Datadog vs. Dynatrace: A review of modern IT monitoring solutions

As the IT landscape continues to evolve rapidly, an effective monitoring solution has become a critical aspect of maintaining optimal performance and  minimizing downtime while troubleshooting issues. Datadog and Dynatrace are two leading application performance monitoring (APM) tools that help organizations manage and optimize their systems with such features as IT infrastructure monitoring in a simple-to-use SaaS format.

In this post, we provide an in-depth review of Datadog and Dynatrace, focusing on their features, integrations, pricing, and ease of use to help IT professionals evaluate which monitoring solution best suits their data center needs.

Overview of Datadog and Dynatrace

Datadog's application performance monitoring platform is prized for its features that monitor security and infrastructure. With Datadog, we can collect requests, monitor traces and logs, and, if we opt for its more advanced features, create actionable understanding by correlating the data to specific metrics. Compared to Dynatrace, Datadog can handle our entire DevOps workflow with near-complete incident management.

The Dynatrace platform offers tools for end-to-end infrastructure, distributed applications, and network monitoring features. These tools help users observe the user experience and garner business intelligence (BI) data. Dynatrace has exemplary AI-powered integrations focused on application performance monitoring.

Datadog is primarily for organizations working with multiple applications and services that need a unified dashboard to monitor everything. Dynatrace is also an application performance monitoring tool, and it's well-suited for organizations with enterprise-level data, application, and cloud monitoring requirements.

Datadog Core Features and Functionality

Datadog lets teams see into every system, application, and service the organization's running, all from one streamlined dashboard. Whether you need to monitor cloud servers, user metrics, connected applications, or other teams, this visibility helps you:

• Track and trace end-to-end requests
  
  
• Monitor and optimize performance across the tech stack
  
  
• Automate log collection from all services, apps, etc.
  
  
• Analyze log data and explore context
  
  
• Seamlessly navigate between report types
  
  
• Proactively monitor user journeys for heightened visibility
  
  
• Preserve resources through AI-powered testing
  
  
• Monitor, detect, and send alerts for users experiencing issues according to location
  
  
• Correlate users' frontend experience with impact on business
  
  
• Receive decision prioritization according to users' experience measurements
  
  
• Cloud-native environmental traffic visualization
  
  
• Performance is written with understandable tags
  
  
• Build-your-own real-time dashboards
  
  
• Share system events, metrics, and logs across all teams
  
  
• Receive critical issue alerts
  
  
• Create brand new integrations whenever needed
  
  

How does Dynatrace stack up?

Dynatrace Core Features and Functionality

Dynatrace is a platform that provides comprehensive monitoring capabilities for software-level intelligence that simplifies the cloud and puts organizations on the fast track to digital transformation with such features and functionalities as monitoring:

• Users in real-time
  
  
• Mobile applications
  
  
• Services on the server side
  
  
• Networks
  
  
• Processes
  
  
• Hosts
  
  
• Cloud services
  
  
• Virtual machines
  
  
• Containers

Dynatrace also offers incident logging, root cause analysis, and other tools to help organizations troubleshoot issues quickly and effectively. All these data will be used for the analysis.

Datadog Integrations and Extensibility

Datadog integrates with over 600 of today's most popular platforms, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Kubernetes, Docker, and more. We can even write our own custom integrations or application programming interfaces (APIs) whenever necessary, and software development kits (SDKs) and programming language libraries are available.

Dynatrace Integrations and Extensibility

Dynatrace also offers over 600 integrations with today's top software programs and platforms, such as OneAgent, Adobe Analytics, AWS, Apache Spark, Kubernetes, and more. Extensibility is provided by Dynatrace and Dynatrace partners.

Datadog Ease of Deployment and Use

You can set up Datadog on several platforms, such as Ubuntu, macOS, Kubernetes, or Windows machines.

Here's a quick setup guide:

1. Run the update command to level up your packages to the newest versions.
   
   
2. Run the command to connect your repositories securely via HTTPS.
   
   
3. Create and set up the repository for Datadog.
   
   
4. Create the Datadog archive.

Does Datadog have a learning curve?

