Softwr

Software · head to head

Datadog vs Elasticsearch Service

Datadog logo

Datadog

Software

Modern monitoring & security

From
$15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Elasticsearch Service logo

Elasticsearch Service

Software

Managed Elasticsearch Cloud Service

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Elasticsearch Service has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Datadog consumption-based pricing model makes costs hard to predict and can scale quickly; Elasticsearch Service the 99.95 percent monthly uptime SLA applies only to the Platinum and Enterprise subscription tiers
  • They diverge on capability: Datadog covers Infrastructure monitoring, Elasticsearch Service covers Full-text search.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Datadog and Elasticsearch Service actually diverge.

Attributes where Datadog and Elasticsearch Service differ
AttributeDatadogElasticsearch Service
Starting price$15/monthFree
Pricing modelUnknownusage-based
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Linux, Windows, macOSWeb, Api
Founded20102011

Identical on both: 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 Datadog

  • Infrastructure monitoring
  • Application performance monitoring
  • Log management
  • Real user monitoring
  • Synthetic monitoring
  • Security monitoring
  • Network monitoring
  • Serverless monitoring

Only in Elasticsearch Service

  • Full-text search
  • Scalability
  • High availability
  • Security
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Datadog

  • Infrastructure monitoringnot Elasticsearch Service
  • Application performancenot Elasticsearch Service
  • Security monitoringnot Elasticsearch Service
  • Log analysisnot Elasticsearch Service
  • Cloud monitoringnot Elasticsearch Service

Elasticsearch Service

  • Managed Elasticsearch without running the clusternot Datadog
  • Log and observability data storage and searchnot Datadog
  • Full-text search behind an applicationnot Datadog
  • Deployments needing a specific cloud region across AWS, Azure or GCPnot Datadog

Where each one falls short

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

Datadog

  • Consumption-based pricing model makes costs hard to predict and can scale quickly
  • Add-on modules significantly increase costs: custom metrics, indexed spans, extended retention
  • No free tier for production monitoring
  • High costs for organizations with large amounts of log data or high-cardinality metrics

Elasticsearch Service

  • The 99.95 percent monthly uptime SLA applies only to the Platinum and Enterprise subscription tiers
  • Serverless does not yet support traffic filtering, cross-project search or bring-your-own-key encryption
  • Serverless runs on AWS, GCP and Azure only, against 60 regions for the hosted option
  • Per-unit prices are not published; hosted is resource-based and serverless usage-based

Pricing, plan by plan

Datadog

$15/month
  • Infrastructure Monitoring$15/month
    • Host monitoring
    • Basic dashboards
  • APM$31/month
    • Application performance monitoring
    • Trace collection
  • Log Management$0.1/gb
    • Log indexing
    • Search and filter

Elasticsearch Service

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Full-text search
    • Scalability
    • High availability

Which should you pick?

Choose Datadog if

  • You need infrastructure monitoring.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Windows, macOS.
  • You also want application performance monitoring.
Datadog review

Choose Elasticsearch Service if

  • You need full-text search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want scalability.
Elasticsearch Service review

Questions people ask

Is Datadog or Elasticsearch Service better?
Neither clearly leads. Datadog starts at $15/month and Elasticsearch Service at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Datadog or Elasticsearch Service?
Elasticsearch Service has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $15/month for Datadog and Free for Elasticsearch Service.
Does Datadog or Elasticsearch Service run on more platforms?
Datadog runs on Web, Linux, Windows, macOS. Elasticsearch Service runs on Web, Api.
Can I use Elasticsearch Service for free?
Yes. Elasticsearch Service has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Datadog starts at $15/month.
What is Datadog best used for?
Datadog is most often used for infrastructure monitoring, application performance, security monitoring, log analysis. Of those, infrastructure monitoring and application performance are not what Elasticsearch Service is typically brought in for.
What can Datadog do that Elasticsearch Service cannot?
Datadog covers Infrastructure monitoring, Application performance monitoring, Log management, Real user monitoring. Elasticsearch Service covers Full-text search, Scalability, High availability, Security.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Datadog: How is Datadog pricing structured?

Datadog uses consumption-based pricing tied to data volume ingested, hosts monitored, and products enabled. Infrastructure Monitoring starts at $15/host/month, APM at $31/host/month, and Log Management at $0.10/GB for indexed logs.

Source
Datadog: Does Datadog offer a free tier?

Datadog offers a free trial but not a permanent free tier for production monitoring. Pricing begins with paid plans only.

Source
Datadog: What integrations does Datadog support?

Datadog offers 1000+ built-in integrations including AWS, Kubernetes, Docker, Azure, GCP, and most major cloud platforms and services.

Source
Datadog: Can Datadog monitor Kubernetes clusters?

Yes. The Datadog Agent runs as a DaemonSet to provide real-time visibility into pods, nodes, deployments, and control-plane health across major Kubernetes distributions including EKS, AKS, GKE, OpenShift, and others.

Source
Datadog: How can I reduce Datadog costs?

Datadog bills based on indexed logs, custom metrics, and high-cardinality tags. Costs can be unpredictable and may run 2-3x estimates. Prepaying annually can secure 5-15% discounts.

Source
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Datadog

More on Elasticsearch Service

Keep looking

Other head to heads