Softwr

Software · head to head

Airbrake vs Rollbar

Airbrake logo

Airbrake

Software

Error Tracking and Performance Monitoring

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Rollbar logo

Rollbar

Software

Real-Time Error Tracking and Debugging

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; Rollbar the free plan allows 5,000 occurrences a month with 30 day retention
  • They diverge on capability: Airbrake covers Performance monitoring, Rollbar covers Real-time alerts.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbrake and Rollbar actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbrake and Rollbar differ
AttributeAirbrakeRollbar
Founded20082012

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), 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

  • Performance monitoring
  • Deploy tracking
  • Custom notifications

Only in Rollbar

  • Real-time alerts
  • Error grouping
  • Source maps

Both cover

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

Rollbar

  • Tracking application errors and exceptions across deploymentsnot Airbrake
  • Grouping and alerting on production error occurrencesnot 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

Rollbar

  • The free plan allows 5,000 occurrences a month with 30 day retention
  • Retention is a paid ladder rather than a setting, at up to 90 days on Essentials and up to 180 on Advanced
  • Advanced alerting, the RQL analytics query language and SCIM provisioning are excluded from the free plan
  • Enterprise requires a $4M annual plan minimum
  • No price is published for Essentials or Advanced, so only the free tier has a visible cost

Pricing, plan by plan

Airbrake

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

Rollbar

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Error tracking
    • Real-time alerts
    • Error grouping

Which should you pick?

Choose Airbrake if

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

Choose Rollbar if

  • You need real-time alerts.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want error grouping.
Rollbar review

Questions people ask

Is Airbrake or Rollbar better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbrake starts at Free and Rollbar at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbrake or Rollbar?
Airbrake starts at Free and Rollbar at Free.
Does Airbrake or Rollbar 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 Rollbar is typically brought in for.
What can Airbrake do that Rollbar cannot?
Airbrake covers Performance monitoring, Deploy tracking, Custom notifications. Rollbar covers Real-time alerts, Error grouping, Source maps. Both handle Error tracking, API, Webhooks, REST.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Airbrake

More on Rollbar

Keep looking

Other head to heads