Datadog Pricing Guide: Monitoring & Analytics Platform Costs Explained

In the modern world of cloud-native architectures, Datadog stands out as a premier solution for monitoring and analytics. 

Whether you’re running applications on the cloud, containers, or hybrid infrastructures, Datadog provides in-depth visibility into your systems, services, and logs. 

But when it comes to pricing, understanding Datadog’s cost structure and what you’re paying for can get complex.

Are you getting the most out of your Datadog subscription? What’s the difference between Datadog’s Free, Pro, and Enterprise plans? And how can you optimize your spending?

In this Datadog pricing guide, we’ll explore Datadog’s pricing model, break down the costs for each product and plan, and help you understand how to optimize your Datadog spend. 

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TL;DR 

• Datadog is a full-stack observability platform covering infrastructure monitoring, APM, logs, security, RUM, and more, all under one unified dashboard.
• Pricing is usage-based and varies by hosts, log ingestion volume, retention, and add-on modules, which can make costs scale quickly.
• Pro plan starts at ~$15/host/month, while log management and APM add separate charges, leading to higher total spend as environments grow.
• Datadog is powerful for cloud-native, containerized, microservice environments, but smaller teams may find the pricing difficult to control.
• Use CloudEagle.ai to benchmark, optimize, and negotiate Datadog contracts, ensuring you only pay for what you actually use.

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What is Datadog?

Datadog is a cloud-based monitoring and analytics platform that provides a comprehensive suite of tools to help teams gain full visibility into their infrastructure, applications, logs, and security. 

Whether it’s infrastructure monitoring, application performance management (APM), or log management, Datadog brings everything into one dashboard for better decision-making and faster incident resolution.

Key features include:

• Infrastructure Monitoring
• Application Performance Monitoring (APM)
• Log Management
• Security Monitoring
• Real User Monitoring (RUM)
• Synthetics & Uptime Monitoring
• CI Visibility
• Observability Pipelines

These features make Datadog a powerful choice for teams looking to optimize their cloud infrastructure, track performance in real time, and ensure their systems are secure.

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Is Datadog Worth It for Modern Cloud Teams?

If you’re running complex cloud architectures with containers, microservices, or distributed systems, Datadog could be a game-changer. 

The platform offers a ton of value for teams that need to manage and monitor a large-scale environment. However, there’s a catch: the pricing can be high, especially for small teams or startups.

Here’s the thing: if you’re a small team or individual just starting, you might find Datadog's pricing a bit overwhelming. 

But for larger teams or enterprises, Datadog offers an impressive range of features that can really help streamline monitoring, improve uptime, and speed up issue resolution. It's one of those tools that grows with your team, just make sure you're scaling your plan accordingly to avoid overspending.

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How Much Does Datadog Cost?

Datadog offers a range of plans designed to scale with the needs of different teams, from small startups to large enterprises. 

Below is a breakdown of Datadog’s pricing plans, along with the key features and drawbacks of each tier.

Datadog Free

• Cost: $0 (Free Forever)
• Best For: Individuals or small teams exploring task management basics
• Features: Unlimited tasks, 60MB storage, collaborative docs, Kanban boards, sprint management, calendar view, basic custom fields, one form, 2FA, 24/7 assistance
• Drawbacks: Limited automation, reporting, and integrations

Datadog Pro

• Cost: $15 per host/month (billed annually) or $18 per host/month (billed monthly)
• Best For: Small to medium teams needing flexibility and scalability
• Features: Unlimited storage, integrations, folders, spaces, dashboards, custom fields, forms, chat messages, goals, time tracking, resource management, AI compatibility, email in Datadog
• Drawbacks: Lacks advanced reporting and enterprise-grade security

Datadog Enterprise

• Cost: Custom (based on team size and requirements)
• Best For: Large organizations needing enterprise-grade security, compliance, and support
• Features: White labeling, conditional logic in forms, team sharing for spaces, custom roles, advanced permissions, enterprise API, SSO, SCIM, HIPAA, MSA, regional data residency, live onboarding training
• Drawbacks: Requires sales engagement for pricing

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Datadog Pricing Model: How Costs Are Calculated?

