Software · head to head
Rollbar vs Bugsnag
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Rollbar the free plan allows 5,000 occurrences a month with 30 day retention; Bugsnag owned by SmartBear rather than being independent
- They diverge on capability: Rollbar covers Real-time alerts, Bugsnag covers Crash reporting.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Rollbar and Bugsnag actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown), founded (2012).
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 Bugsnag
- Crash reporting
- Release tracking
- Trend analysis
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 Bugsnag
- Grouping and alerting on production error occurrencesnot Bugsnag
Bugsnag
- Crash and error reporting for mobile and web applicationsnot Rollbar
- Stability scores per releasenot Rollbar
- Grouping errors by root cause across deploysnot Rollbar
- Alerting when a release regressesnot 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
Bugsnag
- Owned by SmartBear rather than being independent
- The free tier covers 7,500 events a month
- Paid tiers are usage-priced by event volume rather than by seat, so a noisy release raises the bill
- Enterprise pricing is quote-only
Pricing, plan by plan
Rollbar
Free- FreeFree
- Error tracking
- Real-time alerts
- Error grouping
Bugsnag
Free- FreeFree
- Error tracking
- Crash reporting
- Release 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.
Choose Bugsnag if
- You need crash reporting.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want release tracking.
Questions people ask
- Is Rollbar or Bugsnag better?
- Neither clearly leads. Rollbar starts at Free and Bugsnag at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Rollbar or Bugsnag?
- Rollbar starts at Free and Bugsnag at Free.
- Does Rollbar or Bugsnag 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 Bugsnag is typically brought in for.
- What can Rollbar do that Bugsnag cannot?
- Rollbar covers Real-time alerts, Error grouping, Source maps. Bugsnag covers Crash reporting, Release tracking, Trend analysis. Both handle Error tracking, API, Webhooks, REST.