Log Management · head to head
Filebeat vs Azure Monitor
Azure Monitor
Log Management
Azure's Monitoring and Diagnostics Service
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Filebeat filebeat ships only as part of the Elastic Stack and has no standalone commercial license; using it in production requires deploying Elasticsearch and typically Kibana alongside it.; 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: Filebeat covers File tailing, Azure Monitor covers Log collection.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Filebeat and Azure Monitor actually diverge.
| Attribute | Filebeat | Azure Monitor |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | open-source | usage-based |
| Founded | 2011 | 2010 |
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 Filebeat
- File tailing
- Log forwarding
- Event parsing
- Input harvesting
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.
Filebeat
- Log monitoringnot Azure Monitor
- Application performancenot Azure Monitor
- Security analyticsnot Azure Monitor
- Troubleshootingnot Azure Monitor
Azure Monitor
- Collecting logs and metrics from Azure resourcesnot Filebeat
- Alerting on metric thresholds and log queriesnot Filebeat
- Application performance monitoring through Application Insightsnot Filebeat
- Long-term log retention for compliancenot Filebeat
- Querying operational data with KQLnot Filebeat
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Filebeat
- Filebeat ships only as part of the Elastic Stack and has no standalone commercial license; using it in production requires deploying Elasticsearch and typically Kibana alongside it.
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
Filebeat
Free- FreeFree
- File tailing
- Log forwarding
- Event parsing
Azure Monitor
Free- FreeFree
- Log collection
- Metrics collection
- Alerts and notifications
Which should you pick?
Choose Filebeat if
- You need file tailing.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want log forwarding.
Choose Azure Monitor if
- You need log collection.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want metrics collection.
Questions people ask
- Is Filebeat or Azure Monitor better?
- Neither clearly leads. Filebeat 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, Filebeat or Azure Monitor?
- Filebeat starts at Free and Azure Monitor at Free.
- Does Filebeat 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 Filebeat for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Filebeat best used for?
- Filebeat is most often used for log monitoring, application performance, security analytics, troubleshooting. Of those, log monitoring and application performance are not what Azure Monitor is typically brought in for.
- What can Filebeat do that Azure Monitor cannot?
- Filebeat covers File tailing, Log forwarding, Event parsing, Input harvesting. Azure Monitor covers Log collection, Metrics collection, Alerts and notifications, Custom dashboards. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.