Software · head to head
Datadog vs Vultr
The short version
- Only Vultr 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; Vultr vultr Cloud Compute pricing as captured 31 December 2022 started at $5/month (1 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 25GB storage, 1TB transfer), scaling to $10/month and $20/month with more vCPU/RAM/storage; bandwidth overage billed at $0.01 to $0.05 per GB depending on plan
- They diverge on capability: Datadog covers Infrastructure monitoring, Vultr covers Cloud servers.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Datadog and Vultr actually diverge.
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 Vultr
- Cloud servers
- Bare metal servers
- Block storage
- Object storage
- Load balancers
- Firewalls
- Private networks
- Terraform
Both cover
- Kubernetes
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Datadog
- Infrastructure monitoringnot Vultr
- Application performancenot Vultr
- Security monitoringnot Vultr
- Log analysisnot Vultr
- Cloud monitoringnot Vultr
Vultr
- High performance computingnot Datadog
- Game serversnot Datadog
- Streamingnot Datadog
- Database hostingnot Datadog
- Application serversnot 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
Vultr
- Vultr Cloud Compute pricing as captured 31 December 2022 started at $5/month (1 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 25GB storage, 1TB transfer), scaling to $10/month and $20/month with more vCPU/RAM/storage; bandwidth overage billed at $0.01 to $0.05 per GB depending on plan
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
Vultr
Free- Cloud Compute$2.5/month
- 512MB RAM
- 10GB SSD
- 500GB bandwidth
- Bare Metal$32/month
- Dedicated hardware
- High performance
- Full root access
Which should you pick?
Choose Datadog if
- You need infrastructure monitoring.
- You work on Web, Linux, Windows, macOS.
- You also want application performance monitoring.
Choose Vultr if
- You need cloud servers.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api, Cli.
- You also want bare metal servers.
Questions people ask
- Is Datadog or Vultr better?
- Neither clearly leads. Datadog starts at $15/month and Vultr at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Datadog or Vultr?
- Vultr has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $15/month for Datadog and Free for Vultr.
- Does Datadog or Vultr run on more platforms?
- Datadog runs on Web, Linux, Windows, macOS. Vultr runs on Web, Api, Cli.
- Can I use Vultr for free?
- Yes. Vultr 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 Vultr is typically brought in for.
- What can Datadog do that Vultr cannot?
- Datadog covers Infrastructure monitoring, Application performance monitoring, Log management, Real user monitoring. Vultr covers Cloud servers, Bare metal servers, Block storage, Object storage. Both handle Kubernetes.
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.
SourceDatadog: 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.
SourceDatadog: What integrations does Datadog support?
Datadog offers 1000+ built-in integrations including AWS, Kubernetes, Docker, Azure, GCP, and most major cloud platforms and services.
SourceDatadog: 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.
SourceDatadog: 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.
SourceRelated pages
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