Software · head to head
Rollbar vs CloudWatch
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Rollbar the free plan allows 5,000 occurrences a month with 30 day retention; CloudWatch the free tier covers 5 GB of log ingestion and 10 custom metrics a month, after which log ingestion is $0.50 per GB from 5 to 30 GB
- They diverge on capability: Rollbar covers Error tracking, CloudWatch covers Metrics collection.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Rollbar and CloudWatch actually diverge.
| Attribute | Rollbar | CloudWatch |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2012 | 2006 |
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 CloudWatch
- Metrics collection
- Log aggregation
- Dashboards
- Alarms and notifications
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 CloudWatch
- Grouping and alerting on production error occurrencesnot CloudWatch
CloudWatch
- Metrics and log collection for AWS workloadsnot Rollbar
- Alarming on thresholds across AWS servicesnot Rollbar
- Querying logs with Logs Insightsnot Rollbar
- Live tailing logs during an incidentnot Rollbar
- Distributed tracing alongside X-Raynot 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
CloudWatch
- The free tier covers 5 GB of log ingestion and 10 custom metrics a month, after which log ingestion is $0.50 per GB from 5 to 30 GB
- Custom metrics are $0.30 each for the first 10,000, so instrumenting broadly gets expensive before volume discounts apply
- Each custom dashboard beyond the free three is $3 a month
- Alarms are billed at $0.10 per alarm metric a month, with high-resolution alarms costing more
- Log storage beyond the free 5 GB is $0.03 per GB per month on top of the ingestion charge
Pricing, plan by plan
Rollbar
Free- FreeFree
- Error tracking
- Real-time alerts
- Error grouping
CloudWatch
Free- FreeFree
- Metrics collection
- Log aggregation
- Dashboards
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.
Choose CloudWatch if
- You need metrics collection.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want log aggregation.
Questions people ask
- Is Rollbar or CloudWatch better?
- Neither clearly leads. Rollbar starts at Free and CloudWatch at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Rollbar or CloudWatch?
- Rollbar starts at Free and CloudWatch at Free.
- Does Rollbar or CloudWatch 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 CloudWatch is typically brought in for.
- What can Rollbar do that CloudWatch cannot?
- Rollbar covers Error tracking, Real-time alerts, Error grouping, Source maps. CloudWatch covers Metrics collection, Log aggregation, Dashboards, Alarms and notifications. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.