Softwr

Log Management · head to head

Rollbar vs Airbrake

Rollbar logo

Rollbar

Log Management

Real-Time Error Tracking and Debugging

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Airbrake logo

Airbrake

Log Management

Error Tracking and Performance Monitoring

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Rollbar the free plan allows 5,000 occurrences a month with 30 day retention; Airbrake data retention is 30 days on every plan, including the $799 a month Business tier
  • They diverge on capability: Rollbar covers Real-time alerts, Airbrake covers Performance monitoring.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Rollbar and Airbrake actually diverge.

Attributes where Rollbar and Airbrake differ
AttributeRollbarAirbrake
Founded20122008

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), 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 Rollbar

  • Real-time alerts
  • Error grouping
  • Source maps

Only in Airbrake

  • Performance monitoring
  • Deploy tracking
  • Custom notifications

Both cover

  • Error tracking
  • API
  • Webhooks
  • REST
  • Web support
  • Api support

What people use each for

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

Rollbar

  • Tracking application errors and exceptions across deploymentsnot Airbrake
  • Grouping and alerting on production error occurrencesnot Airbrake

Airbrake

  • Error and exception monitoring for web applicationsnot Rollbar
  • Performance monitoring alongside error trackingnot Rollbar
  • Alerting a team when a deploy introduces a spike in errorsnot Rollbar
  • Tracking errors across multiple projects in one accountnot Rollbar

Where each one falls short

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

Rollbar

  • The free plan allows 5,000 occurrences a month with 30 day retention
  • Retention is a paid ladder rather than a setting, at up to 90 days on Essentials and up to 180 on Advanced
  • Advanced alerting, the RQL analytics query language and SCIM provisioning are excluded from the free plan
  • Enterprise requires a $4M annual plan minimum
  • No price is published for Essentials or Advanced, so only the free tier has a visible cost

Airbrake

  • Data retention is 30 days on every plan, including the $799 a month Business tier
  • The entry plan at $19 a month covers 25,000 errors and 7,500 events
  • Errors beyond the plan quota are billed on demand
  • Audit logs and spike forgiveness require the Pro tier
  • The lowest tier is limited to 1 user and 1 team

Pricing, plan by plan

Rollbar

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Error tracking
    • Real-time alerts
    • Error grouping

Airbrake

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Error tracking
    • Performance monitoring
    • Deploy tracking

Which should you pick?

Choose Rollbar if

  • You need real-time alerts.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want error grouping.
Rollbar review

Choose Airbrake if

  • You need performance monitoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want deploy tracking.
Airbrake review

Questions people ask

Is Rollbar or Airbrake better?
Neither clearly leads. Rollbar starts at Free and Airbrake at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Rollbar or Airbrake?
Rollbar starts at Free and Airbrake at Free.
Does Rollbar or Airbrake run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Rollbar for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Rollbar best used for?
Rollbar is most often used for tracking application errors and exceptions across deployments, grouping and alerting on production error occurrences. Of those, tracking application errors and exceptions across deployments and grouping and alerting on production error occurrences are not what Airbrake is typically brought in for.
What can Rollbar do that Airbrake cannot?
Rollbar covers Real-time alerts, Error grouping, Source maps. Airbrake covers Performance monitoring, Deploy tracking, Custom notifications. Both handle Error tracking, API, Webhooks, REST.
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Related pages

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