Softwr

Software · head to head

Airbrake vs PlanetScale

Airbrake logo

Airbrake

Software

Error Tracking and Performance Monitoring

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
PlanetScale logo

PlanetScale

Software

The MySQL-compatible serverless database

From
$15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Airbrake has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Airbrake data retention is 30 days on every plan, including the $799 a month Business tier; PlanetScale eBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • They diverge on capability: Airbrake covers Error tracking, PlanetScale covers Database Branching.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbrake and PlanetScale actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbrake and PlanetScale differ
AttributeAirbrakePlanetScale
Starting priceFree$15/month
Pricing modelusage-basedsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, ApiCloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure)
Founded20082018

Identical on both: 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
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Api support

Only in PlanetScale

  • Database Branching
  • Non-blocking Schema Changes
  • Insights
  • Horizontal Scaling
  • Connection Pooling
  • Query Caching
  • Automatic Backups
  • Global Replication

Both cover

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

PlanetScale

  • MySQL database hosting with automatic failover and replicationnot Airbrake
  • Vitess-based sharding for horizontal scaling across large datasetsnot Airbrake
  • Cloud provider flexibility across AWS, GCP, Azure with 60+ regionsnot Airbrake
  • Cost-effective database clusters using ARM64 architecture optionsnot 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

PlanetScale

  • EBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • EBS Non-HA single-node option lacks redundancy and automatic failover
  • Pricing varies by cloud provider and region, requiring queries for specific rates
  • ARM64 architecture only available on EBS tier, not Metal deployments

Pricing, plan by plan

Airbrake

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

PlanetScale

$15/month

No published plan breakdown. See the PlanetScale review.

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 PlanetScale if

  • You need database branching.
  • You work on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
  • You also want non-blocking schema changes.
PlanetScale review

Questions people ask

Is Airbrake or PlanetScale better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbrake starts at Free and PlanetScale at $15/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbrake or PlanetScale?
Airbrake has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Airbrake and $15/month for PlanetScale.
Does Airbrake or PlanetScale run on more platforms?
Airbrake runs on Web, Api. PlanetScale runs on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
Can I use Airbrake for free?
Yes. Airbrake has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. PlanetScale starts at $15/month.
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 PlanetScale is typically brought in for.
What can Airbrake do that PlanetScale cannot?
Airbrake covers Error tracking, Performance monitoring, Deploy tracking, Custom notifications. PlanetScale covers Database Branching, Non-blocking Schema Changes, Insights, Horizontal Scaling. Both handle Web support.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Airbrake

More on PlanetScale

Keep looking

Other head to heads