Softwr

Log Management · head to head

Dynatrace vs Loki

Dynatrace logo

Dynatrace

Log Management

Application Performance Management and Observability

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Loki logo

Loki

Log Management

Like Prometheus but 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; Loki the Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention
  • They diverge on capability: Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, Loki covers Log aggregation.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Dynatrace and Loki actually diverge.

Attributes where Dynatrace and Loki differ
AttributeDynatraceLoki
Pricing modelsubscriptionopen-source
Founded20052014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Log Management).

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 Loki

  • Log aggregation
  • Label-based indexing
  • Real-time log streaming
  • LogQL query language

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

Loki

  • Aggregating application and infrastructure logs with label based indexingnot Dynatrace
  • Querying logs alongside metrics in Grafananot 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

Loki

  • The Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention
  • Paid log pricing is split across three separate meters, at $0.050 per GB processed, $0.400 per GB written and $0.100 per GB retained
  • Retaining logs is billed separately from ingesting them, so keeping data costs on an ongoing basis rather than once
  • The Pro plan carries a $19 a month platform fee before any usage charges

Pricing, plan by plan

Dynatrace

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

Loki

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log aggregation
    • Label-based indexing
    • Real-time log streaming

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 Loki if

  • You need log aggregation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want label-based indexing.
Loki review

Questions people ask

Is Dynatrace or Loki better?
Neither clearly leads. Dynatrace starts at Free and Loki at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Dynatrace or Loki?
Dynatrace starts at Free and Loki at Free.
Does Dynatrace or Loki 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 Loki is typically brought in for.
What can Dynatrace do that Loki cannot?
Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, APM, Infrastructure monitoring, Log analysis. Loki covers Log aggregation, Label-based indexing, Real-time log streaming, LogQL query language. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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