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Software · head to head

Airbrake vs Retrace

Airbrake logo

Airbrake

Software

Error Tracking and Performance Monitoring

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Retrace logo

Retrace

Software

Application Performance Monitoring and 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; Retrace end of Life scheduled for March 31, 2027; the product is being discontinued
  • They diverge on capability: Airbrake covers Error tracking, Retrace covers Log management.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbrake and Retrace actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbrake and Retrace differ
AttributeAirbrakeRetrace
Pricing modelusage-basedsubscription
PlatformsWeb, ApiWeb, .NET, Java, PHP, Node.js, Python
Founded20082012

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Retrace

  • Log management
  • Application performance tracking
  • Error detection
  • Code profiling
  • Performance baselines

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

Retrace

  • Log monitoringnot Airbrake
  • Application performancenot Airbrake
  • Security analyticsnot Airbrake
  • Troubleshootingnot 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

Retrace

  • End of Life scheduled for March 31, 2027; the product is being discontinued
  • Costs escalate quickly with per-server billing model, expensive at scale
  • User interface and dashboard criticisms; UI is outdated and difficult to use
  • Logging latency; logs can take time to appear and are not instant
  • Less mature support for Node.js, Python, and newer ecosystems
  • Reporting issues where process restarts provide only timeline without root cause data
  • Reliability concerns; monitoring has stopped collecting traces with no warning

Pricing, plan by plan

Airbrake

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

Retrace

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log management
    • Application performance tracking
    • Error detection

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 Retrace if

  • You need log management.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, .NET, Java, PHP, Node.js, Python.
  • You also want application performance tracking.
Retrace review

Questions people ask

Is Airbrake or Retrace better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbrake starts at Free and Retrace at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbrake or Retrace?
Airbrake starts at Free and Retrace at Free.
Does Airbrake or Retrace run on more platforms?
Airbrake runs on Web, Api. Retrace runs on Web, .NET, Java, PHP, Node.js, Python.
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 Retrace is typically brought in for.
What can Airbrake do that Retrace cannot?
Airbrake covers Error tracking, Performance monitoring, Deploy tracking, Custom notifications. Retrace covers Log management, Application performance tracking, Error detection, Code profiling. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Retrace: What does Retrace monitor?

Retrace provides application performance monitoring (APM), centralized log management, error tracking, code profiling, and real user monitoring (RUM). It aggregates logs from applications and servers in one place.

Source
Retrace: What programming languages does Retrace support?

Retrace supports .NET, .NET Core, PHP, Node.js, Ruby, Python, and Java applications. Support for Node.js, Python, and newer ecosystems is noted as less mature.

Source
Retrace: Is Retrace being discontinued?

Yes. Retrace will reach End of Life on March 31, 2027. Users should plan to migrate to alternative solutions.

Source
Retrace: What databases and services does Retrace integrate with?

Retrace supports SQL Server, Oracle, PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis, MongoDB, Elasticsearch, and cloud platforms like AWS and Azure.

Source
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