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Log Management · head to head

Elasticsearch Service vs Azure Monitor

Elasticsearch Service logo

Elasticsearch Service

Log Management

Managed Elasticsearch Cloud Service

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Azure Monitor logo

Azure Monitor

Log Management

Azure's Monitoring and Diagnostics Service

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Elasticsearch Service the 99.95 percent monthly uptime SLA applies only to the Platinum and Enterprise subscription tiers; Azure Monitor billed per GB ingested across three separate log plans, Auxiliary, Basic and Analytics, so the plan chosen changes the rate as much as the volume does
  • They diverge on capability: Elasticsearch Service covers Full-text search, Azure Monitor covers Log collection.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Elasticsearch Service and Azure Monitor actually diverge.

Attributes where Elasticsearch Service and Azure Monitor differ
AttributeElasticsearch ServiceAzure Monitor
Founded20112010

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), 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 Elasticsearch Service

  • Full-text search
  • Scalability
  • High availability
  • Security

Only in Azure Monitor

  • Log collection
  • Metrics collection
  • Alerts and notifications
  • 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.

Elasticsearch Service

  • Managed Elasticsearch without running the clusternot Azure Monitor
  • Log and observability data storage and searchnot Azure Monitor
  • Full-text search behind an applicationnot Azure Monitor
  • Deployments needing a specific cloud region across AWS, Azure or GCPnot Azure Monitor

Azure Monitor

  • Collecting logs and metrics from Azure resourcesnot Elasticsearch Service
  • Alerting on metric thresholds and log queriesnot Elasticsearch Service
  • Application performance monitoring through Application Insightsnot Elasticsearch Service
  • Long-term log retention for compliancenot Elasticsearch Service
  • Querying operational data with KQLnot Elasticsearch Service

Where each one falls short

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

Elasticsearch Service

  • The 99.95 percent monthly uptime SLA applies only to the Platinum and Enterprise subscription tiers
  • Serverless does not yet support traffic filtering, cross-project search or bring-your-own-key encryption
  • Serverless runs on AWS, GCP and Azure only, against 60 regions for the hosted option
  • Per-unit prices are not published; hosted is resource-based and serverless usage-based

Azure Monitor

  • Billed per GB ingested across three separate log plans, Auxiliary, Basic and Analytics, so the plan chosen changes the rate as much as the volume does
  • Only the first 5 GB a month of Analytics logs is free per billing account
  • Retention beyond the base period is charged per GB per month, up to 2 years interactive and 12 years long term
  • Log queries and search jobs are billed per GB scanned, so investigating an incident costs money
  • Alert rules are billed per time series for metrics and by execution frequency for logs
  • The pricing page shows placeholders rather than rates until a region and currency are chosen

Pricing, plan by plan

Elasticsearch Service

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Full-text search
    • Scalability
    • High availability

Azure Monitor

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log collection
    • Metrics collection
    • Alerts and notifications

Which should you pick?

Choose Elasticsearch Service if

  • You need full-text search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want scalability.
Elasticsearch Service review

Choose Azure Monitor if

  • You need log collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want metrics collection.
Azure Monitor review

Questions people ask

Is Elasticsearch Service or Azure Monitor better?
Neither clearly leads. Elasticsearch Service starts at Free and Azure Monitor at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Elasticsearch Service or Azure Monitor?
Elasticsearch Service starts at Free and Azure Monitor at Free.
Does Elasticsearch Service or Azure Monitor run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Elasticsearch Service for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Elasticsearch Service best used for?
Elasticsearch Service is most often used for managed elasticsearch without running the cluster, log and observability data storage and search, full-text search behind an application, deployments needing a specific cloud region across aws, azure or gcp. Of those, managed elasticsearch without running the cluster and log and observability data storage and search are not what Azure Monitor is typically brought in for.
What can Elasticsearch Service do that Azure Monitor cannot?
Elasticsearch Service covers Full-text search, Scalability, High availability, Security. Azure Monitor covers Log collection, Metrics collection, Alerts and notifications, Custom dashboards. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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Related pages

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