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Logging · head to head

Cronitor vs Telegraf

Cronitor logo

Cronitor

Logging

Monitoring for cron jobs, websites, and background tasks

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Telegraf logo

Telegraf

Logging

The Plugin-Driven Server Agent for Collecting and Reporting Metrics

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Cronitor free tier limited to 5 monitors, limiting viability for small teams; Telegraf telegraf's core is open source and free, and InfluxData names a separate Telegraf Enterprise tier for teams running it at scale with no price published
  • They diverge on capability: Cronitor covers Cron job monitoring, Telegraf covers Metrics collection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cronitor and Telegraf actually diverge.

Attributes where Cronitor and Telegraf differ
AttributeCronitorTelegraf
Pricing modelPay-per-monitor plus user seatsopen-source
Founded20142013

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, API), 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 Cronitor

  • Cron job monitoring
  • Uptime and performance checks
  • Heartbeat monitoring
  • Status pages
  • Real-user monitoring
  • Alert integrations
  • Email reports

Only in Telegraf

  • Metrics collection
  • System monitoring
  • Application monitoring
  • Plugin architecture
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Cronitor

  • Monitoring scheduled cron jobs and background tasksnot Telegraf
  • Tracking website and API uptime with global checksnot Telegraf
  • Alerting teams when critical jobs fail to executenot Telegraf
  • Communicating service status to customersnot Telegraf

Telegraf

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

Where each one falls short

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

Cronitor

  • Free tier limited to 5 monitors, limiting viability for small teams
  • Pay-per-monitor pricing scales quickly with infrastructure size
  • Requires integrating ping calls into existing jobs
  • Limited to monitoring jobs that can send pings
  • No built-in workflow orchestration or task scheduling

Telegraf

  • Telegraf's core is open source and free, and InfluxData names a separate Telegraf Enterprise tier for teams running it at scale with no price published

Pricing, plan by plan

Cronitor

Free
  • HackerFree
    • 5 monitors
    • Email and Slack alerts
    • Basic status page
  • Business$2/monitor/month
    • Unlimited monitors
    • 30-second check frequency
    • 10 alert integrations
  • Enterprise$6000/year
    • Custom features and integrations
    • 5-second check frequency
    • Dedicated engineer

Telegraf

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Metrics collection
    • System monitoring
    • Application monitoring

Which should you pick?

Choose Cronitor if

  • You need cron job monitoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want uptime and performance checks.
Cronitor review

Choose Telegraf if

  • You need metrics collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want system monitoring.
Telegraf review

Questions people ask

Is Cronitor or Telegraf better?
Neither clearly leads. Cronitor starts at Free and Telegraf at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cronitor or Telegraf?
Cronitor starts at Free and Telegraf at Free.
Does Cronitor or Telegraf run on more platforms?
Cronitor runs on Web, API. Telegraf runs on Web, Api.
Can I use Cronitor for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Cronitor best used for?
Cronitor is most often used for monitoring scheduled cron jobs and background tasks, tracking website and api uptime with global checks, alerting teams when critical jobs fail to execute, communicating service status to customers. Of those, monitoring scheduled cron jobs and background tasks and tracking website and api uptime with global checks are not what Telegraf is typically brought in for.
What can Cronitor do that Telegraf cannot?
Cronitor covers Cron job monitoring, Uptime and performance checks, Heartbeat monitoring, Status pages. Telegraf covers Metrics collection, System monitoring, Application monitoring, Plugin architecture.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cronitor: How does Cronitor billing work for the Business plan?

Business plan costs $2 per monitor per month plus $5 per user per month, billed monthly based on actual usage.

Source
Telegraf: Is Telegraf free to use?

Yes, Telegraf OSS is free and open source. It can be downloaded and used at no cost for collecting metrics from infrastructure, applications, and devices using over 400 community-tested plugins.

Source
Cronitor: What is the difference between Hacker and Business plans?

Hacker plan ($0/month) includes 5 monitors and basic Slack/email alerts. Business plan ($2/monitor/month) offers unlimited monitors, 30-second checks, 10 integrations, 12-month retention, and email reports.

Source
Telegraf: What is Telegraf Enterprise and how much does it cost?

Telegraf Enterprise is a commercial offering for managing Telegraf at scale. It is licensed annually with entry-level packages starting at $18,000 per year, and pricing scales based on the total number of Telegraf agents under management.

Source
Cronitor: Does Cronitor offer a free trial?

Yes, Cronitor provides a 14-day free trial on the Business plan without requiring a credit card.

Source
Telegraf: Can I try Telegraf Enterprise before purchasing?

Yes, a free tier of Telegraf Controller is available for evaluation. It allows you to store up to 20 configurations and manage up to 100 reporting agents.

Source
Telegraf: Can Telegraf OSS be used for commercial purposes?

Telegraf OSS is free and available as open source software, suitable for commercial deployments without licensing fees. For large-scale enterprise needs, Telegraf Enterprise is the commercial offering.

Source
Telegraf: How many plugins does Telegraf support?

Telegraf includes over 400 community-tested plugins that can connect to various data sources and destinations including Kubernetes, Docker, AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Kafka, and many databases.

Source
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