanced DNS security. From my competitive analysis, Infoblox provides robust DDI with high availability, perfect for critical data center environments where unified management is paramount.

Consider this alternative when you need comprehensive, enterprise-level DDI and have a substantial budget.

3. ManageEngine OpUtils

Need broader network tools beyond just IPAM?

ManageEngine OpUtils is a strong commercial alternative if you need more than just IPAM, offering 30+ network troubleshooting and monitoring tools. Alternative-wise, OpUtils integrates IPAM with broader network utilities, providing features like switch port mapping and rogue device detection in one suite.

You’ll want to consider OpUtils if you have a modest budget for a paid solution with extended network functionality.

4. NetBox

Focusing on comprehensive DCIM alongside IPAM?

NetBox shines when your primary need extends beyond IPAM to include detailed data center infrastructure management (DCIM). From my analysis, NetBox is a highly extensible “source of truth” for both network and infrastructure documentation, offering more comprehensive DCIM capabilities like rack and circuit management.

Choose NetBox if you require a highly flexible, API-driven solution for complete network and infrastructure documentation.

The best phpIPAM alternatives truly depend on your specific business size, budget, and functional needs more than a simple feature list comparison.

phpIPAM Setup

How complex is phpIPAM implementation?

In this phpIPAM review, I’ll walk you through the practical aspects of getting phpIPAM deployed and adopted in your business, setting realistic expectations for the journey.

1. Setup Complexity & Timeline

This isn’t a point-and-click install.

From my implementation analysis, phpIPAM setup requires a solid grasp of Linux, web servers, and databases. What I found about deployment is that it “takes a while to get phpIPAM setup”, especially when populating detailed network information. Plan for weeks rather than days for a fully functional system.

You’ll need to allocate dedicated IT time and resources for initial configuration and dependency management upfront.

2. Technical Requirements & Integration

Be ready for a hands-on technical environment.

phpIPAM is PHP-based with MySQL/PostgreSQL, requiring CentOS or Debian servers; it doesn’t run on Windows. From my analysis, your existing infrastructure needs to support these technologies, and large subnets may require database optimization to prevent slow loading times.

Prepare your IT team to provision the correct server environment and ensure all technical dependencies are met.

3. Training & Change Management

User adoption has its own learning curve.

While the web interface is user-friendly for daily tasks, new users without network management experience will face a steep learning curve. From my analysis, successful adoption requires more than just technical setup; it means guiding your team through new IPAM workflows.

Plan for internal training sessions and provide ongoing support to help your team navigate new features and configurations effectively.

4. Support & Success Factors

Community support is a critical component.

As an open-source tool, phpIPAM relies on an active community for support, which means you won’t get dedicated vendor assistance. From my analysis, troubleshooting issues will often require self-reliance or engagement with community forums rather than direct support tickets.

For your implementation to succeed, you should foster internal expertise and be prepared to leverage community resources for problem-solving.

Overall, phpIPAM setup requires technical proficiency and self-reliance, but its open-source nature provides excellent value for businesses willing to manage the implementation internally.

Bottom Line

Is phpIPAM the right fit for your network?

This phpIPAM review shows a powerful open-source solution best suited for technically adept teams seeking a customizable and cost-effective IP address management system.

1. Who This Works Best For

IT teams with the technical chops and budget constraints.

phpIPAM is ideal for network administrators and IT managers in organizations of all sizes, especially those with Linux OS and web server administration experience. What I found about target users is that technical teams needing a free, customizable IPAM will find this solution perfect for managing IPv4/IPv6, VLANs, and subnets.

You’ll succeed if you prioritize open-source flexibility and are comfortable with self-hosting and community-driven support rather than dedicated vendor help.

2. Overall Strengths

Zero licensing cost delivers immediate ROI.

The software excels with its free, open-source nature, offering robust features for IP address management, including comprehensive IPv4/IPv6 support and detailed subnet tracking. From my comprehensive analysis, its web-based interface provides centralized access, making it easy to manage your network from anywhere, without expensive licensing.

These strengths mean you get a powerful IPAM tool that significantly reduces operational costs, allowing your budget to stretch further for other IT needs.

3. Key Limitations

Installation and support require technical expertise.

A primary drawback is the complexity of setting up phpIPAM, often demanding proficiency in configuring web servers and databases on Linux. Based on this review, you will rely on community support rather than professional vendor assistance, which might not suit businesses needing immediate, dedicated help for critical issues.

I’d say these limitations are manageable if you have the internal technical resources, but they could be a deal-breaker for teams lacking specialized expertise.

4. Final Recommendation

phpIPAM earns a strong recommendation for specific users.

You should choose this software if your organization has a capable IT team willing to self-host and customize their IPAM solution, prioritizing cost savings and open-source control. From my analysis, this works best for hands-on network professionals who value flexibility over a polished, out-of-the-box commercial experience.

My confidence level is high for technically proficient teams but drops for those preferring plug-and-play commercial alternatives with vendor support.

This phpIPAM review demonstrates strong value for the right technical team, while also highlighting the importance of assessing your internal resources and support preferences.