Softwr

Log Management · head to head

ELK Stack vs PlanetScale

ELK Stack logo

ELK Stack

Log Management

Open Source Search and Log Analytics

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
PlanetScale logo

PlanetScale

Database & Data Management

The MySQL-compatible serverless database

From
$15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only ELK Stack has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: ELK Stack the free Basic self managed subscription excludes machine learning, alerting, single sign on via SAML or OpenID Connect, LDAP and Active Directory authentication, field and document level security, searchable snapshots and cross cluster replication; PlanetScale eBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • They diverge on capability: ELK Stack covers Full-text search, PlanetScale covers Database Branching.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ELK Stack and PlanetScale actually diverge.

Attributes where ELK Stack and PlanetScale differ
AttributeELK StackPlanetScale
Starting priceFree$15/month
Pricing modelopen-sourcesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, ApiCloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure)
CategoryLog ManagementDatabase & Data Management
Founded20112018

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 ELK Stack

  • Full-text search
  • Data visualization
  • Log aggregation
  • Time-series analytics
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Api support

Only in PlanetScale

  • Database Branching
  • Non-blocking Schema Changes
  • Insights
  • Horizontal Scaling
  • Connection Pooling
  • Query Caching
  • Automatic Backups
  • Global Replication

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

ELK Stack

  • Centralised log search and analytics over Elasticsearchnot PlanetScale
  • Dashboards and visualisation of machine data in Kibananot PlanetScale
  • Self managing a search and observability cluster on your own hardwarenot PlanetScale

PlanetScale

  • MySQL database hosting with automatic failover and replicationnot ELK Stack
  • Vitess-based sharding for horizontal scaling across large datasetsnot ELK Stack
  • Cloud provider flexibility across AWS, GCP, Azure with 60+ regionsnot ELK Stack
  • Cost-effective database clusters using ARM64 architecture optionsnot ELK Stack

Where each one falls short

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

ELK Stack

  • The free Basic self managed subscription excludes machine learning, alerting, single sign on via SAML or OpenID Connect, LDAP and Active Directory authentication, field and document level security, searchable snapshots and cross cluster replication
  • Cross cluster operations require the same subscription tier on every cluster involved
  • The 99.95 percent monthly uptime SLA applies only to the Platinum and Enterprise subscription tiers
  • Three deployment models are priced on three different bases: resource based for Cloud Hosted, usage based for Serverless and licence based on nodes and RAM for self managed
  • Elastic Cloud Serverless does not yet support traffic filtering, cross project search or bring your own key
  • The pricing page publishes no rate for any tier

PlanetScale

  • EBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • EBS Non-HA single-node option lacks redundancy and automatic failover
  • Pricing varies by cloud provider and region, requiring queries for specific rates
  • ARM64 architecture only available on EBS tier, not Metal deployments

Pricing, plan by plan

ELK Stack

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Full-text search
    • Data visualization
    • Log aggregation

PlanetScale

$15/month

No published plan breakdown. See the PlanetScale review.

Which should you pick?

Choose ELK Stack if

  • You need full-text search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want data visualization.
ELK Stack review

Choose PlanetScale if

  • You need database branching.
  • You work on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
  • You also want non-blocking schema changes.
PlanetScale review

Questions people ask

Is ELK Stack or PlanetScale better?
Neither clearly leads. ELK Stack starts at Free and PlanetScale at $15/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ELK Stack or PlanetScale?
ELK Stack has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for ELK Stack and $15/month for PlanetScale.
Does ELK Stack or PlanetScale run on more platforms?
ELK Stack runs on Web, Api. PlanetScale runs on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
Can I use ELK Stack for free?
Yes. ELK Stack has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. PlanetScale starts at $15/month.
What is ELK Stack best used for?
ELK Stack is most often used for centralised log search and analytics over elasticsearch, dashboards and visualisation of machine data in kibana, self managing a search and observability cluster on your own hardware. Of those, centralised log search and analytics over elasticsearch and dashboards and visualisation of machine data in kibana are not what PlanetScale is typically brought in for.
What can ELK Stack do that PlanetScale cannot?
ELK Stack covers Full-text search, Data visualization, Log aggregation, Time-series analytics. PlanetScale covers Database Branching, Non-blocking Schema Changes, Insights, Horizontal Scaling. Both handle Web support.
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