Best Log Management Software in 2026
Updated
In short: ELK Stack is ranked #1 of 80 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of Sumo Logic and Amazon CloudWatch Logs. The best-ranked option with a free plan is Sumo Logic. The lowest first paid tier on this page is Google Cloud Logging at $0.01/mo.
Log management tools help you inspect activity and handle records generated by applications and systems. ELK Stack, Splunk Enterprise, and Sumo Logic open these entries, with Elastic Observability and Amazon CloudWatch Logs also among the early options. Compare deployment choices and included ingestion, then look at live log tailing, pipelines, and structured parsing. Retention and archive export offer further points to consider when deciding how logs should be kept or moved. Free plans and paid starting prices add cost context to the listed capabilities. Focus on which stages of working with logs matter most in your environment, from examining current activity to preserving records for later use.
80 log management software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
Recognised 40% · Phone app 26% · Documented 20% · Free plan 14% of the score
- 1 ELK Stack No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 8.3Free Log retention: 30 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 2 Sumo Logic No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 8.0Free Log pipelines: Yes
- 3 Amazon CloudWatch Logs No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 8.0$0.03/mo Included ingestion: 5 GB/dayLog pipelines: Yes
- 4 OpenObserve No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.8Free Log retention: 30 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 5 NXLog No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.7$12.12/mo Log pipelines: Yes
- 6 XPLG No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.6$83/mo Included ingestion: 1 GB/dayLog retention: 3 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 7 Splunk Enterprise No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.5 Log pipelines: Yes
- 8 Elastic Observability No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.4 Log retention: 30 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 9 Axiom No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.4Free Log retention: 30 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 10 Better Stack iPhone + Android RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.4$29/mo
- 11 Logflare iPhone + Android RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.4$10/mo Log pipelines: Yes
- 12 Logmanager No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.3$0.12/mo Log pipelines: Yes
- 13 VictoriaLogs No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.3Free Log pipelines: Yes
- 14 ClickStack No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.2 Log pipelines: No
- 15 aiAxonIQ Log Management No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.2$49/mo Log retention: 30 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 16 Grafana Loki No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.1 Log pipelines: Yes
- 17 Google Cloud Logging No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.1$0.01/mo Included ingestion: 50 GB/dayLog retention: 30 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 18 Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Logging No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.1$0.05/mo Log retention: 30 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 19 SolarWinds Loggly No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.0Free Included ingestion: 1 GB/dayLog retention: 15 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 20 HyperDX No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.9 Log retention: 30 days
- 21 Logit.io Log Management No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.9$25/mo Included ingestion: 2 GB/dayLog retention: 15 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 22 Site24x7 AppLogs No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.9$3/mo Included ingestion: 10 GB/dayLog retention: 7 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 23 TrueWatch Log Management No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.9$0.11/mo Log retention: 3 daysLog pipelines: Yes
- 24 ManageEngine EventLog Analyzer No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.8 Log pipelines: Yes
- 25 Coralogix Log Analytics & Log Management No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.8$0.42/mo Log pipelines: Yes
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which log management software is ranked first on Samsung Mobile US Press?
ELK Stack is ranked #1 of 80 with a score of 8.3. Sumo Logic is second and Amazon CloudWatch Logs third.
How many of these have a free plan?
16 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, Google Cloud Logging has the lowest first paid tier we found: $0.01/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked mobile-first: a phone app alongside the web or desktop product, a free tier and the depth of its documentation. Paid placements never change a rank.