Visually, Datadog has a user-friendly interface but requires some setup and each integration may have its own dashboard that needs to be configured.. The platform provides a checklist to help users work through the process.

Additionally, it offers a range of training and support resources to help users get up to speed quickly, including online courses, documentation, and customer support.

Dynatrace Ease of Deployment and Use

Dynatrace can be installed on various operating systems, including Linux, Windows, and macOS. The installation process also depends on the deployment option you choose, such as managed, SaaS, or hybrid.For example, to install Dynatrace Managed on a Linux server, you need to follow these steps:

1. Download the Dynatrace Managed installation package from the Dynatrace website.
2. Install the required dependencies and configure the system, such as setting up a dedicated user for Dynatrace.
3. Start the Dynatrace installation script and follow the prompts to configure the installation, such as setting up the database and web server.
4. Access the Dynatrace web interface to complete the setup and configure your environment for monitoring.

The installation process may vary depending on your specific requirements and environment. It's recommended to refer to the Dynatrace documentation for detailed instructions on how to install and configure the platform.

Dynatrace may require a certain level of technical expertise to utilize effectively.

However, once users become familiar with the tool, the interface is reported to be user-friendly.

Datadog Specifications

• Device Discovery: no
  
  
• Agentless: no
  
  
• Traffic Monitoring/Packet Inspection: yes/yes
  
  
• Email/SMS Alerting: yes
  
  
• Patch Management: no
  
  
• Real-Time Alerting: yes
  
  
• Mobile Device Support: yes
  
  
• On-Premises Deployment: no
  
  
• Application Programming Interface (API): yes
  
  
• Custom Dashboards: yes
  
  
• Custom Reporting: yes

Dynatrace Specifications

• Device Discovery: yes
  
  
• Agentless: yes
  
  
• Traffic Monitoring/Packet Inspection: yes/yes
  
  
• Email/SMS Alerting: yes
  
  
• Patch Management: must be done manually
  
  
• Real-Time Alerting: yes, it must be set up
  
  
• Mobile Device Support: yes
  
  
• On-Premises Deployment: yes (Dynatrace Managed)
  
  
• Application Programming Interface (API): yes
  
  
• Custom Dashboards: yes
  
  
• Custom Reporting: no
  
  

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Comparison of Datadog and Dynatrace

Both Datadog and Dynatrace are excellent monitoring platforms, but which one is the better choice for your organization depends on your specific needs and requirements.

One key difference between Datadog and Dynatrace is that only Dynatrace offers device discovery, which allows it to automatically detect and add devices to the monitoring system without the need for manual configuration. Dynatrace also supports agentless monitoring, which means that it can gather data from systems and applications without the need for an installed agent.

On the other hand, only Datadog offers real-time alerts that do not need to be manually set up. Datadog also provides custom reporting capabilities, which can be useful for organizations that need to generate custom reports on their performance metrics.

Another important difference between Datadog and Dynatrace is that Dynatrace provides patch management functionality, although it must be set up manually. In contrast, Datadog does not offer patch management as part of its feature set.

Finally, it's worth noting that Dynatrace supports on-premises deployment, whereas Datadog is a cloud-based solution only. This may be a consideration for organizations that have specific requirements around data privacy and security.

In summary, 

Only Dynatrace offers:

• Device discovery
  
  
• Agentless use
  
  
• Patch management, even though it must be manually set up
  
  
• On-premises deployment
  
  

Only Datadog offers:

• Real-time alerts that don't need to be manually set up
  
  
• Custom reporting
  
  

Datadog benefits and disadvantages

Pros:

• Hosted in the cloud, making it easy to set up and use
• Offers deep insights for services providers, with over 600 integrations available
• Customizable dashboards for each integration
• Mobile device support for monitoring on-the-go

Cons:

• Not suitable for monitoring router or network hardware
• Doesn't automatically discover devices, requiring some manual configuration
• Initial setup can be cumbersome due to agent-based architecture
• Lacks robust standard reporting capabilities.

