Software · head to head
Dynatrace Logs vs ELK Stack
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Dynatrace Logs log ingest and processing is billed at $0.20 per GiB, separately from retention and from query; ELK Stack the free Basic self managed subscription excludes machine learning, alerting, single sign on via SAML or OpenID Connect, LDAP and Active Directory authentication, field and document level security, searchable snapshots and cross cluster replication
- They diverge on capability: Dynatrace Logs covers Log analysis, ELK Stack covers Full-text search.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Dynatrace Logs and ELK Stack actually diverge.
| Attribute | Dynatrace Logs | ELK Stack |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | subscription | open-source |
| Founded | 2005 | 2011 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api), 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 Dynatrace Logs
- Log analysis
- AI-powered insights
- Metrics integration
- Automated root cause
Only in ELK Stack
- Full-text search
- Data visualization
- Log aggregation
- Time-series analytics
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.
Dynatrace Logs
- Ingesting and processing application and infrastructure logsnot ELK Stack
- Querying logs alongside traces and metrics in one platformnot ELK Stack
- Log driven alerting within an existing Dynatrace deploymentnot ELK Stack
ELK Stack
- Centralised log search and analytics over Elasticsearchnot Dynatrace Logs
- Dashboards and visualisation of machine data in Kibananot Dynatrace Logs
- Self managing a search and observability cluster on your own hardwarenot Dynatrace Logs
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Dynatrace Logs
- Log ingest and processing is billed at $0.20 per GiB, separately from retention and from query
- Querying logs is charged in addition to ingest, either pay per query or as bundled queries
- Log analytics requires the same annual platform commitment as the rest of the Dynatrace platform
ELK Stack
- The free Basic self managed subscription excludes machine learning, alerting, single sign on via SAML or OpenID Connect, LDAP and Active Directory authentication, field and document level security, searchable snapshots and cross cluster replication
- Cross cluster operations require the same subscription tier on every cluster involved
- The 99.95 percent monthly uptime SLA applies only to the Platinum and Enterprise subscription tiers
- Three deployment models are priced on three different bases: resource based for Cloud Hosted, usage based for Serverless and licence based on nodes and RAM for self managed
- Elastic Cloud Serverless does not yet support traffic filtering, cross project search or bring your own key
- The pricing page publishes no rate for any tier
Pricing, plan by plan
Dynatrace Logs
Free- FreeFree
- Log analysis
- AI-powered insights
- Metrics integration
ELK Stack
Free- FreeFree
- Full-text search
- Data visualization
- Log aggregation
Which should you pick?
Choose Dynatrace Logs if
- You need log analysis.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want ai-powered insights.
Choose ELK Stack if
- You need full-text search.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want data visualization.
Questions people ask
- Is Dynatrace Logs or ELK Stack better?
- Neither clearly leads. Dynatrace Logs starts at Free and ELK Stack at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Dynatrace Logs or ELK Stack?
- Dynatrace Logs starts at Free and ELK Stack at Free.
- Does Dynatrace Logs or ELK Stack run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Dynatrace Logs for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Dynatrace Logs best used for?
- Dynatrace Logs is most often used for ingesting and processing application and infrastructure logs, querying logs alongside traces and metrics in one platform, log driven alerting within an existing dynatrace deployment. Of those, ingesting and processing application and infrastructure logs and querying logs alongside traces and metrics in one platform are not what ELK Stack is typically brought in for.
- What can Dynatrace Logs do that ELK Stack cannot?
- Dynatrace Logs covers Log analysis, AI-powered insights, Metrics integration, Automated root cause. ELK Stack covers Full-text search, Data visualization, Log aggregation, Time-series analytics. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.