Softwr

Logging · head to head

Dynatrace vs Rootly

Dynatrace logo

Dynatrace

Logging

Application Performance Management and Observability

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Rootly logo

Rootly

Logging

AI-native incident management with automation, on-call, and root cause analysis

From
$20/user-month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Dynatrace has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Dynatrace pricing is commitment based: rates require an annual platform level commitment rather than month to month purchase; Rootly pricing higher than some competitors for basic features
  • They diverge on capability: Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, Rootly covers AI SRE automation.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Dynatrace and Rootly actually diverge.

Attributes where Dynatrace and Rootly differ
AttributeDynatraceRootly
Starting priceFree$20/user-month
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, ApiWeb, Mobile, Slack, Microsoft Teams
Founded20052020

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), 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
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support

Only in Rootly

  • AI SRE automation
  • Alert routing
  • On-call management
  • Incident response
  • Call routing
  • AI meeting bot
  • Status pages

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

Rootly

  • Automate on-call and incident response workflowsnot Dynatrace
  • Run root cause analysis with AI assistancenot Dynatrace
  • Track and improve Mean Time to Mitigation (MTTR)not Dynatrace
  • Coordinate response across distributed teamsnot Dynatrace
  • Learn from post-incident retrospectivesnot 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

Rootly

  • Pricing higher than some competitors for basic features
  • AI SRE features require separate contact-sales engagement
  • Learning curve for advanced automation features
  • Per-user pricing increases costs as team grows

Pricing, plan by plan

Dynatrace

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

Rootly

$20/user-month
  • Incident Response Essentials$20/user-month
    • Response with Slack integration
    • @Rootly AI Chat
    • AI Similar Incidents detection
  • Incident Response Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • All Essentials features
    • Custom forms and incident types
    • Private incidents
  • On-Call Essentials$20/user-month
    • Alert grouping and routing
    • Live call routing (1 phone number)
    • Schedules and escalation policies
  • On-Call Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • All Essentials features
    • 5 phone numbers for call routing
    • Unlimited schedules

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 Rootly if

  • You need ai sre automation.
  • You work on Web, Mobile, Slack, Microsoft Teams.
  • You also want alert routing.
Rootly review

Questions people ask

Is Dynatrace or Rootly better?
Neither clearly leads. Dynatrace starts at Free and Rootly at $20/user-month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Dynatrace or Rootly?
Dynatrace has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Dynatrace and $20/user-month for Rootly.
Does Dynatrace or Rootly run on more platforms?
Dynatrace runs on Web, Api. Rootly runs on Web, Mobile, Slack, Microsoft Teams.
Can I use Dynatrace for free?
Yes. Dynatrace has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Rootly starts at $20/user-month.
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 Rootly is typically brought in for.
What can Dynatrace do that Rootly cannot?
Dynatrace covers AI-powered analytics, APM, Infrastructure monitoring, Log analysis. Rootly covers AI SRE automation, Alert routing, On-call management, Incident response.

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
Rootly: How much does Rootly cost?

Rootly charges $20/user/month for both Incident Response and On-Call Essentials plans. Enterprise plans require contacting sales. Startups under 100 employees with less than $50M raised get up to 50% discount.

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
Rootly: What is Rootly AI SRE?

AI SRE is an advanced feature that provides automated root cause analysis, alert correlation with system changes, impact analysis, and remediation suggestions. Pricing requires contact with sales.

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
Rootly: Does Rootly integrate with Slack?

Yes, Rootly natively integrates with Slack for incident response workflows, allowing teams to manage incidents directly in Slack.

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
Rootly: Are there discounts for small companies?

Yes, startups under 100 employees or less than 25 employees can get special pricing up to 50% discount. Contact Rootly sales for details.

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
Share

Related pages

More on Dynatrace

More on Rootly

Keep looking

Other head to heads