New Relic vs Sumo Logic: What are the differences?

Introduction

New Relic and Sumo Logic are both popular tools used for monitoring and analyzing application performance and logs, but there are several key differences between the two.

1. Data Types and Sources: New Relic primarily focuses on application performance monitoring (APM), providing insights into the performance of web and mobile applications. It collects data from various sources including application code, server infrastructure, and end-user interactions. On the other hand, Sumo Logic is a log management and analytics platform that focuses on processing and analyzing log data from various sources like servers, applications, and cloud services.

2. Real-time vs. Batch Processing: New Relic operates in real-time, providing real-time visibility into the performance of applications, infrastructure, and end-user experiences. It captures and analyzes data as events occur, allowing for immediate alerting and troubleshooting. In contrast, Sumo Logic typically processes log data in batches, collecting and analyzing logs over time. While it can provide near real-time insights, the processing may introduce some delay compared to New Relic's real-time capabilities.

3. Monitoring vs. Log Analytics: New Relic predominantly focuses on monitoring application performance in real-time, providing visibility into metrics like response times, error rates, and throughput. It offers features like distributed tracing and transaction monitoring to diagnose performance issues. On the other hand, Sumo Logic emphasizes log analytics, enabling users to search, analyze, and visualize log data from different sources. It supports advanced querying, correlation, and anomaly detection based on log data.

4. Ease of Use and Deployment: New Relic offers a comprehensive, integrated platform for application performance monitoring, making it relatively easy to set up and deploy. It provides automatic instrumentation for popular programming languages and frameworks. Sumo Logic, on the other hand, focuses on log analytics and is designed to be easily scalable for large log volumes. It may require some configuration and setup to collect and process log data efficiently.

5. Pricing Model: New Relic uses a subscription-based pricing model, where the cost depends on factors like the number of monitored hosts or containers and the amount of data ingested. It offers different pricing tiers based on the level of features and support. In contrast, Sumo Logic offers a usage-based pricing model, charging customers based on the volume of log data ingested and analyzed. It also offers different pricing tiers based on features and service levels.

6. Integration Ecosystem: New Relic provides a wide range of integrations with third-party tools and platforms, allowing users to connect their monitoring data with other systems. It offers integrations with popular tools like Slack, Jira, and AWS services. Sumo Logic also offers integrations with various tools and services, including cloud platforms like AWS and Azure, as well as collaboration tools like Slack and PagerDuty. However, the specific integration ecosystem may differ between the two platforms.

In Summary, New Relic focuses on real-time application performance monitoring, while Sumo Logic specializes in log analytics. New Relic offers real-time visibility into application performance metrics, while Sumo Logic provides advanced log analytics and correlation capabilities. New Relic is typically easier to set up and deploy, while Sumo Logic is designed for processing and analyzing large volumes of log data. New Relic uses a subscription-based pricing model, whereas Sumo Logic follows a usage-based pricing model. Both tools offer integrations with third-party systems, but the specific integrations may vary.