Quick answer
New Relic - New Relic's free tier is a full observability platform with 100 GB of ingest a month and unlimited basic users. Sentry's free Developer plan is limited to one user and focuses on errors, with 5,000 errors, 5 million spans and a 30-day lookback.
How the free tiers compare
New Relic's free tier covers 100 GB of data ingest a month, one full platform user with all 50+ capabilities, unlimited basic users, at least 8 days of retention, unlimited ping monitors and 500 synthetic checks. It needs no credit card to sign up. Sentry's free Developer plan covers one user, 5,000 errors, 5 million spans, 50 session replays, 5 GB of logs, 10 custom dashboards and one uptime monitor, with a 30-day lookback.
New Relic vs Sentry free tier, side by side
| New RelicFTV 67 | SentryFTV 56 | |
|---|---|---|
| Free data allowanceNew Relic meters by data volume, Sentry by event type. | 100 GB of data ingest/month | 5,000 errors, 5 million spans, 5 GB logs |
| Users | 1 full platform user, unlimited basic users | 1 user |
| Data retention | At least 8 days | 30-day lookback |
| Uptime and synthetic checks | Unlimited ping monitors, 500 synthetic checks | 1 uptime monitor |
| First paid plan price | Standard - $10 for the first full platform user, $0.40/GB above 100 GB | Team - $26/mo billed annually |
After you outgrow the free tier
New Relic's Standard edition charges $10 a month for the first full platform user and $99 for each extra full platform user, up to 5. Core users cost $49 each, basic users are free, and ingest above 100 GB costs $0.40 a GB. Sentry's Team plan costs $26 a month billed annually for unlimited users, 50,000 errors and 20 custom dashboards.
Cost at real usage
| Usage | New Relic | Sentry |
|---|---|---|
| One developer who needs more than the free tier | $10/mo, plus $0.40 for each GB above 100 GB | $26/mo for Team |
| Three developers who all need full access | $208/mo: $10 for the first full platform user and $99 for each of the other two | $26/mo for Team, with unlimited users |
Estimates, not quotes. Usage-based rates change - verify with the vendor's pricing page before committing.
When to pick each one
Pick New Relic when…
- You want APM, infrastructure, logs and error tracking in one free account.
- You want teammates to view dashboards and alerts. Basic users are free and unlimited.
- You want to sign up without a credit card.
- You send a lot of data. The free tier takes 100 GB a month.
Pick Sentry when…
- You work alone and mainly need error tracking.
- You want to look back 30 days rather than 8.
- You already use Sentry's SDKs.
- You want a flat price when you add teammates: Team is $26 a month for unlimited users.
Bottom line
Pick New Relic for a large free data allowance, free viewer seats and a no-card signup. Pick Sentry for focused error tracking with 30 days of history and a flat team price.
Read the full listings: New Relic and Sentry. Scores use the FTV methodology at /ftv. Browse more head-to-heads on /compare, or see the top-ranked free tiers on /top.