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Log Management · head to head

CloudWatch vs Dynatrace

CloudWatch logo

CloudWatch

Log Management

AWS Monitoring and Observability

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Dynatrace logo

Dynatrace

Log Management

Application Performance Management and Observability

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: CloudWatch the free tier covers 5 GB of log ingestion and 10 custom metrics a month, after which log ingestion is $0.50 per GB from 5 to 30 GB; Dynatrace pricing is commitment based: rates require an annual platform level commitment rather than month to month purchase
  • They diverge on capability: CloudWatch covers Metrics collection, Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CloudWatch and Dynatrace actually diverge.

Attributes where CloudWatch and Dynatrace differ
AttributeCloudWatchDynatrace
Pricing modelusage-basedsubscription
Founded20062005

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Log Management).

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 CloudWatch

  • Metrics collection
  • Log aggregation
  • Dashboards
  • Alarms and notifications

Only in Dynatrace

  • AI-powered analytics
  • APM
  • Infrastructure monitoring
  • Log analysis

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.

CloudWatch

  • Metrics and log collection for AWS workloadsnot Dynatrace
  • Alarming on thresholds across AWS servicesnot Dynatrace
  • Querying logs with Logs Insightsnot Dynatrace
  • Live tailing logs during an incidentnot Dynatrace
  • Distributed tracing alongside X-Raynot Dynatrace

Dynatrace

  • Full stack application performance monitoring with automatic dependency discoverynot CloudWatch
  • Kubernetes and container platform observability priced per podnot CloudWatch
  • Log ingest, processing and query analyticsnot CloudWatch
  • Real user monitoring and session replay for web applicationsnot CloudWatch

Where each one falls short

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

CloudWatch

  • The free tier covers 5 GB of log ingestion and 10 custom metrics a month, after which log ingestion is $0.50 per GB from 5 to 30 GB
  • Custom metrics are $0.30 each for the first 10,000, so instrumenting broadly gets expensive before volume discounts apply
  • Each custom dashboard beyond the free three is $3 a month
  • Alarms are billed at $0.10 per alarm metric a month, with high-resolution alarms costing more
  • Log storage beyond the free 5 GB is $0.03 per GB per month on top of the ingestion charge

Dynatrace

  • Pricing is commitment based: rates require an annual platform level commitment rather than month to month purchase
  • Full-Stack Monitoring is priced at $58 per month per 8 GiB of host memory, so a 64 GiB host counts as eight units
  • Infrastructure Monitoring at $29 per host per month excludes code level tracing, which requires Full-Stack
  • Session Replay doubles Real User Monitoring cost from $2.25 to $4.50 per 1,000 sessions
  • Runtime Vulnerability Analytics and Runtime Application Protection are each charged separately at $13 per month per 8 GiB host on top of monitoring

Pricing, plan by plan

CloudWatch

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Metrics collection
    • Log aggregation
    • Dashboards

Dynatrace

Free
  • FreeFree
    • AI-powered analytics
    • APM
    • Infrastructure monitoring

Which should you pick?

Choose CloudWatch if

  • You need metrics collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want log aggregation.
CloudWatch review

Choose Dynatrace if

  • You need ai-powered analytics.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want apm.
Dynatrace review

Questions people ask

Is CloudWatch or Dynatrace better?
Neither clearly leads. CloudWatch starts at Free and Dynatrace at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CloudWatch or Dynatrace?
CloudWatch starts at Free and Dynatrace at Free.
Does CloudWatch or Dynatrace run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use CloudWatch for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is CloudWatch best used for?
CloudWatch is most often used for metrics and log collection for aws workloads, alarming on thresholds across aws services, querying logs with logs insights, live tailing logs during an incident. Of those, metrics and log collection for aws workloads and alarming on thresholds across aws services are not what Dynatrace is typically brought in for.
What can CloudWatch do that Dynatrace cannot?
CloudWatch covers Metrics collection, Log aggregation, Dashboards, Alarms and notifications. Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, APM, Infrastructure monitoring, Log analysis. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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