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tcpdump vs netsniff-ng: catalog facts
tcpdump	netsniff-ng
Free Free and open source under the BSD licence.	Free Free to download and use.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line	Linux, Command line
Available on practically every Unix system, including embedded ones Writes standard pcap files that every other tool can read	Capture, analysis and traffic generation in one toolkit Built for high packet rates on Linux
Needs elevated privileges to capture Output is dense and takes practice to read	Linux only Command-line tools with no graphical interface
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: BSD-3-Clause	License not stated
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 22, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.