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AppDynamics vs Kibana

A

AppDynamics

Software

Enterprise Application Performance Management

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: AppDynamics appdynamics.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to Splunk's observability pricing page; the product is now sold as Splunk AppDynamics; Kibana requires Elasticsearch; it is a front end for data held there rather than a standalone analytics tool
  • They diverge on capability: AppDynamics covers Application performance monitoring, Kibana covers Data visualization.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which AppDynamics and Kibana actually diverge.

Attributes where AppDynamics and Kibana differ
AttributeAppDynamicsKibana
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 AppDynamics

  • Application performance monitoring
  • Distributed tracing
  • Real-time analytics
  • Alert management

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.

AppDynamics

  • Application performance monitoring for Java, .NET and other enterprise application stacksnot Kibana
  • Business transaction tracing across distributed application tiersnot Kibana
  • Infrastructure monitoring priced per vCPUnot Kibana

Kibana

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

Where each one falls short

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

AppDynamics

  • appdynamics.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to Splunk's observability pricing page; the product is now sold as Splunk AppDynamics
  • Infrastructure Edition starts at $6 per vCPU per month billed annually, so cost scales with core count rather than host count
  • Premium Edition starts at $33 per host per month and Enterprise Edition at $50 per host per month, both billed annually
  • The published figures are starting prices only, with volume pricing requiring a sales quote

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

AppDynamics

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Application performance monitoring
    • Distributed tracing
    • Real-time analytics

Kibana

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

Which should you pick?

Choose AppDynamics if

  • You need application performance monitoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want distributed tracing.
AppDynamics 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 AppDynamics or Kibana better?
Neither clearly leads. AppDynamics 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, AppDynamics or Kibana?
AppDynamics starts at Free and Kibana at Free.
Does AppDynamics or Kibana run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use AppDynamics for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is AppDynamics best used for?
AppDynamics is most often used for application performance monitoring for java, .net and other enterprise application stacks, business transaction tracing across distributed application tiers, infrastructure monitoring priced per vcpu. Of those, application performance monitoring for java, .net and other enterprise application stacks and business transaction tracing across distributed application tiers are not what Kibana is typically brought in for.
What can AppDynamics do that Kibana cannot?
AppDynamics covers Application performance monitoring, Distributed tracing, Real-time analytics, Alert management. Kibana covers Data visualization, Dashboard creation, Log discovery, Alerting. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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