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Software · head to head

Airbrake vs Kibana

Airbrake logo

Airbrake

Software

Error Tracking and Performance Monitoring

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Kibana logo

Kibana

Software

Visualize Your Elasticsearch Data

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Airbrake data retention is 30 days on every plan, including the $799 a month Business tier; Kibana requires Elasticsearch; it is a front end for data held there rather than a standalone analytics tool
  • They diverge on capability: Airbrake covers Error tracking, Kibana covers Data visualization.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbrake and Kibana actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbrake and Kibana differ
AttributeAirbrakeKibana
Pricing modelusage-basedopen-source
Founded20082011

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Airbrake

  • Error tracking
  • Performance monitoring
  • Deploy tracking
  • Custom notifications

Only in Kibana

  • Data visualization
  • Dashboard creation
  • Log discovery
  • Alerting

Both cover

  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support
  • Api support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Airbrake

  • Error and exception monitoring for web applicationsnot Kibana
  • Performance monitoring alongside error trackingnot Kibana
  • Alerting a team when a deploy introduces a spike in errorsnot Kibana
  • Tracking errors across multiple projects in one accountnot Kibana

Kibana

  • Querying and visualising data held in Elasticsearchnot Airbrake
  • Dashboards over log and metric datanot Airbrake
  • Anomaly detection with machine learning jobsnot Airbrake
  • Geospatial analysis on indexed location datanot Airbrake
  • Alerting on query thresholdsnot Airbrake

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Airbrake

  • Data retention is 30 days on every plan, including the $799 a month Business tier
  • The entry plan at $19 a month covers 25,000 errors and 7,500 events
  • Errors beyond the plan quota are billed on demand
  • Audit logs and spike forgiveness require the Pro tier
  • The lowest tier is limited to 1 user and 1 team

Kibana

  • Requires Elasticsearch; it is a front end for data held there rather than a standalone analytics tool
  • Self-managed means running and scaling the Elastic stack yourself
  • Cost is not Kibana's own; it follows whichever Elastic deployment sits underneath

Pricing, plan by plan

Airbrake

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Error tracking
    • Performance monitoring
    • Deploy tracking

Kibana

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Data visualization
    • Dashboard creation
    • Log discovery

Which should you pick?

Choose Airbrake if

  • You need error tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want performance monitoring.
Airbrake review

Choose Kibana if

  • You need data visualization.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want dashboard creation.
Kibana review

Questions people ask

Is Airbrake or Kibana better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbrake starts at Free and Kibana at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbrake or Kibana?
Airbrake starts at Free and Kibana at Free.
Does Airbrake or Kibana run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Airbrake for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Airbrake best used for?
Airbrake is most often used for error and exception monitoring for web applications, performance monitoring alongside error tracking, alerting a team when a deploy introduces a spike in errors, tracking errors across multiple projects in one account. Of those, error and exception monitoring for web applications and performance monitoring alongside error tracking are not what Kibana is typically brought in for.
What can Airbrake do that Kibana cannot?
Airbrake covers Error tracking, Performance monitoring, Deploy tracking, Custom notifications. Kibana covers Data visualization, Dashboard creation, Log discovery, Alerting. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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