Is Jaeger or PostHog better?

Neither clearly leads. Jaeger starts at Free and PostHog at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Jaeger or PostHog?

Jaeger starts at Free and PostHog at Free.

Does Jaeger or PostHog run on more platforms?

Jaeger runs on Linux, Kubernetes, Docker. PostHog runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.

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 PostHog is typically brought in for.

What can Jaeger do that PostHog cannot?

Jaeger covers Distributed trace search, Dependency graph, Adaptive sampling, Pluggable storage. PostHog covers Product analytics, Session recording, Feature flags, A/B testing.

Cloud · head to head

Jaeger vs PostHog

Jaeger

Cloud

Open-source end-to-end distributed tracing

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

PostHog

Technology

The single platform to analyze, test, observe, and deploy new features

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Each has a real cost: Jaeger tracing is only as good as the instrumentation, and partial instrumentation produces misleading gaps; PostHog the free tier covers 1M events, 5K web session recordings and 2.5K mobile recordings per month before usage-based billing starts
They diverge on capability: Jaeger covers Distributed trace search, PostHog covers Product analytics.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Jaeger and PostHog actually diverge.

Attributes where Jaeger and PostHog differ
Attribute	Jaeger	PostHog
Pricing model	Open source, no licence fee	usage-based
Platforms	Linux, Kubernetes, Docker	Web, Ios, Android, Api
Category	Cloud	Technology
Founded	Unknown	2020

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 PostHog

Product analytics
Session recording
Feature flags
A/B testing
Heatmaps
SQL access
Data warehouse
Apps platform

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 PostHog
Understanding real service dependencies rather than the diagram on the wikinot PostHog
Debugging failures that only appear under production traffic patternsnot PostHog

PostHog

Product analyticsnot Jaeger
Feature experimentationnot Jaeger
User behavior trackingnot Jaeger
A/B testingnot Jaeger
Debug production issuesnot 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

PostHog

The free tier covers 1M events, 5K web session recordings and 2.5K mobile recordings per month before usage-based billing starts
Accounts without a card on file are limited to 1 project; adding one raises it to 6
Data retention is 1 year until a card is added, which extends it to 7 years
Support is community-only until the account is on a paid plan
Error tracking is capped at 100K exceptions and surveys at 1500 responses per month on the free tier

Pricing, plan by plan

Jaeger

Free

JaegerFree
- Full functionality
- No usage limits
- Community support

PostHog

Free

FreeFree
- 1M events/month
- 5K sessions/month
- Unlimited users
Paid$undefined/month
- $0.00031/event
- $0.005/session
- Advanced permissions
Enterprise$undefined/month
- SAML SSO
- Advanced security
- Dedicated 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 PostHog if

You need product analytics.
You want to start without paying.
You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
You also want session recording.

PostHog review

Questions people ask

Is Jaeger or PostHog better?: Neither clearly leads. Jaeger starts at Free and PostHog at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Jaeger or PostHog?: Jaeger starts at Free and PostHog at Free.
Does Jaeger or PostHog run on more platforms?: Jaeger runs on Linux, Kubernetes, Docker. PostHog runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
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 PostHog is typically brought in for.
What can Jaeger do that PostHog cannot?: Jaeger covers Distributed trace search, Dependency graph, Adaptive sampling, Pluggable storage. PostHog covers Product analytics, Session recording, Feature flags, A/B testing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Jaeger: Is Jaeger free?

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

PostHog: What does PostHog's free tier include per month?

PostHog free tier includes: 1M analytics events, 5K session replays, 1M feature flag requests, 100K error tracking exceptions, 1,500 survey responses, 1M data warehouse rows, 10K data pipeline events, 100K AI observability events, 500 PostHog AI credits, 10K workflow messages, and 10GB log ingestion. Source: https://posthog.com/pricing

Source

Jaeger: Do I use Jaeger or OpenTelemetry?

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

PostHog: How much data retention does PostHog provide on paid plans?

PostHog free tier provides 1-year data retention. Pay-as-you-go plans offer 7-year data retention across all projects, enabling longer historical analysis. Source: https://posthog.com/pricing

Source

Jaeger: Does Jaeger handle metrics and logs?

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

PostHog: What percentage of PostHog users stay on the free tier?

PostHog states that 97% of companies use PostHog for free, indicating extensive free tier adoption. However, specific per-unit pricing rates for overages on paid plans are not published. Source: https://posthog.com/pricing

Source

PostHog: When does PostHog provide priority support on paid plans?

PostHog provides email or Slack support for accounts exceeding $2,000/month on pay-as-you-go plans. Specific response times and support SLAs are not detailed on their pricing page. Source: https://posthog.com/pricing

Source

Jaeger vs PostHog

Jaeger

PostHog

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Jaeger

Only in PostHog

What people use each for

Jaeger

PostHog

Where each one falls short

Jaeger

PostHog

Pricing, plan by plan

Jaeger

PostHog

Which should you pick?

Choose Jaeger if

Choose PostHog if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Jaeger

More on PostHog

Keep looking

Other head to heads