Free Log Management Tools
Which log management tools a startup can collect, search and alert on its app and server logs with for free today, how much log volume a free trial includes, whether a card is needed and what usage costs after, read from each provider's own page.
Free allowances read on each provider's own pages, all checked on or after . Log management tools change their free plans from time to time: confirm the terms on the provider's page before you rely on it.
Log management tools a startup can use for free today include Sematext Logs (14-day free trial, no card), Graylog Open (Free to download and use (SSPL)), OpenObserve Cloud (14-day free trial, Pay As You Go), Grafana Loki (Open source under the AGPLv3 license), and Papertrail (Free trial: 100 GB, 30 days of search). Each of the 8 free plans below links to the provider's page that states it, with its main limit, its log volume and retention, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs.
When something breaks in production, logs are the first place you look, and searching them across servers needs a log management tool. Hosted log services offer free trials, and open-source log platforms are free to run on your own infrastructure.
The headline rarely tells you how far it goes. Hosted trials last around 14 days and then charge per GB ingested, and open-source platforms are free but yours to run and scale. Each tool below shows what is free, its main limit, its log volume and retention, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs, quoted from the provider's own page with the date we read it.
Which tools we picked and the order they appear in are our editorial choices; the terms are the providers'. Some of these providers pay us a referral commission when someone signs up through our link: those links are labeled, and they play no part in which tools are listed or where.
Hosted log management with a free trial
Ship logs to a hosted service and try it free before you pay.
- 1
Sematext Logs
Metered logs with a 14-day trial and no card
Sematext Logs has a 14-day free trial with no card needed. After the trial, the Basic plan is $5 a month, priced on daily log volume and retention.
- Payment card
- No credit card needed (source: sematext.com)
- First paid plan
- Basic: $5 a month, 500 MB a day (source: sematext.com)
Start free at SematextTerms read on sematext.com on Sematext Logs: the free allowance and how to start - 2
OpenObserve Cloud
Per-GB log search with a 14-day trial
OpenObserve Cloud offers a 14-day free trial on the Pay As You Go plan, with no credit card required to start. Pay As You Go starts at $0.50 per GB ingested.
- Payment card
- No credit card to start (source: openobserve.ai)
Start free at OpenObserveTerms read on openobserve.ai on OpenObserve Cloud: the free allowance and how to start OpenObserve Startup Program: what startups get - 3
Papertrail
Hosted log search with 100 GB in the trial
Papertrail's free trial includes 100 GB and 30 days of search, with unlimited systems and users. After the trial, log management starts at $5.00 per GB per month.
- Log volume and retention
- 100 GB, 30 days of search (source: papertrail.com)
- First paid plan
- Starts at $5.00 per GB per month (source: papertrail.com)
Start free at PapertrailTerms read on papertrail.com on Papertrail: the free allowance and how to start - 4
Logz.io
A full observability trial for 14 days
Logz.io's free trial is completely free for 14 days, with no strings attached. On consumption pricing, Log Management is listed at $0.92 per ingested GB, per day.
- 5
Coralogix
Every feature for 14 days on an 8-unit quota
Coralogix's free trial gives full feature access for 14 days with a quota of 8 units, and no credit card is needed. Units are priced at $1.50 worth of logs, metrics and traces.
- Payment card
- No credit card needed (source: coralogix.com)
Start free at CoralogixTerms read on coralogix.com on Coralogix: the free allowance and how to start
Open-source log platforms you can self-host
Run your own log search and alerting, free.
- 1
Graylog Open
Self-hosted log search with no ingestion caps
Graylog Open is free to download and use under the Server Side Public License (SSPL), with no per-user fees and no ingestion caps. You self-manage the environment and its infrastructure.
- Log volume and retention
- No ingestion caps (source: graylog.org)
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Grafana Loki
Self-hosted logs for teams already on Prometheus
Loki is an open source logs aggregation system, inspired by Prometheus, and it is released under the AGPLv3 license. It is an option for logs you run on your own servers.
Start free at Grafana LabsTerms read on grafana.com on Grafana Loki: the free allowance and how to start - 3
OpenObserve Open Source
Self-hosting logs, metrics and traces yourself
For self-hosted deployments, the Open Source edition of OpenObserve is free forever. It is the self-hosted option, with no per-GB charge from OpenObserve Cloud.
Start free at OpenObserveTerms read on openobserve.ai on OpenObserve Open Source: the free allowance and how to start
Developer startup programs
Programs from developer tool companies that give startups credits or discounts on paid plans.
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ScraperAPIScraping API that handles proxies, browsers and CAPTCHAs for you1,000 API creditsReferral link
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How this comparison is built
The list covers log management tools a founder can use for free today without applying to a program. The order and the "best for" notes are our editorial reading of each tool's terms. Every term comes from the tool's own pricing or help page on the date shown, never from a third-party list; follow each link for the full conditions. A cap on log volume a month, a short retention period, alerts or users kept for paid plans can matter more than the headline, so the comparison quotes them wherever the provider states them. Some of these tools pay StartupPerks a referral commission, and their links are labeled as referral links; that decides neither whether nor where a tool appears, and no tool pays for a placement on this page.
Read the full methodologyCommon questions
What is the best free log management tool?
By the terms each provider states, Graylog Open is free to download and use with no ingestion caps, Grafana Loki is open source under AGPLv3, OpenObserve is free forever for self-hosted use, and Sematext, OpenObserve Cloud, Logz.io and Coralogix offer 14-day free trials.
Is Papertrail free?
Papertrail offers a free trial with 100 GB and 30 days of search, with unlimited systems and users during the trial; usage then starts at $5.00 per GB per month.
Is there a free open-source log management tool?
Yes. Graylog Open is free to download and use with no ingestion caps, Grafana Loki is open source under the AGPLv3 license, and OpenObserve is free forever when self-hosted.
Which log tools have a free trial without a card?
Sematext Logs, OpenObserve Cloud and Coralogix each offer a 14-day free trial with no credit card needed.
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