Log Management · head to head
Stackdriver vs Elastic Stack
Stackdriver
Log Management
Google Cloud Operations - Monitoring and Logging
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Elastic Stack
Log Management
Search, Observability, and Security Solutions
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Stackdriver has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Stackdriver stackdriver is now branded Google Cloud Observability and cloud.google.com/stackdriver redirects to the Observability product page; Elastic Stack self-managed deployment requires licensing based on node count and RAM usage
- They diverge on capability: Stackdriver covers Log management, Elastic Stack covers Full-text search.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Stackdriver and Elastic Stack actually diverge.
| Attribute | Stackdriver | Elastic Stack |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | On request |
| Pricing model | usage-based | subscription |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Web, Api | Cloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK) |
| Founded | 2006 | 2011 |
Identical on both: 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 Stackdriver
- Log management
- Metrics collection
- Real-time monitoring
- Error reporting
Only in Elastic Stack
- Full-text search
- Log analytics
- Security monitoring
- Alerting
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.
Stackdriver
- Centralised logging, metrics and traces for workloads running on Google Cloudnot Elastic Stack
- Alerting and uptime checks on cloud servicesnot Elastic Stack
- Running managed Prometheus-compatible monitoring at scalenot Elastic Stack
Elastic Stack
- Distributed search and analytics engine for production-scale workloadsnot Stackdriver
- Full-text search and vector search with approximate nearest neighbour supportnot Stackdriver
- Security event tracking with field-level and document-level access controlnot Stackdriver
- Machine learning capabilities including anomaly detection and forecastingnot Stackdriver
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
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
Elastic Stack
- Self-managed deployment requires licensing based on node count and RAM usage
- Serverless option has pending features including traffic filtering and bring-your-own-key encryption
- Hosted deployment requires custom resource configuration for cluster management
- Pricing models differ significantly across Hosted, Serverless, and Self-managed options
Pricing, plan by plan
Stackdriver
Free- FreeFree
- Log management
- Metrics collection
- Real-time monitoring
Elastic Stack
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Elastic Stack review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Stackdriver if
- You need log management.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want metrics collection.
Choose Elastic Stack if
- You need full-text search.
- You work on Cloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK).
- You also want log analytics.
Questions people ask
- Is Stackdriver or Elastic Stack better?
- Neither clearly leads. Stackdriver starts at Free and Elastic Stack at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Stackdriver or Elastic Stack?
- Stackdriver has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Stackdriver and On request for Elastic Stack.
- Does Stackdriver or Elastic Stack run on more platforms?
- Stackdriver runs on Web, Api. Elastic Stack runs on Cloud-hosted, Self-managed, Docker, Kubernetes (ECK).
- Can I use Stackdriver for free?
- Yes. Stackdriver has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Elastic Stack starts at On request.
- What is Stackdriver best used for?
- Stackdriver is most often used for centralised logging, metrics and traces for workloads running on google cloud, alerting and uptime checks on cloud services, running managed prometheus-compatible monitoring at scale. Of those, centralised logging, metrics and traces for workloads running on google cloud and alerting and uptime checks on cloud services are not what Elastic Stack is typically brought in for.
- What can Stackdriver do that Elastic Stack cannot?
- Stackdriver covers Log management, Metrics collection, Real-time monitoring, Error reporting. Elastic Stack covers Full-text search, Log analytics, Security monitoring, Alerting. Both handle API, Webhooks, REST, Web support.