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Fluentd vs Elastic Stack

Fluentd logo

Fluentd

Software

Open Source Data Collector for Unified Logging

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Elastic Stack logo

Elastic Stack

Software

Search, Observability, and Security Solutions

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Fluentd has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Fluentd fluentd needs more than 60 MB of memory at runtime, against roughly 450 KB for Fluent Bit; Elastic Stack self-managed deployment requires licensing based on node count and RAM usage
  • They diverge on capability: Fluentd covers Log collection, Elastic Stack covers Full-text search.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fluentd and Elastic Stack actually diverge.

Attributes where Fluentd and Elastic Stack differ
AttributeFluentdElastic Stack
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelopen-sourcesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, ApiCloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK)

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown), founded (2011).

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 Fluentd

  • Log collection
  • Data parsing
  • Filtering and buffering
  • Event routing

Only in Elastic Stack

  • Full-text search
  • Log analytics
  • Security monitoring
  • Alerting

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.

Fluentd

  • Unified log collection and routing from many sources to many destinationsnot Elastic Stack
  • Parsing and transforming log records before forwardingnot Elastic Stack
  • Aggregating logs from containers into Elasticsearch, S3 or a SIEMnot Elastic Stack

Elastic Stack

  • Distributed search and analytics engine for production-scale workloadsnot Fluentd
  • Full-text search and vector search with approximate nearest neighbour supportnot Fluentd
  • Security event tracking with field-level and document-level access controlnot Fluentd
  • Machine learning capabilities including anomaly detection and forecastingnot Fluentd

Where each one falls short

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

Fluentd

  • Fluentd needs more than 60 MB of memory at runtime, against roughly 450 KB for Fluent Bit
  • Fluentd is built as a Ruby gem and depends on other gems, so a Ruby runtime is required
  • Its capability comes from over 1,000 external plugins rather than built in functionality, so each added input or output is a separate dependency
  • The Fluent Bit documentation states that cloud providers have switched from Fluentd to Fluent Bit for performance and compatibility and calls Fluent Bit the next generation solution

Elastic Stack

  • Self-managed deployment requires licensing based on node count and RAM usage
  • Serverless option has pending features including traffic filtering and bring-your-own-key encryption
  • Hosted deployment requires custom resource configuration for cluster management
  • Pricing models differ significantly across Hosted, Serverless, and Self-managed options

Pricing, plan by plan

Fluentd

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log collection
    • Data parsing
    • Filtering and buffering

Elastic Stack

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Elastic Stack review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Fluentd if

  • You need log collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want data parsing.
Fluentd review

Choose Elastic Stack if

  • You need full-text search.
  • You work on Cloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK).
  • You also want log analytics.
Elastic Stack review

Questions people ask

Is Fluentd or Elastic Stack better?
Neither clearly leads. Fluentd starts at Free and Elastic Stack at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fluentd or Elastic Stack?
Fluentd has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Fluentd and On request for Elastic Stack.
Does Fluentd or Elastic Stack run on more platforms?
Fluentd runs on Web, Api. Elastic Stack runs on Cloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK).
Can I use Fluentd for free?
Yes. Fluentd has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Elastic Stack starts at On request.
What is Fluentd best used for?
Fluentd is most often used for unified log collection and routing from many sources to many destinations, parsing and transforming log records before forwarding, aggregating logs from containers into elasticsearch, s3 or a siem. Of those, unified log collection and routing from many sources to many destinations and parsing and transforming log records before forwarding are not what Elastic Stack is typically brought in for.
What can Fluentd do that Elastic Stack cannot?
Fluentd covers Log collection, Data parsing, Filtering and buffering, Event routing. Elastic Stack covers Full-text search, Log analytics, Security monitoring, Alerting. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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