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Cloud · head to head

Jaeger vs Janus Gateway

Jaeger logo

Jaeger

Cloud

Open-source end-to-end distributed tracing

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Janus Gateway logo

Janus Gateway

APIs

WebRTC gateway and media server for real-time communication

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Jaeger tracing is only as good as the instrumentation, and partial instrumentation produces misleading gaps; Janus Gateway no commercial pricing published; open-source project without official commercial offerings
  • They diverge on capability: Jaeger covers Distributed trace search, Janus Gateway covers WebRTC Gateway.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Jaeger and Janus Gateway actually diverge.

Attributes where Jaeger and Janus Gateway differ
AttributeJaegerJanus Gateway
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeopen-source
PlatformsLinux, Kubernetes, DockerLinux, MacOS, BSD
CategoryCloudAPIs
FoundedUnknown2010

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Jaeger

  • Distributed trace search
  • Dependency graph
  • Adaptive sampling
  • Pluggable storage

Only in Janus Gateway

  • WebRTC Gateway
  • Media Routing
  • Video Conferencing
  • RTP
  • SRTP
  • REST API
  • Linux support
  • MacOS support

What people use each for

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

Jaeger

  • Finding which service in a request path causes the latencynot Janus Gateway
  • Understanding real service dependencies rather than the diagram on the wikinot Janus Gateway
  • Debugging failures that only appear under production traffic patternsnot Janus Gateway

Janus Gateway

  • API Developmentnot Jaeger
  • API Gatewaynot Jaeger
  • API Testingnot Jaeger
  • API Documentationnot Jaeger
  • Microservicesnot Jaeger

Where each one falls short

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

Jaeger

  • Tracing is only as good as the instrumentation, and partial instrumentation produces misleading gaps
  • Storage is the real operational cost: high-volume tracing on Elasticsearch or Cassandra is a cluster to run and pay for
  • Traces alone, without correlated metrics and logs, leave you switching between tools during an incident

Janus Gateway

  • No commercial pricing published; open-source project without official commercial offerings
  • Community-supported only; no vendor commercial support or SLA available

Pricing, plan by plan

Jaeger

Free
  • JaegerFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Janus Gateway

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Core WebRTC gateway
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose Jaeger if

  • You need distributed trace search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Kubernetes, Docker.
  • You also want dependency graph.
Jaeger review

Choose Janus Gateway if

  • You need webrtc gateway.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, MacOS, BSD.
  • You also want media routing.
Janus Gateway review

Questions people ask

Is Jaeger or Janus Gateway better?
Neither clearly leads. Jaeger starts at Free and Janus Gateway at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Jaeger or Janus Gateway?
Jaeger starts at Free and Janus Gateway at Free.
Does Jaeger or Janus Gateway run on more platforms?
Jaeger runs on Linux, Kubernetes, Docker. Janus Gateway runs on Linux, MacOS, BSD.
Can I use Jaeger for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Jaeger best used for?
Jaeger is most often used for finding which service in a request path causes the latency, understanding real service dependencies rather than the diagram on the wiki, debugging failures that only appear under production traffic patterns. Of those, finding which service in a request path causes the latency and understanding real service dependencies rather than the diagram on the wiki are not what Janus Gateway is typically brought in for.
What can Jaeger do that Janus Gateway cannot?
Jaeger covers Distributed trace search, Dependency graph, Adaptive sampling, Pluggable storage. Janus Gateway covers WebRTC Gateway, Media Routing, Video Conferencing, RTP.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Jaeger: Is Jaeger free?

Yes, open source and CNCF-graduated. Costs are the storage backend you run.

Janus Gateway: How much does Janus Gateway cost?

Janus Gateway has no pricing model; it is a free open-source WebRTC server developed by Meetecho. The general-purpose server is available for download at no cost. There are no subscription tiers or commercial licensing fees.

Source
Jaeger: Do I use Jaeger or OpenTelemetry?

Both, usually. Instrument with OpenTelemetry and use Jaeger to store and query the traces.

Janus Gateway: Is Janus Gateway supported commercially?

Janus Gateway is community-supported open-source software with no official commercial support or SLA from the vendors. While Meetecho developed the project, users must rely on community documentation and forums for assistance.

Source
Jaeger: Does Jaeger handle metrics and logs?

No. It is a tracing system. Metrics and logs need Prometheus, Loki or an equivalent.

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