Log Management · head to head
Loki vs Azure Monitor
Azure Monitor
Log Management
Azure's Monitoring and Diagnostics Service
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Loki the Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention; Azure Monitor billed per GB ingested across three separate log plans, Auxiliary, Basic and Analytics, so the plan chosen changes the rate as much as the volume does
- They diverge on capability: Loki covers Log aggregation, Azure Monitor covers Log collection.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Loki and Azure Monitor actually diverge.
| Attribute | Loki | Azure Monitor |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | open-source | usage-based |
| Founded | 2014 | 2010 |
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 Loki
- Log aggregation
- Label-based indexing
- Real-time log streaming
- LogQL query language
Only in Azure Monitor
- Log collection
- Metrics collection
- Alerts and notifications
- Custom dashboards
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.
Loki
- Aggregating application and infrastructure logs with label based indexingnot Azure Monitor
- Querying logs alongside metrics in Grafananot Azure Monitor
Azure Monitor
- Collecting logs and metrics from Azure resourcesnot Loki
- Alerting on metric thresholds and log queriesnot Loki
- Application performance monitoring through Application Insightsnot Loki
- Long-term log retention for compliancenot Loki
- Querying operational data with KQLnot Loki
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Loki
- The Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention
- Paid log pricing is split across three separate meters, at $0.050 per GB processed, $0.400 per GB written and $0.100 per GB retained
- Retaining logs is billed separately from ingesting them, so keeping data costs on an ongoing basis rather than once
- The Pro plan carries a $19 a month platform fee before any usage charges
Azure Monitor
- Billed per GB ingested across three separate log plans, Auxiliary, Basic and Analytics, so the plan chosen changes the rate as much as the volume does
- Only the first 5 GB a month of Analytics logs is free per billing account
- Retention beyond the base period is charged per GB per month, up to 2 years interactive and 12 years long term
- Log queries and search jobs are billed per GB scanned, so investigating an incident costs money
- Alert rules are billed per time series for metrics and by execution frequency for logs
- The pricing page shows placeholders rather than rates until a region and currency are chosen
Pricing, plan by plan
Loki
Free- FreeFree
- Log aggregation
- Label-based indexing
- Real-time log streaming
Azure Monitor
Free- FreeFree
- Log collection
- Metrics collection
- Alerts and notifications
Which should you pick?
Choose Loki if
- You need log aggregation.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want label-based indexing.
Choose Azure Monitor if
- You need log collection.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want metrics collection.
Questions people ask
- Is Loki or Azure Monitor better?
- Neither clearly leads. Loki starts at Free and Azure Monitor at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Loki or Azure Monitor?
- Loki starts at Free and Azure Monitor at Free.
- Does Loki or Azure Monitor run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Loki for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Loki best used for?
- Loki is most often used for aggregating application and infrastructure logs with label based indexing, querying logs alongside metrics in grafana. Of those, aggregating application and infrastructure logs with label based indexing and querying logs alongside metrics in grafana are not what Azure Monitor is typically brought in for.
- What can Loki do that Azure Monitor cannot?
- Loki covers Log aggregation, Label-based indexing, Real-time log streaming, LogQL query language. Azure Monitor covers Log collection, Metrics collection, Alerts and notifications, Custom dashboards. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.