Softwr

Log Management · head to head

Loki vs Elastic Stack

Loki logo

Loki

Log Management

Like Prometheus but for Logs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Elastic Stack logo

Elastic Stack

Log Management

Search, Observability, and Security Solutions

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Loki has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Loki the Grafana Cloud free tier caps log ingestion at 50 GB a month with 14 day retention; Elastic Stack self-managed deployment requires licensing based on node count and RAM usage
  • They diverge on capability: Loki covers Log aggregation, Elastic Stack covers Full-text search.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Loki and Elastic Stack actually diverge.

Attributes where Loki and Elastic Stack differ
AttributeLokiElastic Stack
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelopen-sourcesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, ApiCloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK)
Founded20142011

Identical on both: 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 Elastic Stack

  • Full-text search
  • Log analytics
  • Security monitoring
  • Alerting

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 Elastic Stack
  • Querying logs alongside metrics in Grafananot Elastic Stack

Elastic Stack

  • Distributed search and analytics engine for production-scale workloadsnot Loki
  • Full-text search and vector search with approximate nearest neighbour supportnot Loki
  • Security event tracking with field-level and document-level access controlnot Loki
  • Machine learning capabilities including anomaly detection and forecastingnot 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

Elastic Stack

  • Self-managed deployment requires licensing based on node count and RAM usage
  • Serverless option has pending features including traffic filtering and bring-your-own-key encryption
  • Hosted deployment requires custom resource configuration for cluster management
  • Pricing models differ significantly across Hosted, Serverless, and Self-managed options

Pricing, plan by plan

Loki

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log aggregation
    • Label-based indexing
    • Real-time log streaming

Elastic Stack

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Elastic Stack review.

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.
Loki review

Choose Elastic Stack if

  • You need full-text search.
  • You work on Cloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK).
  • You also want log analytics.
Elastic Stack review

Questions people ask

Is Loki or Elastic Stack better?
Neither clearly leads. Loki starts at Free and Elastic Stack at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Loki or Elastic Stack?
Loki has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Loki and On request for Elastic Stack.
Does Loki or Elastic Stack run on more platforms?
Loki runs on Web, Api. Elastic Stack runs on Cloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK).
Can I use Loki for free?
Yes. Loki has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Elastic Stack starts at On request.
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 Elastic Stack is typically brought in for.
What can Loki do that Elastic Stack cannot?
Loki covers Log aggregation, Label-based indexing, Real-time log streaming, LogQL query language. Elastic Stack covers Full-text search, Log analytics, Security monitoring, Alerting. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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