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Software · head to head

Rollbar vs AppDynamics

Rollbar logo

Rollbar

Software

Real-Time Error Tracking and Debugging

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
A

AppDynamics

Software

Enterprise Application Performance Management

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; AppDynamics appdynamics.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to Splunk's observability pricing page; the product is now sold as Splunk AppDynamics
  • They diverge on capability: Rollbar covers Error tracking, AppDynamics covers Application performance monitoring.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Rollbar and AppDynamics actually diverge.

Attributes where Rollbar and AppDynamics differ
AttributeRollbarAppDynamics
Founded20122008

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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

  • Error tracking
  • Real-time alerts
  • Error grouping
  • Source maps

Only in AppDynamics

  • Application performance monitoring
  • Distributed tracing
  • Real-time analytics
  • Alert management

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.

Rollbar

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

AppDynamics

  • Application performance monitoring for Java, .NET and other enterprise application stacksnot Rollbar
  • Business transaction tracing across distributed application tiersnot Rollbar
  • Infrastructure monitoring priced per vCPUnot 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

AppDynamics

  • appdynamics.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to Splunk's observability pricing page; the product is now sold as Splunk AppDynamics
  • Infrastructure Edition starts at $6 per vCPU per month billed annually, so cost scales with core count rather than host count
  • Premium Edition starts at $33 per host per month and Enterprise Edition at $50 per host per month, both billed annually
  • The published figures are starting prices only, with volume pricing requiring a sales quote

Pricing, plan by plan

Rollbar

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

AppDynamics

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Application performance monitoring
    • Distributed tracing
    • Real-time analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose Rollbar if

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

Choose AppDynamics if

  • You need application performance monitoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want distributed tracing.
AppDynamics review

Questions people ask

Is Rollbar or AppDynamics better?
Neither clearly leads. Rollbar starts at Free and AppDynamics at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Rollbar or AppDynamics?
Rollbar starts at Free and AppDynamics at Free.
Does Rollbar or AppDynamics 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 AppDynamics is typically brought in for.
What can Rollbar do that AppDynamics cannot?
Rollbar covers Error tracking, Real-time alerts, Error grouping, Source maps. AppDynamics covers Application performance monitoring, Distributed tracing, Real-time analytics, Alert management. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.
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