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Checkly vs AppDynamics

Checkly logo

Checkly

Logging

Active reliability platform combining uptime monitoring, API testing, and incident response

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
AppDynamics logo

AppDynamics

Logging

Enterprise Application Performance Management

From
$6/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Checkly has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Checkly free tier has limited check allocations per month; AppDynamics appdynamics.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to Splunk's observability pricing page; the product is now sold as Splunk AppDynamics
  • They diverge on capability: Checkly covers Uptime monitoring, AppDynamics covers Application performance monitoring.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Checkly and AppDynamics actually diverge.

Attributes where Checkly and AppDynamics differ
AttributeChecklyAppDynamics
Starting priceFree$6/month
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, CLI, APIWeb, Api
FoundedUnknown2008

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Logging).

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 Checkly

  • Uptime monitoring
  • Synthetic browser testing
  • API monitoring
  • Heartbeat monitoring
  • Monitoring-as-Code
  • Status pages
  • Root cause analysis
  • Global locations

Only in AppDynamics

  • Application performance monitoring
  • Distributed tracing
  • Real-time analytics
  • Alert management
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Checkly

  • Monitor API endpoints with custom assertionsnot AppDynamics
  • Test user journeys with browser automationnot AppDynamics
  • Detect performance degradation across regionsnot AppDynamics
  • Verify DNS and TCP connectivitynot AppDynamics
  • Ensure cron jobs and background tasks completenot AppDynamics

AppDynamics

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

Where each one falls short

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

Checkly

  • Free tier has limited check allocations per month
  • Overage charges can add up with high-volume workloads
  • Status pages require separate paid tier
  • Root cause analysis is separate billing component

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

Pricing, plan by plan

Checkly

Free
  • HobbyFree
    • 10 uptime monitors
    • 1,000 browser checks monthly
    • 10,000 API checks monthly
  • Team$64/month
    • 75 uptime monitors
    • 12,000 browser checks monthly
    • 100,000 API checks monthly
  • Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • Custom monitor quantities
    • All 22 global locations
    • 1-second check frequency

AppDynamics

$6/month
  • Infrastructure Edition$6/month
    • Infrastructure monitoring
  • Premium Edition$33/month
    • Infrastructure monitoring
    • Applications
    • APM
  • Enterprise Edition$50/month
    • Premium Edition features
    • Business Analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose Checkly if

  • You need uptime monitoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, CLI, API.
  • You also want synthetic browser testing.
Checkly review

Choose AppDynamics if

  • You need application performance monitoring.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want distributed tracing.
AppDynamics review

Questions people ask

Is Checkly or AppDynamics better?
Neither clearly leads. Checkly starts at Free and AppDynamics at $6/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Checkly or AppDynamics?
Checkly has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Checkly and $6/month for AppDynamics.
Does Checkly or AppDynamics run on more platforms?
Checkly runs on Web, CLI, API. AppDynamics runs on Web, Api.
Can I use Checkly for free?
Yes. Checkly has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. AppDynamics starts at $6/month.
What is Checkly best used for?
Checkly is most often used for monitor api endpoints with custom assertions, test user journeys with browser automation, detect performance degradation across regions, verify dns and tcp connectivity. Of those, monitor api endpoints with custom assertions and test user journeys with browser automation are not what AppDynamics is typically brought in for.
What can Checkly do that AppDynamics cannot?
Checkly covers Uptime monitoring, Synthetic browser testing, API monitoring, Heartbeat monitoring. AppDynamics covers Application performance monitoring, Distributed tracing, Real-time analytics, Alert management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Checkly: What is included in the free Checkly plan?

The free Hobby plan includes 10 uptime monitors, 1,000 monthly browser checks, 10,000 monthly API checks, 6 monitoring locations, and 2-minute minimum check frequency with email, Slack, and webhook alerts.

Source
AppDynamics: How is AppDynamics priced?

AppDynamics uses a subscription model based on vCPU usage, billed annually. Infrastructure Edition starts at $6 per vCPU/month, Premium Edition at $33 per vCPU/month, and Enterprise Edition at $50 per vCPU/month. Additional capabilities like Secure Application, Real User Monitoring, and Synthetics have separate per-unit pricing.

Source
Checkly: Can I write monitoring checks in my preferred language?

Yes, Checkly uses TypeScript/JavaScript for monitoring-as-code, integrated with Playwright for browser testing and supporting REST API testing.

Source
AppDynamics: What add-on costs does AppDynamics charge?

Secure Application costs $13.75 per CPU core per month (billed annually). Real User Monitoring is $0.06 per 1000 tokens per month. Browser Synthetics costs $12 per test location per month. SAP Solutions monitoring is $95 per CPU core per month.

Source
Checkly: How much does status page add to my bill?

Status pages cost between $0-$30/month depending on your plan tier, billed separately from core monitoring.

Source
Checkly: What is the minimum check frequency?

The Hobby and Starter plans support 2-minute and 1-minute minimums respectively. The Team plan supports 30-second intervals, while Enterprise offers 1-second minimum frequency.

Source
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