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Software · head to head

Axiom vs Raygun

Axiom logo

Axiom

Software

Serverless Log Analytics and Observability

From
Free
Rated
-
Raygun logo

Raygun

Software

Real User Monitoring and Crash Reporting

From
Free
Rated
-

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Axiom no self-hosted or air-gapped deployment option for compliance-sensitive workloads; Raygun crash Reporting error data is retained for 180 days and Real User Monitoring sessions for only 60 days; longer retention is Enterprise only
  • They diverge on capability: Axiom covers Serverless architecture, Raygun covers Crash reporting.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Axiom and Raygun actually diverge.

Attributes where Axiom and Raygun differ
AttributeAxiomRaygun
Pricing modelUnknownusage-based
PlatformsWeb (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari), APIWeb, Api
Founded20172011

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 Axiom

  • Serverless architecture
  • Log aggregation
  • Real-time processing
  • AplLog query language
  • Cost-effective indexing

Only in Raygun

  • Crash reporting
  • Real user monitoring
  • Performance tracking
  • Source maps

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.

Axiom

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

Raygun

  • Crash and error reporting for web, mobile and backend applicationsnot Axiom
  • Real user monitoring of front end page load and session performancenot Axiom
  • Application performance monitoring with request level tracesnot Axiom

Where each one falls short

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

Axiom

  • No self-hosted or air-gapped deployment option for compliance-sensitive workloads
  • Vendor lock-in due to APL (Axiom Processing Language) not transferring to other platforms
  • Proprietary storage format limits data portability and external analytics access
  • Complex pricing model with multiple cost dimensions (ingestion, compute, storage) makes budgeting difficult at scale
  • Limited ecosystem integration; does not integrate deeply with existing observability stacks like Grafana for metrics and Jaeger for traces

Raygun

  • Crash Reporting error data is retained for 180 days and Real User Monitoring sessions for only 60 days; longer retention is Enterprise only
  • Crash Reporting, Real User Monitoring and APM are billed as three separate products, each metered on its own unit of errors, sessions or traces
  • A Real User Monitoring session ends after 30 minutes of inactivity, so a single visit spanning breaks is billed as several sessions
  • Usage beyond the plan allowance is billed on demand at $0.001 per error and $0.002 per session or trace
  • Enterprise plan pricing is custom with no published rate

Pricing, plan by plan

Axiom

Free
  • PersonalFree
    • 500GB/month data loading
    • 10 GB-hours query compute
    • 25GB storage
  • Axiom Cloud$25/month
    • 1TB/month data loading included
    • 100 GB-hours compute included
    • 100GB storage included

Raygun

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Crash reporting
    • Real user monitoring
    • Performance tracking

Which should you pick?

Choose Axiom if

  • You need serverless architecture.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari), API.
  • You also want log aggregation.

Choose Raygun if

  • You need crash reporting.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want real user monitoring.

Questions people ask

Is Axiom or Raygun better?
Neither clearly leads. Axiom starts at Free and Raygun at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Axiom or Raygun?
Axiom starts at Free and Raygun at Free.
Does Axiom or Raygun run on more platforms?
Axiom runs on Web (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari), API. Raygun runs on Web, Api.
Can I use Axiom for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Axiom best used for?
Axiom is most often used for log monitoring, application performance, security analytics, troubleshooting. Of those, log monitoring and application performance are not what Raygun is typically brought in for.
What can Axiom do that Raygun cannot?
Axiom covers Serverless architecture, Log aggregation, Real-time processing, AplLog query language. Raygun covers Crash reporting, Real user monitoring, Performance tracking, Source maps. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Axiom: Does Axiom offer a free tier with no time limit?

Yes, Axiom's Personal plan is permanently free and includes 500GB of data ingest per month, 10 GB-hours of query compute, and 25GB storage with 30-day retention. No credit card is required.

Source
Axiom: Can I self-host Axiom or use my own cloud infrastructure?

No, Axiom is cloud-only. There is no self-hosted option, air-gapped deployment, or Bring Your Own Cloud available. The platform is a fully managed service.

Source
Axiom: What is Axiom's query language and does it work with SQL?

Axiom uses APL (Axiom Processing Language), based on Kusto Query Language. It is not standard SQL, and APL skills and queries do not transfer to other platforms, creating vendor lock-in.

Source
Axiom: What integrations does Axiom support for alerting?

Axiom supports pre-built integrations with Slack and PagerDuty, plus custom webhooks. Alerts can be configured via threshold-based, anomaly detection, or match-based monitors.

Source
Axiom: How does Axiom's pricing scale with data volume?

Axiom uses consumption-based pricing with automatic volume discounts. Costs depend on data loading volume, query compute usage (measured in GB-hours), and storage. The Team plan starts at $25/month with included allowances, then overage charges apply per unit with volume-based discounts.

Source
Axiom: What platforms can access Axiom's web interface?

Axiom's web app supports Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari. Mobile access is supported on iOS and Android, but some features like moving dashboard elements are unavailable on mobile.

Source

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