Elasticsearch vs Graylog
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted apps from related categories — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Elasticsearch
Distributed search and analytics engine
VS
Graylog
Centralized log management and analysis platform
| Feature | Elasticsearch | Graylog |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Search Engines | Monitoring & Status |
| License | Elastic-2.0 | SSPL-1.0 |
| Language | Java | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 77,808 | ★ 8,105 |
| First released | 2010 | 2010 |
| Replaces | Algolia, Splunk | Splunk, Datadog Logs |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Elasticsearch or Graylog better?
Neither is universally better. Elasticsearch has the larger community, while Graylog is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Elasticsearch and Graylog free and open-source?
Yes. Elasticsearch is licensed under Elastic-2.0 and Graylog under SSPL-1.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Elasticsearch and Graylog with Docker?
Elasticsearch: yes. Graylog: yes.