Datadog vs Dynatrace: pricing
Observability pricing · Pricing snapshot: June 2026
On headline entry cost, Datadog has the lower headline entry cost (APM from $31/host/mo (annual)). Datadog bills per host (APM from $31/host/mo (annual)) and Dynatrace bills per host (Full-stack from ~$69/mo per 8 GiB host). Only Datadog has a permanent free tier. The real winner depends on your host count, data volume and team size. Pricing snapshot: June 2026 - verify current pricing on the vendor's site before relying on these figures.
Data as of June 2026.
Datadog vs Dynatrace side by side
| Factor | Datadog | Dynatrace |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Datadog, Inc. | Dynatrace LLC |
| Pricing model | Per-host (Infra & APM) + per-GB ingested (Logs) + per-session (RUM); modular, products billed separately and stacked | Consumption-based (DPS): per memory-GiB-hour / host-hour for full-stack, per-GiB for logs, capability units for the rest |
| Primary billing | Per host | Per host |
| Headline price | APM from $31/host/mo (annual) | Full-stack from ~$69/mo per 8 GiB host |
| Free tier? | Yes | No |
| Free tier detail | Free plan: Infrastructure for up to 5 hosts with 1-day metric retention; 14-day free trial of the full platform. | 15-day free trial of the full platform; no permanent free tier. |
| Covers | APM, Infrastructure & metrics, Log management, RUM, Distributed tracing, Error tracking | APM, Infrastructure & metrics, Log management, RUM, Distributed tracing |
Sources: Datadog, Inc. pricing · Dynatrace LLC pricing.
Per-signal rates
Where the two overlap, here is the rate each charges per signal:
| Signal | Datadog | Dynatrace |
|---|---|---|
| APM | $31/host/mo | $0.08/hr per GiB ~ $69/mo per 8 GiB host |
| Infrastructure & metrics | $15/host/mo | ~$0.04/hr per host (~$22/mo, 8 GiB) |
| Log management | $0.10/GB ingest + $1.27/M events indexed (15-day) | from ~$0.20/GiB ingest |
| RUM | RUM $1.50/1K sessions; Session Replay +$1.80/1K | Per-session DPS units |
| Distributed tracing | Bundled in APM | Bundled in Full-Stack |
Cheaper for small vs cheaper for scale
Small / starting out: Datadog wins - it has a permanent free tier. On headline cost, Datadog has the lower headline entry cost (APM from $31/host/mo (annual)).
At scale: Datadog (single pane of glass across infra, apm, logs, rum and more) versus Dynatrace (deterministic ai (davis) root-cause analysis, strong at enterprise scale). Remember Datadog bills per host and Dynatrace bills per host, which flips the answer depending on whether you scale by hosts, by data volume or by team size.
Verdict
On headline cost alone, Datadog has the lower headline entry cost (APM from $31/host/mo (annual)). But price is only part of the story. Read each full breakdown - Datadog and Dynatrace - and model your real workload in the cost calculator.
Frequently asked questions
Is Datadog or Dynatrace cheaper?
On headline entry cost, Datadog has the lower headline entry cost (APM from $31/host/mo (annual)). But the two use different models - Datadog bills per host and Dynatrace bills per host - so the real winner depends on your host count, data volume and team size. Compare the per-signal table on this page. Pricing snapshot: June 2026.
Datadog vs Dynatrace: which for a small team?
For a small team, lean to whichever has the more usable free tier and lower entry price. Datadog: Free plan: Infrastructure for up to 5 hosts with 1-day metric retention; 14-day free trial of the full platform. Dynatrace has no permanent free tier (15-day free trial of the full platform; no permanent free tier.).
Datadog vs Dynatrace: how do the billing models differ?
Datadog: Per-host (Infra & APM) + per-GB ingested (Logs) + per-session (RUM); modular, products billed separately and stacked. Dynatrace: Consumption-based (DPS): per memory-GiB-hour / host-hour for full-stack, per-GiB for logs, capability units for the rest. Per-host models penalize dense Kubernetes nodes; per-GB/per-event models penalize verbose telemetry. Model your real usage before deciding. Pricing snapshot: June 2026 - verify current pricing on the vendor's site before relying on these figures.
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Last updated: 2026-06-21