LogTide vs Datadog for Log Management

Datadog is a popular SaaS observability platform. LogTide is a self-hosted, open-source log management platform with built-in SIEM. Here’s an honest comparison to help you decide which is right for your team.

Cost Comparison

Cost is the biggest difference between LogTide and Datadog.

Datadog Pricing

Datadog charges based on log volume plus per-user fees:

Component	Cost
Log ingestion	$0.10/GB (with commitment) to $1.70/GB (on-demand)
Log retention (15 days)	Included with ingestion
Log retention (30+ days)	$0.05-$0.15/GB/month
Per-user (Pro)	$23/user/month
Cloud SIEM	$0.20/GB additional

Real-world example: A mid-size SaaS company ingesting 100 GB/day:

• Log ingestion: ~$3,000/month
• 5 users (Pro): $115/month
• Cloud SIEM: $600/month
• Total: ~$3,715/month ($44,580/year)

LogTide Pricing

LogTide is free, open-source software. You pay only for infrastructure:

Component	Cost
Software license	Free (AGPLv3)
Cloud VM (8 CPU, 32 GB)	~$150-300/month
Storage (2 TB SSD)	~$50-100/month
SIEM features	Included
Users	Unlimited

Same 100 GB/day scenario:

• Infrastructure: ~$200-400/month
• Total: ~$300/month ($3,600/year)

Savings: ~$41,000/year (92%)

Feature Comparison

Feature	Datadog	LogTide
Log ingestion (HTTP API)	Yes	Yes
SDKs (Node.js, Python, Go, etc.)	Yes	Yes
OpenTelemetry support	Partial (logs only)	Native OTLP
Full-text search	Yes	Yes
Real-time streaming	Yes	Yes (SSE)
Alert rules	Yes	Yes
Email/webhook notifications	Yes	Yes
Trace correlation	Yes	Yes
Sigma detection rules	No	Built-in
Incident management	Cloud SIEM ($0.20/GB)	Included
MITRE ATT&CK mapping	Cloud SIEM	Included
Self-hosted option	No	Yes
Custom dashboards	Yes	SIEM dashboard
APM/traces	Yes	Logs + OTLP traces
Infrastructure metrics	Yes	Roadmap

Where Datadog Wins

Full observability platform. Datadog offers metrics, traces, logs, and infrastructure monitoring in a single SaaS platform. If you need all four pillars of observability from one vendor, Datadog is more complete.

Zero infrastructure management. As a SaaS product, there’s nothing to deploy or maintain. Your team focuses entirely on using the platform, not running it.

Custom dashboards. Datadog’s dashboard builder is mature with drag-and-drop widgets, formula-based queries, and visualization options that LogTide doesn’t match yet.

Ecosystem integrations. Datadog has 700+ integrations for cloud providers, databases, and third-party services with auto-discovery and auto-instrumentation.

Where LogTide Wins

Cost at scale. For log-heavy workloads, LogTide’s self-hosted model saves 80-95% compared to Datadog. The more logs you generate, the bigger the savings.

Data ownership. Your logs never leave your infrastructure. No third-party data processing agreements needed. Full GDPR compliance with EU data sovereignty.

Built-in SIEM. LogTide includes Sigma detection rules, MITRE ATT&CK mapping, and incident management at no extra cost. Datadog’s Cloud SIEM adds $0.20/GB on top of log costs.

No vendor lock-in. LogTide is AGPLv3 open-source. You can inspect, modify, and extend the code. Your data lives in PostgreSQL/TimescaleDB that you control.

Unlimited users. No per-seat pricing. Add your entire engineering, security, and support teams without cost concerns.

When to Choose Datadog

• You need a full observability platform (metrics + traces + logs + infrastructure)
• Your team doesn’t want to manage infrastructure
• Log volume is small (under 10 GB/day) where cost difference is minimal
• You need 700+ out-of-box integrations
• Budget is not a primary concern

When to Choose LogTide

• Log costs are a significant line item (50+ GB/day)
• Data sovereignty or GDPR compliance is required
• You need SIEM capabilities without additional licensing
• You want to avoid per-user pricing
• You prefer open-source with no vendor lock-in
• You’re comfortable managing a Docker/Kubernetes deployment

SDK Migration

Migrating from Datadog SDK to LogTide SDK is straightforward:

// Before (Datadog)
import { datadogLogs } from '@datadog/browser-logs';

datadogLogs.init({
  clientToken: 'pub_xxx',
  site: 'datadoghq.com',
  service: 'my-app',
});

datadogLogs.logger.info('User logged in', { userId: 123 });

// After (LogTide)
import { LogTideClient } from '@logtide/sdk-node';

const client = new LogTideClient({
  apiUrl: 'http://logtide.internal:8080',
  apiKey: 'lp_xxx',
  // Or use a DSN string instead:
  // dsn: 'http://[email protected]:8080',
});

client.info('my-app', 'User logged in', { userId: 123 });

Concept Mapping

Datadog	LogTide	Notes
Organization	Organization	1:1 mapping
Index	Project	Logs are scoped to projects
Service	Service	1:1 mapping
Log Pipeline	N/A (automatic)	LogTide auto-parses JSON
Monitor	Alert Rule	Similar functionality
Dashboard	SIEM Dashboard	Security-focused dashboards
API Key	API Key (per project)	Prefix: lp_
Cloud SIEM	Sigma Rules + Incidents	Included at no extra cost

Migration Path

We have a detailed step-by-step migration guide covering SDK replacement, alert migration, parallel ingestion for validation, and cutover.

View the full Datadog migration guide

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Ready to switch from Datadog?

• Deploy LogTide - Free, open-source
• Migration Guide - Step-by-step instructions
• Join GitHub Discussions - Get help from the community