Softwr

Log Management · head to head

Loki vs ELK Stack

Loki logo

Loki

Log Management

Like Prometheus but for Logs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
ELK Stack logo

ELK Stack

Log Management

Open Source Search and Log Analytics

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

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; ELK Stack the free Basic self managed subscription excludes machine learning, alerting, single sign on via SAML or OpenID Connect, LDAP and Active Directory authentication, field and document level security, searchable snapshots and cross cluster replication
  • They diverge on capability: Loki covers Label-based indexing, ELK Stack covers Full-text search.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Loki and ELK Stack differ
AttributeLokiELK Stack
Founded20142011

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (open-source), 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

  • Label-based indexing
  • Real-time log streaming
  • LogQL query language

Only in ELK Stack

  • Full-text search
  • Data visualization
  • Time-series analytics

Both cover

  • Log aggregation
  • 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 ELK Stack
  • Querying logs alongside metrics in Grafananot ELK Stack

ELK Stack

  • Centralised log search and analytics over Elasticsearchnot Loki
  • Dashboards and visualisation of machine data in Kibananot Loki
  • Self managing a search and observability cluster on your own hardwarenot 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

ELK Stack

  • The free Basic self managed subscription excludes machine learning, alerting, single sign on via SAML or OpenID Connect, LDAP and Active Directory authentication, field and document level security, searchable snapshots and cross cluster replication
  • Cross cluster operations require the same subscription tier on every cluster involved
  • The 99.95 percent monthly uptime SLA applies only to the Platinum and Enterprise subscription tiers
  • Three deployment models are priced on three different bases: resource based for Cloud Hosted, usage based for Serverless and licence based on nodes and RAM for self managed
  • Elastic Cloud Serverless does not yet support traffic filtering, cross project search or bring your own key
  • The pricing page publishes no rate for any tier

Pricing, plan by plan

Loki

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

ELK Stack

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Full-text search
    • Data visualization
    • Log aggregation

Which should you pick?

Choose Loki if

  • You need label-based indexing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want real-time log streaming.
Loki review

Choose ELK Stack if

  • You need full-text search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want data visualization.
ELK Stack review

Questions people ask

Is Loki or ELK Stack better?
Neither clearly leads. Loki starts at Free and ELK Stack at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Loki or ELK Stack?
Loki starts at Free and ELK Stack at Free.
Does Loki or ELK Stack 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 ELK Stack is typically brought in for.
What can Loki do that ELK Stack cannot?
Loki covers Label-based indexing, Real-time log streaming, LogQL query language. ELK Stack covers Full-text search, Data visualization, Time-series analytics. Both handle Log aggregation, API, Webhooks, REST.
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