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Logging · head to head

Dynatrace vs Filebeat

Dynatrace logo

Dynatrace

Logging

Application Performance Management and Observability

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Filebeat logo

Filebeat

Logging

Lightweight Shipper for Logs

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; Filebeat filebeat ships only as part of the Elastic Stack and has no standalone commercial license; using it in production requires deploying Elasticsearch and typically Kibana alongside it.
  • They diverge on capability: Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, Filebeat covers File tailing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Dynatrace and Filebeat actually diverge.

Attributes where Dynatrace and Filebeat differ
AttributeDynatraceFilebeat
Pricing modelsubscriptionopen-source
Founded20052011

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 Dynatrace

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

Only in Filebeat

  • File tailing
  • Log forwarding
  • Event parsing
  • Input harvesting

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 Filebeat
  • Kubernetes and container platform observability priced per podnot Filebeat
  • Log ingest, processing and query analyticsnot Filebeat
  • Real user monitoring and session replay for web applicationsnot Filebeat

Filebeat

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

Filebeat

  • Filebeat ships only as part of the Elastic Stack and has no standalone commercial license; using it in production requires deploying Elasticsearch and typically Kibana alongside it.

Pricing, plan by plan

Dynatrace

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

Filebeat

Free
  • FreeFree
    • File tailing
    • Log forwarding
    • Event parsing

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 Filebeat if

  • You need file tailing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want log forwarding.
Filebeat review

Questions people ask

Is Dynatrace or Filebeat better?
Neither clearly leads. Dynatrace starts at Free and Filebeat at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Dynatrace or Filebeat?
Dynatrace starts at Free and Filebeat at Free.
Does Dynatrace or Filebeat 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 Filebeat is typically brought in for.
What can Dynatrace do that Filebeat cannot?
Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, APM, Infrastructure monitoring, Log analysis. Filebeat covers File tailing, Log forwarding, Event parsing, Input harvesting. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Dynatrace: What is the pricing model for Dynatrace monitoring?

Dynatrace uses commitment-based platform subscription pricing with a minimum annual commitment at the platform level. You pay no per-capability or per-user fees. All capabilities are included day one and draw from your commitment at published rates.

Source
Filebeat: What does Filebeat cost?

Filebeat is free and open source. There are no licensing fees for the software itself.

Source
Dynatrace: Is there an overage charge if I exceed my commitment?

No, there are no overage penalties. Excess usage continues at the same per-unit rates published on the rate card. The more you commit upfront, the deeper your discount.

Source
Filebeat: Is Filebeat free for commercial use?

Yes. Filebeat is open and free to use for any purpose, including commercial applications.

Source
Dynatrace: What is the cost for monitoring application infrastructure?

Application monitoring costs $7/month per host ($0.01/hour) for Foundation & Discovery, $29/month per host for Infrastructure Monitoring, or $58/month per 8 GiB of host memory for Full-Stack Monitoring.

Source
Filebeat: Do I need to pay for Elastic Cloud to use Filebeat?

No. Filebeat works independently without any Elastic Cloud subscription, though Elastic Cloud is offered as an optional paid deployment option.

Source
Dynatrace: How much does log ingestion and querying cost?

Log Analytics pricing is $0.20/GiB for ingestion, then either $0.0007/GiB-day for retention with bundled queries (10-35 days retention included), or pay-per-query at $0.0007/GiB-day retention plus $0.0035 per GiB scanned.

Source
Dynatrace: Is there a free trial available?

Yes, Dynatrace offers a 15-day free trial plus a sandbox environment for hands-on exploration at no cost.

Source
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