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Logging · head to head

Retrace vs Stackdriver

Retrace logo

Retrace

Logging

Application Performance Monitoring and Logs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Stackdriver logo

Stackdriver

Logging

Google Cloud Operations - Monitoring and Logging

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Retrace end of Life scheduled for March 31, 2027; the product is being discontinued; Stackdriver stackdriver is now branded Google Cloud Observability and cloud.google.com/stackdriver redirects to the Observability product page
  • They diverge on capability: Retrace covers Application performance tracking, Stackdriver covers Metrics collection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Retrace and Stackdriver actually diverge.

Attributes where Retrace and Stackdriver differ
AttributeRetraceStackdriver
Pricing modelsubscriptionusage-based
PlatformsWeb, .NET, Java, PHP, Node.js, PythonWeb, Api
Founded20122006

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 Retrace

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

Only in Stackdriver

  • Metrics collection
  • Real-time monitoring
  • Error reporting

Both cover

  • Log management
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support
  • Api support

What people use each for

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

Retrace

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

Stackdriver

  • Application performance monitoringnot Retrace
  • Log aggregation and analysisnot Retrace
  • Cloud infrastructure observabilitynot Retrace
  • Distributed trace analysisnot Retrace

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

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  • User interface and dashboard criticisms; UI is outdated and difficult to use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

Stackdriver

  • Stackdriver is now branded Google Cloud Observability and cloud.google.com/stackdriver redirects to the Observability product page
  • Cloud Logging charges $0.50 per GiB ingested, with only the first 50 GiB per project per month free
  • Logs kept beyond 30 days cost an extra $0.01 per GiB per month on top of the ingestion charge
  • Monitoring metric ingestion starts at $0.2580 per MiB, with only the first 150 MiB per billing account free
  • Alerting policies are billed at $0.35 per month for each metric reference in the policy
  • Uptime checks cost $0.30 per 1,000 executions and synthetic monitors $1.20 per 1,000 executions, with only 100 synthetic executions per billing account free
  • Monitoring read API calls cost $0.50 per million time series returned beyond the first million per billing account
  • Log volume is measured before indexing on the actual size of log entries, so verbose logging directly drives cost

Pricing, plan by plan

Retrace

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

Stackdriver

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Log management
    • Metrics collection
    • Real-time monitoring

Which should you pick?

Choose Retrace if

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

Choose Stackdriver if

  • You need metrics collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want real-time monitoring.
Stackdriver review

Questions people ask

Is Retrace or Stackdriver better?
Neither clearly leads. Retrace starts at Free and Stackdriver at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Retrace or Stackdriver?
Retrace starts at Free and Stackdriver at Free.
Does Retrace or Stackdriver run on more platforms?
Retrace runs on Web, .NET, Java, PHP, Node.js, Python. Stackdriver runs on Web, Api.
Can I use Retrace for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Retrace best used for?
Retrace is most often used for log monitoring, application performance, security analytics, troubleshooting. Of those, log monitoring and application performance are not what Stackdriver is typically brought in for.
What can Retrace do that Stackdriver cannot?
Retrace covers Application performance tracking, Error detection, Code profiling, Performance baselines. Stackdriver covers Metrics collection, Real-time monitoring, Error reporting. Both handle Log management, API, Webhooks, REST.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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
Stackdriver: How much does Google Cloud Observability (Stackdriver) cost?

Google Cloud Observability does not publish fixed subscription prices. The service uses a usage-based pricing model where you pay for actual consumption. Specific rates require visiting the individual pricing pages for Cloud Logging, Cloud Monitoring, Cloud Trace, and Cloud Profiler.

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
Stackdriver: What is the pricing model for Cloud Logging?

Cloud Logging uses usage-based pricing charged per GB of logs ingested and per GB stored, with monthly free tiers included. Storage charges vary by retention period and location.

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
Stackdriver: How is Cloud Monitoring billed?

Cloud Monitoring charges per custom metric time series per month, with a monthly free tier for metrics. Standard monitoring includes basic default metrics at no extra charge.

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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