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Software · head to head

Airbrake vs Loki

Airbrake logo

Airbrake

Software

Error Tracking and Performance Monitoring

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Loki logo

Loki

Software

Like Prometheus but for Logs

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; Loki the Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention
  • They diverge on capability: Airbrake covers Error tracking, Loki covers Log aggregation.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbrake and Loki actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbrake and Loki differ
AttributeAirbrakeLoki
Pricing modelusage-basedopen-source
Founded20082014

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 Loki

  • Log aggregation
  • Label-based indexing
  • Real-time log streaming
  • LogQL query language

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 Loki
  • Performance monitoring alongside error trackingnot Loki
  • Alerting a team when a deploy introduces a spike in errorsnot Loki
  • Tracking errors across multiple projects in one accountnot Loki

Loki

  • Aggregating application and infrastructure logs with label based indexingnot Airbrake
  • Querying logs alongside metrics in Grafananot 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

Loki

  • The Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention
  • Paid log pricing is split across three separate meters, at $0.050 per GB processed, $0.400 per GB written and $0.100 per GB retained
  • Retaining logs is billed separately from ingesting them, so keeping data costs on an ongoing basis rather than once
  • The Pro plan carries a $19 a month platform fee before any usage charges

Pricing, plan by plan

Airbrake

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

Loki

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log aggregation
    • Label-based indexing
    • Real-time log streaming

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 Loki if

  • You need log aggregation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want label-based indexing.
Loki review

Questions people ask

Is Airbrake or Loki better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbrake starts at Free and Loki at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbrake or Loki?
Airbrake starts at Free and Loki at Free.
Does Airbrake or Loki 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 Loki is typically brought in for.
What can Airbrake do that Loki cannot?
Airbrake covers Error tracking, Performance monitoring, Deploy tracking, Custom notifications. Loki covers Log aggregation, Label-based indexing, Real-time log streaming, LogQL query language. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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