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Filebeat vs Loki

Filebeat logo

Filebeat

Software

Lightweight Shipper for Logs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Loki logo

Loki

Software

Like Prometheus but for Logs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

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.; Loki the Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention
  • They diverge on capability: Filebeat covers File tailing, Loki covers Log aggregation.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Filebeat and Loki actually diverge.

Attributes where Filebeat and Loki differ
AttributeFilebeatLoki
Founded20112014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (open-source), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Loki

  • Log aggregation
  • Label-based indexing
  • Real-time log streaming
  • LogQL query language

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 Loki
  • Application performancenot Loki
  • Security analyticsnot Loki
  • Troubleshootingnot Loki

Loki

  • Aggregating application and infrastructure logs with label based indexingnot Filebeat
  • Querying logs alongside metrics in Grafananot 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.

Loki

  • The Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention
  • Paid log pricing is split across three separate meters, at $0.050 per GB processed, $0.400 per GB written and $0.100 per GB retained
  • Retaining logs is billed separately from ingesting them, so keeping data costs on an ongoing basis rather than once
  • The Pro plan carries a $19 a month platform fee before any usage charges

Pricing, plan by plan

Filebeat

Free
  • FreeFree
    • File tailing
    • Log forwarding
    • Event parsing

Loki

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log aggregation
    • Label-based indexing
    • Real-time log streaming

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.
Filebeat review

Choose Loki if

  • You need log aggregation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want label-based indexing.
Loki review

Questions people ask

Is Filebeat or Loki better?
Neither clearly leads. Filebeat starts at Free and Loki at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Filebeat or Loki?
Filebeat starts at Free and Loki at Free.
Does Filebeat or Loki 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 Loki is typically brought in for.
What can Filebeat do that Loki cannot?
Filebeat covers File tailing, Log forwarding, Event parsing, Input harvesting. Loki covers Log aggregation, Label-based indexing, Real-time log streaming, LogQL query language. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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