Overall, Datadog is a powerful and flexible monitoring platform with a wide range of integrations and customizable dashboards. However, it may not be the best option for network or device monitoring, and its agent-based architecture can require some additional setup and configuration.

Dynatrace benefits and disadvantages

Pros:

• It has one of the most user-friendly dashboards in the industry, making it easy to use for all levels of technical expertise.
• It offers industry
• leading user experience (UX) metrics, providing deep insights into how customers are interacting with your applications and services.
• It monitors for mobile breakdowns, which is crucial for organizations with mobile apps or mobile web experiences.
• It monitors every business transaction, providing full visibility into the entire customer journey and all associated dependencies.
• Interactive visual reporting and interfaces allow for easy analysis and troubleshooting of issues.
• It enables return-on-investment (ROI) tracking, helping organizations demonstrate the value of their investments in IT monitoring.

Cons:

• Alerts are only included with the rich client setup, which may not be suitable for all organizations.
• The initial setup fees for the Enterprise plan can be costly, making Dynatrace less accessible for smaller organizations or those with budget constraints.

Certain functions are offered as separate add-ons, including:

• Application Performance Management (APM)
• Synthetic monitoring, 
• Real user monitoring (RUM), 
• Alerts. 

This can result in additional costs and complexity for users who need these features.

Real-world applications

If your priority is obtaining solid data from automated reports, Dynatrace's interactive interface allows you to create any report visually and on-demand. However, if you also need clear visibility into your agents' actions, such as call center representatives' interactions, Datadog is the better choice. Datadog offers RUM insights that allow you to see how your agents are performing from their perspectives, showing each step or action taken. While Dynatrace also offers RUM, it is an add-on to the basic functionality, so you should consider your budget when deciding whether to use it.

Datadog Pricing and Support

Pricing

Datadog offers a free 14-day trial, after which you can choose from several service tiers. The three most popular options are:

• Network Performance: $5/function/month
  
  
• Infrastructure: $15/host/month
  
  
• Application Performance Management (APM): $31/host/month

Support

Datadog provides various support options for its customers, such as:

• Datadog Support Platform
  
  
• Live Chat

See Datadog's self-serve support terms and Status Page.

Dynatrace Pricing and Support

Pricing

Dynatrace offers a free 15-day trial to test-drive an account. Platform packages are all pay-as-you-go (or pay-per-use) and include:

• Real User Monitoring (RUM): $0.00225/session
  
  
• App Security: $0.018/hour for 8 GiB hosts
  
  
• Infrastructure Only: $0.04/hour for hosts of any size
  
  
• Full Stack: $0.08/hour for 8 GiB hosts
  
  
• Log Management & Analytics: (see below for breakdown)

The Full-Stack Monitoring package covers apps, networks, and more, including the App Security, Infrastructure, and AIOps packages.

Dynatrace's Log Management & Analytics options provide added value to any other package option by unlocking your observation, business, and security log data. The Log Management & Analytics options are not bundled, so you can choose just what you need:

• Ingest/Process: $0.20/GiB
  
  
• Query: $0.0035/GiB
  
  
• Retain: $0.00070/GiB

Support

Dynatrace users can find help at the Dynatrace Support Center, which provides links to multiple support options, such as Community Discussions. For more detailed assistance, users can open a Support Ticket or reach the Dynatrace ONE team via chat after logging in.

Datadog vs. Dynatrace: Which Analytics & Monitoring Tool is Superior?

Both Datadog and Dynatrace are worthwhile observability and automation solutions for organizations with monitoring needs. Datadog is a good fit for small- to mid-sized companies with simpler requirements and minimal reporting needs. Dynatrace, on the other hand, is better suited for larger organizations with multiple departments that require powerful IT and cloud monitoring capabilities. While Dynatrace has a steeper learning curve, it offers a wider range of functionality, though some add-ons may need to be budgeted for, such as APM solutions.

Choosing between Datadog and Dynatrace depends on your organization's performance monitoring and scalability needs, as well as its flexibility and versatility requirements. For more guidance on which solution is best for you, consider reaching out to the experts at Adservio, who provide personalized support and guidance.