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Log Management · head to head

Kibana vs AppDynamics

Kibana logo

Kibana

Log Management

Visualize Your Elasticsearch Data

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
A

AppDynamics

Log Management

Enterprise Application Performance Management

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Kibana requires Elasticsearch; it is a front end for data held there rather than a standalone analytics tool; AppDynamics appdynamics.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to Splunk's observability pricing page; the product is now sold as Splunk AppDynamics
  • They diverge on capability: Kibana covers Data visualization, AppDynamics covers Application performance monitoring.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kibana and AppDynamics actually diverge.

Attributes where Kibana and AppDynamics differ
AttributeKibanaAppDynamics
Pricing modelopen-sourceusage-based
Founded20112008

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Log Management).

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 Kibana

  • Data visualization
  • Dashboard creation
  • Log discovery
  • Alerting

Only in AppDynamics

  • Application performance monitoring
  • Distributed tracing
  • Real-time analytics
  • Alert management

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.

Kibana

  • Querying and visualising data held in Elasticsearchnot AppDynamics
  • Dashboards over log and metric datanot AppDynamics
  • Anomaly detection with machine learning jobsnot AppDynamics
  • Geospatial analysis on indexed location datanot AppDynamics
  • Alerting on query thresholdsnot AppDynamics

AppDynamics

  • Application performance monitoring for Java, .NET and other enterprise application stacksnot Kibana
  • Business transaction tracing across distributed application tiersnot Kibana
  • Infrastructure monitoring priced per vCPUnot Kibana

Where each one falls short

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

Kibana

  • Requires Elasticsearch; it is a front end for data held there rather than a standalone analytics tool
  • Self-managed means running and scaling the Elastic stack yourself
  • Cost is not Kibana's own; it follows whichever Elastic deployment sits underneath

AppDynamics

  • appdynamics.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to Splunk's observability pricing page; the product is now sold as Splunk AppDynamics
  • Infrastructure Edition starts at $6 per vCPU per month billed annually, so cost scales with core count rather than host count
  • Premium Edition starts at $33 per host per month and Enterprise Edition at $50 per host per month, both billed annually
  • The published figures are starting prices only, with volume pricing requiring a sales quote

Pricing, plan by plan

Kibana

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Data visualization
    • Dashboard creation
    • Log discovery

AppDynamics

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Application performance monitoring
    • Distributed tracing
    • Real-time analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose Kibana if

  • You need data visualization.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want dashboard creation.
Kibana review

Choose AppDynamics if

  • You need application performance monitoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want distributed tracing.
AppDynamics review

Questions people ask

Is Kibana or AppDynamics better?
Neither clearly leads. Kibana starts at Free and AppDynamics at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kibana or AppDynamics?
Kibana starts at Free and AppDynamics at Free.
Does Kibana or AppDynamics run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Kibana for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Kibana best used for?
Kibana is most often used for querying and visualising data held in elasticsearch, dashboards over log and metric data, anomaly detection with machine learning jobs, geospatial analysis on indexed location data. Of those, querying and visualising data held in elasticsearch and dashboards over log and metric data are not what AppDynamics is typically brought in for.
What can Kibana do that AppDynamics cannot?
Kibana covers Data visualization, Dashboard creation, Log discovery, Alerting. AppDynamics covers Application performance monitoring, Distributed tracing, Real-time analytics, Alert management. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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