IPAM Software Compared: Open Source, DDI Suites and Billing IPAM

IPAM software records which subnets, VLANs and IP addresses you have, who holds each one and what is still free. The options fall into three groups: open source tools such as NetBox, phpIPAM and NIPAP; commercial DDI suites from Infoblox, BlueCat, EfficientIP and SolarWinds that also manage DNS and DHCP; and IPAM built into hosting billing.

How this was sourced. FluxBilling publishes this page and sells billing software with IPAM included, so it competes with some of the options below. Versions and product descriptions were read on each project’s repository or vendor’s own site on 2 November 2026. None of the commercial DDI pages we read showed a list price, so none is quoted.

What does IPAM software do?

IP address management replaces the list of subnets that lives in someone’s head or a shared sheet. The core IPAM features are the same everywhere:

• A subnet tree. Your allocations from the registry or upstream, split into smaller blocks, with parent and child relationships and utilisation per block.
• IPv4 and IPv6. Both families, with IPv6 handled by prefix rather than by listing every address.
• VLANs and sites. Which VLAN and which location each subnet belongs to.
• Address records. Status, owner, device, MAC address, hostname and notes per address.
• Search and history. Find an address fast during an abuse report, and see who assigned it.
• An API. So provisioning scripts take addresses from IPAM instead of guessing.

Beyond that core the products split. DDI suites add the DNS and DHCP servers themselves. Network source-of-truth tools add device, cabling and circuit models for automation. Billing-integrated IPAM adds the customer, the service and the invoice. Our explainer what is IPAM covers the basics in more depth.

Which IPAM software options are there?

Option	Type	Status read 2 Nov 2026	Strongest at
NetBox	Open source (Apache-2.0), DCIM and IPAM	v4.7.4, released 27 Oct 2026; hosted NetBox Cloud from NetBox Labs	Network source of truth for automation
Nautobot	Open source (Apache-2.0)	v3.2.8, released 27 Oct 2026	Source of truth plus automation platform
phpIPAM	Open source IPAM	v1.8.3 on GitHub, 9 Sep 2026	Classic IPAM: subnets, VLANs, VRFs, subnet scanning, REST API
NIPAP	Open source (MIT)	Latest tag v0.32.7; repository updated 27 Oct 2026	Prefix planning for large address plans
Infoblox	Commercial DDI	NIOS DDI, Universal DDI suite, NIOS-X as a Service	IPAM and DHCP across hybrid and multi-cloud enterprise networks
BlueCat	Commercial DDI	Integrity, Micetro, Horizon (SaaS-first)	API-first DNS, DHCP and IPAM
EfficientIP	Commercial DDI	SOLIDserver DDI appliances; IPAM for Microsoft and Linux DNS/DHCP	DDI appliances, registry declaration management
SolarWinds IP Address Manager	Commercial, self-hosted	Part of SolarWinds Observability Self-Hosted; price on quote	IPAM next to network monitoring, DHCP and DNS settings
FluxBilling	IPAM inside hosting billing	Included on every plan	Assigning and releasing addresses with orders and cancellations

Open source IPAM

The open source tools cost nothing to license and are actively maintained: NetBox and Nautobot both released new versions on 27 October 2026, NIPAP’s repository was updated the same day, and phpIPAM shipped v1.8.3 in September. NetBox and Nautobot model far more than addresses, which suits network teams that automate switch and router configuration from a single source of truth; our round-up of open source DCIM software covers their rack side. phpIPAM is closer to a pure IPAM, with IPv4 and IPv6, VLAN and VRF management, subnet scanning, a PowerDNS integration and a REST API. NIPAP focuses on prefix planning.

The trade-off is the same for all of them: you host them, upgrade them and write the glue to anything that sells or provisions servers.

Commercial DDI suites

DDI stands for DNS, DHCP and IPAM. Infoblox, BlueCat and EfficientIP sell platforms that run or orchestrate the DNS and DHCP services as well as tracking addresses, delivered as appliances or as a service depending on the product. SolarWinds IP Address Manager is self-hosted, sold as part of SolarWinds Observability, and manages DHCP and DNS settings from the same interface. These are built for enterprise networks with many sites and clouds. None of the four vendor pages we read showed a list price; Infoblox’s pricing page describes token packs bought for a contract term.

IPAM inside hosting billing

A hosting provider’s IP problem is a little different. Addresses are a product: they are assigned when a server or VPS is ordered, billed as extras, and must come back to the pool when the customer leaves. IPAM that lives in the billing system does that in the same step as the order or cancellation. An “IPAM module” for an existing billing system aims at the same result through a sync.

Can you run IPAM in a spreadsheet?

You can, and most providers start that way. An IPAM spreadsheet works while one person allocates addresses and the estate fits on one screen. It breaks in predictable ways:

• Two people assign the same address because neither saw the other’s edit.
• Cancelled services keep their addresses because nobody updated the sheet, so the pool looks fuller than it is.
• IPv6 does not fit: a /48 has more /64 networks than any sheet has rows.
• Nothing checks a new subnet against the ones that already exist, so overlaps go unnoticed until traffic breaks.