Datadog’s pricing model is based on a pay-per-use system, where the cost varies depending on several factors. Here is a table to simplify:

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This usage-based pricing model helps scale Datadog’s costs in line with your infrastructure growth, but it’s important to be mindful of data volume and feature usage, as costs can increase quickly with higher usage.

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What Are the Different Datadog Product Categories?

Datadog offers a variety of plans and product categories that allow teams to monitor their infrastructure, applications, logs, and security.

Here's a breakdown of the pricing and features for each:

Infrastructure Monitoring

• Cost: $15 per host/month (Pro), $23 per host/month (Enterprise)
• Features: Metric retention (15 days for Pro, customizable for Enterprise), integration with cloud services (AWS, Azure, GCP), out-of-the-box dashboards, and real-time monitoring for virtual machines and containers.

Application Performance Monitoring (APM)

• Cost: $31 per host/month (Pro), Custom (Enterprise)
• Features: Distributed tracing, end-to-end visibility for microservices, transaction monitoring, real-time error tracking, and service maps.

Log Management

• Cost: $1.27 per GB (Pro)
• Features: Real-time log collection, log parsing, error tracking, 15-day retention (Pro), customizable log filters, integrations with log sources like AWS CloudWatch and Docker.

Security Monitoring

• Cost: Custom pricing (Enterprise)
• Features: Real-time security event detection, anomaly detection, vulnerability scanning, compliance monitoring (HIPAA, SOC2, PCI DSS), and advanced threat monitoring.

Real User Monitoring (RUM)

• Cost: Custom pricing
• Features: Tracks user interactions, page load times, session replay, error rates, real-time user experience monitoring, and session analytics.

Synthetics & Uptime Monitoring

• Cost: Custom pricing
• Features: Uptime monitoring for websites and APIs, performance testing from multiple geographic locations, customizable synthetic tests, and alerting on downtime.

CI Visibility

• Cost: Custom pricing
• Features: Real-time CI/CD pipeline monitoring, build and deployment tracking, test result monitoring, integration with CI tools like Jenkins and GitHub Actions.

Observability Pipelines

• Cost: Usage-based pricing
• Features: Collects, processes, and routes observability data to Datadog or third-party platforms, performs data transformation, filtering, and forwarding.

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Which Datadog Plan is Best for You?

Choosing the right Datadog plan depends on your team's size, monitoring needs, and budget. Here's a quick guide to help you decide:

• Free: Ideal for individuals or small teams exploring basic infrastructure monitoring.
• Pro: Suited for small to medium teams requiring advanced APM, logs, and integrations.
• Enterprise: Designed for large teams needing advanced security, custom roles, and extended data retention.

Team Size Recommendations:

• Small teams (1–5 hosts): The Free plan usually covers basic monitoring needs.
• Medium teams (5–50 hosts): The Pro plan balances features and affordability.
• Large teams (50+ hosts): The Enterprise plan offers scalability, enhanced security, and compliance.

Your choice should align with your team's size, feature requirements, and data usage.

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Datadog Pricing Guide: How to Streamline Datadog Purchasing with CloudEagle.ai?

Tips to Optimize Datadog Licensing

Here are some proven strategies to help you secure the best value for your Datadog subscription:

• Focus on Value, Not Just Price:
  It’s not just about lowering the Datadog subscription cost. Prioritize the total value across advanced monitoring, log management, APM, and security features. Consider how Datadog’s full-stack observability can provide long-term value to your team.
• Ask for Strategic Add-Ons:
  Instead of negotiating only for price reductions, ask for impactful additions such as extended data retention, extra integrations, or advanced security monitoring. These features could be vital for scaling your operations effectively.
• Frame the Business Case Clearly:
  Explain how Datadog will help improve system uptime, enhance productivity, and provide better insights into your infrastructure. A clear business case demonstrating ROI (return on investment) can help justify a higher budget while aligning it with your team’s goals.
• Leverage Timing and Market Options:
  Use renewal periods or budget cycles to your advantage. Benchmark against Datadog competitors like New Relic, Prometheus, or Dynatrace to request tailored offers or flexible terms.

How Much Do Companies Actually Pay for Datadog?

Datadog pricing varies based on the plan, number of hosts, and feature needs. Most companies pay between $15–$30 per host/month for Pro and Enterprise plans. 

