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Elastic APM vs New Relic Logs

Elastic APM logo

Elastic APM

Logging

Application Performance Monitoring from Elastic

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
New Relic Logs logo

New Relic Logs

Logging

Log Management and Analysis

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Elastic APM pricing is not published on the product page; cost follows the underlying Elastic deployment rather than being quoted per host or per service; New Relic Logs log data counts against the same 100 GB monthly free ingest allowance shared with every other telemetry type, so logs compete with metrics and traces for it
  • They diverge on capability: Elastic APM covers Performance monitoring, New Relic Logs covers Log ingestion.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Elastic APM and New Relic Logs actually diverge.

Attributes where Elastic APM and New Relic Logs differ
AttributeElastic APMNew Relic Logs
Pricing modelopen-sourcefreemium
Founded20112008

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 Elastic APM

  • Performance monitoring
  • Error tracking
  • Transaction tracing
  • Custom metrics

Only in New Relic Logs

  • Log ingestion
  • Full-text search
  • Logs-in-context
  • Custom dashboards

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.

Elastic APM

  • Distributed tracing across microservicesnot New Relic Logs
  • Auto-instrumenting Java, .NET, Python, Go, Node.js, Ruby, PHP and C++ servicesnot New Relic Logs
  • OpenTelemetry-native collection through the Elastic distributionsnot New Relic Logs
  • Correlating latency and errors with machine learningnot New Relic Logs
  • Monitoring LLM calls alongside application tracesnot New Relic Logs

New Relic Logs

  • Centralised log management alongside metrics and tracesnot Elastic APM
  • Searching and alerting on application logs in context with performance datanot Elastic APM

Where each one falls short

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

Elastic APM

  • Pricing is not published on the product page; cost follows the underlying Elastic deployment rather than being quoted per host or per service
  • Self-managed deployment means running and scaling Elasticsearch yourself
  • Serverless does not carry every capability the hosted option does

New Relic Logs

  • Log data counts against the same 100 GB monthly free ingest allowance shared with every other telemetry type, so logs compete with metrics and traces for it
  • Ingest beyond that is $0.40 per GB, rising to $0.60 per GB on the Data Plus option
  • Full platform users cost $349 each a month on Pro with an annual commitment, or $418.80 paying monthly
  • The Standard edition caps additional full platform users at 5
  • Core users are $49 a month each even though basic users are free

Pricing, plan by plan

Elastic APM

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Performance monitoring
    • Error tracking
    • Transaction tracing

New Relic Logs

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • 100 GB per month data ingest
    • Unlimited basic users
    • 1 full platform user
  • Standard Edition$49/month
    • Up to 5 full platform users
    • Core users 49 dollars per user per month
    • Additional full platform users at 99 dollars each
  • Pro Edition$349/year
    • Unlimited full platform users
    • Core users at 49 dollars per user per month
    • Full platform users at 349 dollars per user annually or 418.80 dollars monthly
  • Enterprise Edition$null/mo
    • Unlimited full platform users
    • Custom pricing
    • FedRAMP and HIPAA support

Which should you pick?

Choose Elastic APM if

  • You need performance monitoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want error tracking.
Elastic APM review

Choose New Relic Logs if

  • You need log ingestion.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want full-text search.
New Relic Logs review

Questions people ask

Is Elastic APM or New Relic Logs better?
Neither clearly leads. Elastic APM starts at Free and New Relic Logs at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Elastic APM or New Relic Logs?
Elastic APM starts at Free and New Relic Logs at Free.
Does Elastic APM or New Relic Logs run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Elastic APM for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Elastic APM best used for?
Elastic APM is most often used for distributed tracing across microservices, auto-instrumenting java, .net, python, go, node.js, ruby, php and c++ services, opentelemetry-native collection through the elastic distributions, correlating latency and errors with machine learning. Of those, distributed tracing across microservices and auto-instrumenting java, .net, python, go, node.js, ruby, php and c++ services are not what New Relic Logs is typically brought in for.
What can Elastic APM do that New Relic Logs cannot?
Elastic APM covers Performance monitoring, Error tracking, Transaction tracing, Custom metrics. New Relic Logs covers Log ingestion, Full-text search, Logs-in-context, Custom dashboards. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Elastic APM: Is Elastic APM pricing published?

Elastic APM pricing is not published on the product page. Pricing is available through the main Elastic pricing page or by contacting Elastic sales directly.

Source
New Relic Logs: Is New Relic free?

New Relic offers a free tier with 100 GB per month of data ingest, 1 full platform user, and unlimited basic users.

Source
Elastic APM: Does Elastic APM offer a free trial?

Yes. Elastic APM offers a free trial through Elastic Cloud Serverless registration. A guided demo is also available in the Elastic demo gallery.

Source
New Relic Logs: What does New Relic charge for data beyond the free tier?

New Relic charges 0.40 dollars per gigabyte for data beyond the 100 GB free monthly allowance. Data Plus tier costs 0.60 dollars per GB and includes up to 90-day extended retention.

Source
Elastic APM: What deployment options are available for Elastic APM?

Elastic APM can be deployed on Elastic Cloud Serverless (zero operational overhead), Elastic Cloud Hosted (deploy on any cloud), or self-managed Elasticsearch.

Source
New Relic Logs: What is the Pro plan pricing?

The Pro Edition costs 349 dollars per user per year for full platform users, or 418.80 dollars per month. Unlimited full platform users are included.

Source
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