The point to move is usually the first duplicate address, or the first time an abuse report takes an hour because the sheet was wrong about who held the IP.

Is there SaaS IPAM?

Yes. NetBox Labs offers NetBox Cloud as a hosted NetBox, BlueCat describes Horizon as SaaS-first, and Infoblox sells NIOS-X as a Service. Billing platforms that run as a managed service also carry their IPAM with them. FluxBilling’s Lite, Starter and Professional plans are managed, so its IPAM is hosted for you; the Business plan can also be self-hosted.

When you evaluate an IPAM service, ask where the data is stored, how you export it, and whether the API is rate-limited at the volume your provisioning needs.

What does a hosting provider need from IPAM?

1. Automatic assignment on order. The right size of block from the right pool in the right location, without a human picking it.
2. No duplicates under load. Two orders at the same second must not get the same address, which needs locking, not just a uniqueness check after the fact.
3. Release on termination. Addresses and subnets back to the pool when a service ends, and the switch port cleaned up.
4. IPv6 by prefix. A /64 or /56 per customer, tracked as one object. Our guide to IPv6 allocation and billing covers the sizing.
5. Roles for pools. Customer addresses, management addresses and transit links kept apart so a management IP is never sold.
6. A record of who holds what. For abuse handling and registry declarations.

Rack and hardware records are the other half of the picture; our overview of DCIM tools explains how IPAM fits next to inventory, cabling and power.

How does FluxBilling’s IPAM work?

FluxBilling is billing and automation software for hosting providers, and its IPAM shares a database with orders and invoices. What it does:

• Subnets and VLANs: IPv4 and IPv6 subnets in a parent and child tree, with split and merge, and VLANs per location or datacenter.
• Roles: subnets are marked for public distribution, management, IP transit or virtual servers, so each kind of address comes from its own pool.
• Automatic allocation: subnets flagged as auto-allocatable, in an order you set, feed dedicated server and VPS orders by location. Allocation locks the subnet row and skips address rows another order is holding, so two orders cannot take the same address.
• Release: when a dedicated server is terminated or its deployment fails, the server returns to stock, its addresses and subnets return to the pool, and the switch port is reset.
• Switch automation: access VLANs and routed port addresses can be pushed to Cisco IOS and Arista EOS switches when addresses are allocated or released; see the switch inventory docs.
• Housekeeping: addresses and subnets can be marked unavailable with a reason; each address keeps its MAC, hostname, notes and who assigned it; an IPv4 capacity view shows what is left.
• Modes: IPAM runs in full (automatic), manual or disabled mode.

What it does not do: it is not a DDI product. It does not host or edit DNS zones, and its DHCP use is limited to PXE boot reservations during bare-metal installs. It also has none of the network modelling that NetBox or Nautobot offer for automation beyond the switch port. If you need DNS and DHCP management for an enterprise network, a DDI suite is the better choice.

IPAM is included on every plan, from €4.95 a month excluding VAT ($5.95 for US accounts); see pricing. How it fits a server business end to end is in billing software for bare-metal providers. Setup is described in the IPAM documentation.

Questions people ask

What is the best IPAM software?

It depends on the job. For a network team automating configuration, NetBox or Nautobot. For a straightforward free IPAM, phpIPAM. For enterprise DNS and DHCP with IPAM on top, a DDI suite such as Infoblox, BlueCat or EfficientIP. For a hosting company that sells addresses, IPAM tied to billing.

What is an IPAM service?

Usually a hosted IPAM: the vendor runs the software and you use it through a browser and API. NetBox Cloud, BlueCat Horizon and Infoblox NIOS-X as a Service are examples, and managed billing platforms with built-in IPAM work the same way.

Is phpIPAM still maintained?

Yes. Its latest GitHub release on 2 November 2026 was v1.8.3, published on 9 September 2026, and the repository had changes on 27 October 2026.

What is the difference between IPAM and DDI?

IPAM tracks addresses and subnets. DDI adds the DNS and DHCP services that hand out and resolve those addresses, managed from the same system.

Which IPAM features matter most for hosting?

Automatic assignment on order, locking against duplicates, release on cancellation, IPv6 by prefix and separate pools for customer, management and transit addresses.

Sources, read 2 November 2026: GitHub repositories netbox-community/netbox, nautobot/nautobot, phpipam/phpipam, SpriteLink/NIPAP; phpipam.net; infoblox.com IPAM and DHCP page; bluecatnetworks.com; efficientip.com SOLIDserver DDI page; solarwinds.com IP Address Manager page. NetBox, NetBox Cloud, Nautobot, phpIPAM, NIPAP, Infoblox, NIOS, BlueCat, Micetro, EfficientIP, SOLIDserver, SolarWinds, PowerDNS, Cisco and Arista are trademarks of their respective owners. FluxBilling is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.