Is Jaeger or Semgrep better?

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

Which is cheaper, Jaeger or Semgrep?

Jaeger starts at Free and Semgrep at Free.

Does Jaeger or Semgrep run on more platforms?

Jaeger runs on Linux, Kubernetes, Docker. Semgrep runs on web, api, linux, mac, windows.

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 Semgrep is typically brought in for.

What can Jaeger do that Semgrep cannot?

Jaeger covers Distributed trace search, Dependency graph, Adaptive sampling, Pluggable storage. Semgrep covers Static code scanning, Supply chain scanning, Secrets detection, Cross-file analysis.

Cloud · head to head

Jaeger vs Semgrep

Jaeger

Cloud

Open-source end-to-end distributed tracing

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

Semgrep

Cybersecurity

Open-source static analysis tool for finding security bugs and enforcing code standards.

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; Semgrep free tier caps out at 10 contributors and 10 repositories.
They diverge on capability: Jaeger covers Distributed trace search, Semgrep covers Static code scanning.
Prices and features above were last checked on 29 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Jaeger and Semgrep actually diverge.

Attributes where Jaeger and Semgrep differ
Attribute	Jaeger	Semgrep
Pricing model	Open source, no licence fee	freemium
Platforms	Linux, Kubernetes, Docker	web, api, linux, mac, windows
Category	Cloud	Cybersecurity

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 Semgrep

Static code scanning
Supply chain scanning
Secrets detection
Cross-file analysis
AI-powered triage and remediation
CI/CD integration

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

Semgrep

Scanning code for security vulnerabilities in CI/CDnot Jaeger
Detecting vulnerable open-source dependenciesnot Jaeger
Finding hardcoded secrets before code shipsnot Jaeger
Enforcing custom code standards with rule setsnot Jaeger
Prioritizing findings with AI-assisted triagenot 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

Semgrep

Free tier caps out at 10 contributors and 10 repositories.
Secrets scanning is priced as a separate module ($15/contributor) from Code and Supply Chain.
Self-managed repositories and custom CI/CD require the Enterprise tier.
AI credits are limited per tier and additional usage requires upgrading.

Pricing, plan by plan

Jaeger

Free

JaegerFree
- Full functionality
- No usage limits
- Community support

Semgrep

Free

FreeFree
- Up to 10 contributors
- Code and Supply Chain scanning
- 60 AI credits total
Teams$30/month
- Code, Supply Chain, or Secrets scanning per contributor
- Pro rules
- AI-powered triage and remediation
Enterprise$undefined/month
- On-prem support
- Custom CI/CD
- 50 AI credits per developer/month

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 Semgrep if

You need static code scanning.
You want to start without paying.
You work on web, api, linux, mac, windows.
You also want supply chain scanning.

Semgrep review

Questions people ask

Is Jaeger or Semgrep better?: Neither clearly leads. Jaeger starts at Free and Semgrep at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Jaeger or Semgrep?: Jaeger starts at Free and Semgrep at Free.
Does Jaeger or Semgrep run on more platforms?: Jaeger runs on Linux, Kubernetes, Docker. Semgrep runs on web, api, linux, mac, windows.
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 Semgrep is typically brought in for.
What can Jaeger do that Semgrep cannot?: Jaeger covers Distributed trace search, Dependency graph, Adaptive sampling, Pluggable storage. Semgrep covers Static code scanning, Supply chain scanning, Secrets detection, Cross-file analysis.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Jaeger: Is Jaeger free?

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

Semgrep: What does Semgrep cost?

The Free edition covers up to 10 contributors; Teams starts at $30/contributor/month for Code scanning (Supply Chain also $30, Secrets $15); Enterprise is custom-priced.

Source

Jaeger: Do I use Jaeger or OpenTelemetry?

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

Semgrep: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?

Yes, the Free edition supports up to 10 contributors and 10 repositories with Code and Supply Chain scanning plus 60 AI credits total.

Source

Jaeger: Does Jaeger handle metrics and logs?

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

Semgrep: How is usage metered?

Pricing is per contributor, defined as someone who made at least one commit to a scanned private repository in the past 90 days.

Source

Semgrep: Is there special pricing for startups?

Yes, Semgrep offers special startup pricing upon request for early-stage companies.

Source

Jaeger vs Semgrep

Jaeger

Semgrep

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Jaeger

Only in Semgrep

What people use each for

Jaeger

Semgrep

Where each one falls short

Jaeger

Semgrep

Pricing, plan by plan

Jaeger

Semgrep

Which should you pick?

Choose Jaeger if

Choose Semgrep if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Jaeger

More on Semgrep

Keep looking

Other head to heads