However, with price benchmarking tools from CloudEagle.ai, you can compare your Datadog pricing with other organizations in your industry, ensuring you’re not paying more than you need to.

Breaking Down the Data

CloudEagle.ai allows you to track how many Datadog licenses you have and whether all departments are actively using them. 

This visibility helps you identify unused or duplicate licenses, which can be removed before the renewal period.

It also tracks renewal timelines and flags upcoming deadlines, enabling you to renegotiate the contract instead of auto-renewing at full price. This proactive approach can prevent unnecessary overspending.

Importance of This Benchmarking Data

Without market benchmarks, you may end up paying more than necessary. CloudEagle.ai pulls in SaaS spend data from over $3 billion in transactions to validate whether your current Datadog rate is competitive. 

Knowing whether you’re paying above or below average allows you to negotiate better terms, optimize your plan, or even make adjustments to avoid overpaying.

Premium Optimization Insights

CloudEagle.ai doesn’t just show pricing data; it provides actionable insights. 

With CloudEagle.ai, you’ll receive recommendations on how other teams have optimized their Datadog subscriptions. 

These insights may include strategies like requesting additional storage, extra integrations, or extended retention for log data to enhance your usage.

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Datadog Alternatives to Consider

If you're considering alternatives to Datadog, there are several options depending on your needs. Commercial solutions like Dynatrace, New Relic, and Splunk offer robust features, while open-source tools like Prometheus and Grafana provide flexibility. 

1. New Relic

New Relic is a popular alternative to Datadog, known for its powerful application performance monitoring (APM) and seamless integration with cloud environments. It offers deep insights into application performance, helping teams pinpoint and resolve bottlenecks in real-time.

2. Prometheus

An open-source solution, Prometheus is widely used for infrastructure monitoring and alerting. It provides a flexible and scalable approach to monitoring cloud-native environments, though it may require more setup and maintenance compared to managed solutions like Datadog.

3. Dynatrace

Dynatrace is an AI-driven platform that offers full-stack observability and cloud-native monitoring. It provides automated root-cause analysis and performance insights, helping large teams manage complex systems with minimal effort.

4. Splunk

Splunk excels in log management and security analytics, making it a strong player in large-scale monitoring. Its flexibility allows for advanced data analytics and reporting, but it can be more expensive and complex than simpler monitoring solutions like Datadog.

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Final Verdict

Datadog is a leading platform for cloud infrastructure monitoring, offering a comprehensive suite of tools for APM, logs, and security. However, its pricing model may not be ideal for all organizations, particularly smaller teams or those with limited budgets.

As your organization scales, it’s crucial to assess the features you need and the costs involved.

If you're managing multiple SaaS subscriptions like Datadog and looking for ways to optimize spend, CloudEagle.ai can help. It provides actionable insights into your Datadog subscriptions, benchmarks your pricing against industry standards, and tracks usage to ensure you're only paying for what you need.

Book a free demo today to see how CloudEagle.ai can streamline your Datadog management and help reduce unnecessary SaaS costs.

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Frequently Asked Questions

1. How much does Datadog cost?
Datadog pricing varies by product. Infrastructure monitoring starts around $15 per host/month, but total costs rise as you add logs, APM, and custom metrics. Usage-based pricing makes costs scale quickly.

2. Why is Datadog so expensive?
Costs increase because Datadog charges per host, per GB of logs, and per feature. As your environment grows, data ingestion and retention drive the bill higher. Organizations often pay more than expected.

3. Is Datadog a free tool?
Datadog offers a limited free tier with basic infrastructure monitoring for up to 5 hosts and 1-day data retention. For real-world use cases, most teams require paid plans.

4. Is Datadog cheaper than Splunk?
Generally, yes for infrastructure monitoring, but Splunk may be cheaper for log-heavy environments. Pricing depends on data volume, retention, and which modules are used.

5. How to reduce Datadog costs?
Reduce log ingestion, shorten retention, disable unused dashboards, sample traces, and consolidate agents. Also ,review which data sources truly need monitoring to avoid over-collection.

6. What is the problem with Datadog pricing?
Pricing can be unpredictable. Costs scale with hosts, logs, metrics, and features, making it easy to exceed budgets unless usage is constantly monitored and controlled.

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