Pulse is purpose-built for Proxmox VE with real-time WebSocket updates for VMs and LXC containers. Beszel monitors any Linux server and Docker host with a clean dashboard. Your choice depends on whether you run Proxmox or general Linux servers.
Beszel is a general-purpose server monitoring tool for any Linux host and Docker environment, offering historical metrics, alerts, and multi-user support. Proxmox Pulse is a specialized real-time monitoring dashboard built exclusively for Proxmox VE nodes, VMs, and LXC containers. Choose Beszel if you monitor Docker hosts, VPS instances, or mixed infrastructure. Choose Pulse if you exclusively run Proxmox and want real-time VM and container visibility.
Last updated: 2026-03-20| Feature | Proxmox Pulse | Beszel |
|---|---|---|
| Target Platform | Proxmox VE only | Any Linux server + Docker |
| Starting Price | Free (Pro: $9/mo) | $3/mo (hosted on InstaPods) |
| Real-Time Updates | WebSocket-based (near-instant) | 1-minute polling intervals |
| VM Monitoring | Yes (native Proxmox VMs) | No (servers and Docker only) |
| Docker Monitoring | Basic container stats | Per-container CPU, memory, network |
| Multi-Host | Proxmox cluster nodes | Any mix of servers |
| Historical Data | Limited | Full history (days/weeks/months) |
| Alerting | Basic alerts | Threshold alerts (CPU, memory, disk) |
| Setup | One-line installer (Proxmox only) | Hub + agent (any Linux) |
| Multi-User | Limited | Yes (multiple users + OAuth) |
| Source Code | MIT license (open source) | MIT license (open source) |
Limitations that push you toward self-hosting.
Pulse only works with Proxmox VE. If you have any non-Proxmox servers - VPS instances, bare-metal Linux, cloud VMs - Pulse can't monitor them. You'd need a separate tool anyway.
Pulse focuses on real-time monitoring. It doesn't provide the same depth of historical metrics that Beszel offers for trend analysis and capacity planning.
While Pulse can show LXC container stats on Proxmox, it wasn't designed for Docker monitoring. Beszel provides dedicated per-container CPU, memory, and network tracking for Docker workloads.
Pulse does one thing well: Proxmox monitoring. If your infrastructure grows beyond Proxmox, you'll need to add another monitoring tool. Beszel scales across any Linux environment.
What you get when you own your infrastructure.
Monitor any Linux server: Proxmox hosts, Docker hosts, VPS instances, Raspberry Pis, cloud VMs. One tool for your entire infrastructure, not just Proxmox.
Beszel provides dedicated per-container metrics for CPU, memory, and network. Built for the Docker-first workflows that most self-hosters use today.
Track metrics over days, weeks, and months. Spot trends, plan capacity, and diagnose intermittent issues with full historical context.
Share your monitoring dashboard with team members. Beszel supports multiple users and OAuth authentication, making it suitable for small teams.
Monitoring a mixed setup: 2 Proxmox nodes + 3 Docker VPS instances.
Yes. Beszel can monitor Proxmox hosts as Linux servers, tracking CPU, memory, disk, and network metrics. However, it doesn't have native Proxmox API integration for VM-level stats the way Pulse does. For Proxmox-specific VM and LXC monitoring, Pulse is the better choice.
If your homelab is entirely Proxmox-based, Pulse gives you the best Proxmox-specific experience with real-time VM stats. If you have a mix of Docker hosts, VPS instances, and Proxmox nodes, Beszel covers everything in one dashboard. Some users run both: Pulse for Proxmox details, Beszel for everything else.
Proxmox Pulse (github.com/rcourtman/pulse) is a free, open-source real-time monitoring dashboard built specifically for Proxmox VE. It uses WebSockets for near-instant updates on node, VM, and LXC container status. It installs with a single command on your Proxmox server.
For most homelabs, Beszel is the best starting point. It's lightweight (<10MB RAM per agent), covers servers and Docker containers, and takes minutes to set up. Add Proxmox Pulse if you run Proxmox and want VM-level detail. Add Dozzle if you need Docker log viewing. Add Uptime Kuma if you need endpoint monitoring.
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