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Logging · head to head

Kibana vs Openstatus

Kibana logo

Kibana

Logging

Visualize Your Elasticsearch Data

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Openstatus logo

Openstatus

Logging

Status pages with uptime monitoring and compliance-ready incident tracking

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; Openstatus free tier severely limited to 1 monitor and 1 status page
  • They diverge on capability: Kibana covers Data visualization, Openstatus covers Branded status pages.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kibana and Openstatus actually diverge.

Attributes where Kibana and Openstatus differ
AttributeKibanaOpenstatus
Pricing modelopen-sourceUnknown
Founded20112023

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

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
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support

Only in Openstatus

  • Branded status pages
  • Global monitoring
  • Incident notifications
  • Audit-ready trails
  • API and CLI access
  • Terraform provider
  • Self-hosting

What people use each for

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

Kibana

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

Openstatus

  • Publishing incident status pages to customersnot Kibana
  • Demonstrating compliance readiness to auditorsnot Kibana
  • Alerting internal teams when services are downnot Kibana
  • Tracking uptime metrics across global regionsnot 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

Openstatus

  • Free tier severely limited to 1 monitor and 1 status page
  • Per-status-page pricing adds cost for multi-product organizations
  • No built-in workflow orchestration or incident response automation
  • Limited historical analytics beyond incident documentation
  • No AI-powered incident diagnosis or root cause analysis

Pricing, plan by plan

Kibana

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

Openstatus

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1 monitor with 10-minute intervals
    • 1 status page with 3 components
    • No credit card required
  • Starter$30/month
    • 20 monitors with 1-minute intervals
    • 1 status page with 20 components
    • 3-month data retention
  • Pro$100/month
    • 50 monitors with 30-second intervals
    • 5 status pages with 50 components each
    • 12-month data retention
  • Scale$500/month
    • 50 monitors with 30-second intervals
    • 10 status pages with 500 components each
    • 24-month data retention

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 Openstatus if

  • You need branded status pages.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want global monitoring.
Openstatus review

Questions people ask

Is Kibana or Openstatus better?
Neither clearly leads. Kibana starts at Free and Openstatus at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kibana or Openstatus?
Kibana starts at Free and Openstatus at Free.
Does Kibana or Openstatus run on more platforms?
Kibana runs on Web, Api. Openstatus runs on Web, API.
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 Openstatus is typically brought in for.
What can Kibana do that Openstatus cannot?
Kibana covers Data visualization, Dashboard creation, Log discovery, Alerting. Openstatus covers Branded status pages, Global monitoring, Incident notifications, Audit-ready trails.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Kibana: Is Kibana available for free?

Kibana is offered with a free trial across all deployment models (Elastic Cloud Serverless, Hosted, and self-managed). Kibana is a component of the Elastic product suite and is not priced separately.

Source
Openstatus: Can I use OpenStatus for free?

Yes, the free tier includes 1 monitor with 10-minute check intervals and 1 status page with 3 components, no credit card required.

Source
Kibana: How is Kibana priced?

Kibana pricing is bundled with Elasticsearch or other Elastic products. Pricing varies by deployment model: Elastic Cloud Serverless uses usage-based pricing, Hosted uses resource-based pricing, and self-managed is free to download.

Source
Openstatus: What is included in annual billing for Starter plan?

Annual billing costs $300/year (vs $360/month), saving 2 months. Includes 20 monitors, 1-minute intervals, and all alert types.

Source
Openstatus: Can I add extra status pages beyond my plan limit?

Yes, additional status pages cost $20/month and are billed separately on top of your plan.

Source
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