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Software · head to head

Dynatrace vs CloudWatch

Dynatrace logo

Dynatrace

Software

Application Performance Management and Observability

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
CloudWatch logo

CloudWatch

Software

AWS Monitoring and Observability

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Dynatrace pricing is commitment based: rates require an annual platform level commitment rather than month to month purchase; 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
  • They diverge on capability: Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, CloudWatch covers Metrics collection.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Dynatrace and CloudWatch actually diverge.

Attributes where Dynatrace and CloudWatch differ
AttributeDynatraceCloudWatch
Pricing modelsubscriptionusage-based
Founded20052006

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

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

Only in CloudWatch

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

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

  • 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

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

Where each one falls short

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

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

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

Pricing, plan by plan

Dynatrace

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

CloudWatch

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Metrics collection
    • Log aggregation
    • Dashboards

Which should you pick?

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

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

Questions people ask

Is Dynatrace or CloudWatch better?
Neither clearly leads. Dynatrace starts at Free and CloudWatch at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Dynatrace or CloudWatch?
Dynatrace starts at Free and CloudWatch at Free.
Does Dynatrace or CloudWatch run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Dynatrace for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Dynatrace best used for?
Dynatrace is most often used for full stack application performance monitoring with automatic dependency discovery, kubernetes and container platform observability priced per pod, log ingest, processing and query analytics, real user monitoring and session replay for web applications. Of those, full stack application performance monitoring with automatic dependency discovery and kubernetes and container platform observability priced per pod are not what CloudWatch is typically brought in for.
What can Dynatrace do that CloudWatch cannot?
Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, APM, Infrastructure monitoring, Log analysis. CloudWatch covers Metrics collection, Log aggregation, Dashboards, Alarms and notifications. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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