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Logging · head to head

Kibana vs Retrace

Kibana logo

Kibana

Logging

Visualize Your Elasticsearch Data

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Retrace logo

Retrace

Logging

Application Performance Monitoring and Logs

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; Retrace end of Life scheduled for March 31, 2027; the product is being discontinued
  • They diverge on capability: Kibana covers Data visualization, Retrace covers Log management.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kibana and Retrace actually diverge.

Attributes where Kibana and Retrace differ
AttributeKibanaRetrace
Pricing modelopen-sourcesubscription
PlatformsWeb, ApiWeb, .NET, Java, PHP, Node.js, Python
Founded20112012

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

Only in Retrace

  • Log management
  • Application performance tracking
  • Error detection
  • Code profiling
  • Performance baselines

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 Retrace
  • Dashboards over log and metric datanot Retrace
  • Anomaly detection with machine learning jobsnot Retrace
  • Geospatial analysis on indexed location datanot Retrace
  • Alerting on query thresholdsnot Retrace

Retrace

  • Log monitoringnot Kibana
  • Application performancenot Kibana
  • Security analyticsnot Kibana
  • Troubleshootingnot 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

Retrace

  • End of Life scheduled for March 31, 2027; the product is being discontinued
  • Costs escalate quickly with per-server billing model, expensive at scale
  • User interface and dashboard criticisms; UI is outdated and difficult to use
  • Logging latency; logs can take time to appear and are not instant
  • Less mature support for Node.js, Python, and newer ecosystems
  • Reporting issues where process restarts provide only timeline without root cause data
  • Reliability concerns; monitoring has stopped collecting traces with no warning

Pricing, plan by plan

Kibana

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

Retrace

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log management
    • Application performance tracking
    • Error detection

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 Retrace if

  • You need log management.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, .NET, Java, PHP, Node.js, Python.
  • You also want application performance tracking.
Retrace review

Questions people ask

Is Kibana or Retrace better?
Neither clearly leads. Kibana starts at Free and Retrace at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kibana or Retrace?
Kibana starts at Free and Retrace at Free.
Does Kibana or Retrace run on more platforms?
Kibana runs on Web, Api. Retrace runs on Web, .NET, Java, PHP, Node.js, Python.
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 Retrace is typically brought in for.
What can Kibana do that Retrace cannot?
Kibana covers Data visualization, Dashboard creation, Log discovery, Alerting. Retrace covers Log management, Application performance tracking, Error detection, Code profiling. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.

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
Retrace: What does Retrace monitor?

Retrace provides application performance monitoring (APM), centralized log management, error tracking, code profiling, and real user monitoring (RUM). It aggregates logs from applications and servers in one place.

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
Retrace: What programming languages does Retrace support?

Retrace supports .NET, .NET Core, PHP, Node.js, Ruby, Python, and Java applications. Support for Node.js, Python, and newer ecosystems is noted as less mature.

Source
Retrace: Is Retrace being discontinued?

Yes. Retrace will reach End of Life on March 31, 2027. Users should plan to migrate to alternative solutions.

Source
Retrace: What databases and services does Retrace integrate with?

Retrace supports SQL Server, Oracle, PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis, MongoDB, Elasticsearch, and cloud platforms like AWS and Azure.

Source
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