Softwr

AI · head to head

Arize AI vs Grafana Loki

Arize AI logo

Arize AI

AI

AI engineering platform for observability and evaluation of agents and LLM apps

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Grafana Loki logo

Grafana Loki

Logging

Log Aggregation for Grafana Stack

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Arize AI the free plan caps trace spans at 25,000 per month with only 15 days of retention.; Grafana Loki grafana Cloud Logs Pro plan includes only 30-day retention; retention beyond 30 days requires Enterprise plan with minimum $25,000 annual commitment
  • They diverge on capability: Arize AI covers End-to-end tracing, Grafana Loki covers Log aggregation.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Arize AI and Grafana Loki actually diverge.

Attributes where Arize AI and Grafana Loki differ
AttributeArize AIGrafana Loki
Platformsweb, apiSelf-hosted (open source), Managed (Grafana Cloud Logs), Enterprise (self-managed with support)
CategoryAILogging
FoundedUnknown2014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Arize AI

  • End-to-end tracing
  • Evaluation framework
  • Prompt testing and improvement
  • Alyx AI engineering agent
  • Custom dashboards
  • Data warehouse integrations

Only in Grafana Loki

  • Log aggregation
  • Label-based indexing
  • LogQL language
  • Cost-effective
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Arize AI

  • Tracing and debugging production AI agentsnot Grafana Loki
  • Running large-scale evaluations across traces and sessionsnot Grafana Loki
  • Improving prompts before production rolloutnot Grafana Loki
  • Storing and querying GenAI traces alongside a data warehousenot Grafana Loki

Grafana Loki

  • Cost-sensitive organisations deploying Kubernetes and Prometheus ecosystemsnot Arize AI
  • Teams needing index-free log aggregation for high-volume environmentsnot Arize AI

Where each one falls short

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

Arize AI

  • The free plan caps trace spans at 25,000 per month with only 15 days of retention.
  • Self-hosted deployment and Data Fabric integration are restricted to the custom-priced Enterprise tier.
  • Pricing beyond the $50/month Pro plan requires a custom quote, making cost planning less transparent at scale.
  • Advanced compliance features like HIPAA are only available on Enterprise.

Grafana Loki

  • Grafana Cloud Logs Pro plan includes only 30-day retention; retention beyond 30 days requires Enterprise plan with minimum $25,000 annual commitment
  • Open-source version requires self-hosting all infrastructure including storage and scaling

Pricing, plan by plan

Arize AI

Free
  • AX FreeFree
    • 25k trace spans/month
    • 1 GB storage/month
    • 15-day retention
  • AX Pro$50/month
    • 50k trace spans/month
    • 10 GB storage/month
    • 30-day retention
  • AX Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Custom trace spans, storage, and retention
    • SaaS or self-hosted deployment
    • Managed agents and Data Fabric

Grafana Loki

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Grafana Loki review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Arize AI if

  • You need end-to-end tracing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want evaluation framework.
Arize AI review

Choose Grafana Loki if

  • You need log aggregation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Self-hosted (open source), Managed (Grafana Cloud Logs), Enterprise (self-managed with support).
  • You also want label-based indexing.
Grafana Loki review

Questions people ask

Is Arize AI or Grafana Loki better?
Neither clearly leads. Arize AI starts at Free and Grafana Loki at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Arize AI or Grafana Loki?
Arize AI starts at Free and Grafana Loki at Free.
Does Arize AI or Grafana Loki run on more platforms?
Arize AI runs on web, api. Grafana Loki runs on Self-hosted (open source), Managed (Grafana Cloud Logs), Enterprise (self-managed with support).
Can I use Arize AI for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Arize AI best used for?
Arize AI is most often used for tracing and debugging production ai agents, running large-scale evaluations across traces and sessions, improving prompts before production rollout, storing and querying genai traces alongside a data warehouse. Of those, tracing and debugging production ai agents and running large-scale evaluations across traces and sessions are not what Grafana Loki is typically brought in for.
What can Arize AI do that Grafana Loki cannot?
Arize AI covers End-to-end tracing, Evaluation framework, Prompt testing and improvement, Alyx AI engineering agent. Grafana Loki covers Log aggregation, Label-based indexing, LogQL language, Cost-effective.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Arize AI: What does Arize AX cost?

Arize AX offers a free plan, a Pro plan at $50/month, and a custom-priced Enterprise plan, with pricing based on trace spans, storage, and retention needs.

Source
Grafana Loki: Is there a free tier for Grafana Cloud?

Yes, Grafana Cloud has a Free Forever plan at no cost with no registration required. The free tier is suitable for personal projects and early-stage startups.

Source
Arize AI: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?

The AX Free plan includes 25,000 trace spans and 1 GB of storage per month with 15-day retention, plus unlimited users, evaluations, and experiments.

Source
Grafana Loki: How long is data retained in Grafana's free plan?

The free tier retains metrics, logs, traces, and profiles for 14 days.

Source
Arize AI: What deployment options are available?

Free and Pro plans are SaaS-only, while Enterprise customers can choose SaaS or self-hosted deployment with custom SLAs.

Source
Grafana Loki: What is the minimum cost for Grafana Enterprise?

Grafana Enterprise has a minimum annual commitment of 25,000 dollars.

Source
Grafana Loki: Do I need a credit card to use Grafana's free tier?

No, Grafana Cloud's Free Forever plan requires no credit card to get started.

Source
Grafana Loki: How is Grafana Cloud billed?

Grafana Cloud Pro starts at 19 dollars per month with usage-based charges on top. Billing is monthly based on your consumption. Grafana offers automatic volume discounts based on your spending.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Arize AI

More on Grafana Loki

Keep looking

Other head to heads