Beszel vs Datadog
Datadog starts at $15/host/mo and charges for every metric, log, and trace you send. Beszel is a lightweight, open-source monitoring tool you can self-host on InstaPods for $3/mo - with no per-host fees.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Datadog | Beszel |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | $15/host/mo (Infrastructure) | $3/mo total (self-hosted on InstaPods) |
| Per-Host Fees | Yes - $15-$23 per host | No - monitor unlimited hosts |
| CPU / Memory / Disk | Included in Infrastructure plan | Included - real-time dashboard |
| Docker Monitoring | $15/host/mo add-on | Built-in - no extra cost |
| Data Retention | 15 months (varies by plan) | Unlimited - your server, your storage |
| Alerting | Included (limited on free) | Email, webhook, and Telegram alerts |
| Custom Metrics | $0.05/metric/mo overage | No metering - collect what you need |
| Setup Complexity | Agent install + config | One-click deploy on InstaPods |
| Resource Usage | Heavy agent (~300MB RAM) | Lightweight agent (~15MB RAM) |
| Source Code | Closed source | Open source (MIT license) |
Where Datadog Gets Expensive
Trade-offs to weigh before committing.
Per-Host Pricing Scales Painfully
At $15/host/mo, monitoring 10 servers costs $150/mo. Add APM ($31/host) and logs ($0.10/GB), and you're looking at $500+/mo for a small infrastructure.
Metric Overage Charges
Datadog includes a limited number of custom metrics per host. Go over, and you pay $0.05/metric/month. Teams regularly get surprise bills from metric cardinality.
Complex, Overwhelming UI
Datadog's dashboard is built for enterprise SRE teams. If you just need CPU, memory, and disk stats for a few servers, 90% of the interface is noise.
Annual Contracts for Best Pricing
The advertised rates assume annual billing. Month-to-month pricing is significantly higher, and you can't easily downgrade mid-contract.
Why Self-Host with Beszel?
What you get when you pick this stack.
Monitor Unlimited Hosts for $3/mo
Install the Beszel agent on any server you want to monitor. The hub runs on one InstaPods pod and aggregates data from all your hosts - no per-host fees.
Simple Dashboard, Not Enterprise Bloat
Beszel shows exactly what you need: CPU, memory, disk, network, and Docker stats. Clean UI, fast loading, no 50-tab dashboards.
Tiny Resource Footprint
The Beszel agent uses about 15MB of RAM. Compare that to Datadog's agent at 300MB+. Your monitored servers stay fast.
Your Data Stays on Your Server
No data ever leaves your infrastructure. No third-party data processing agreements needed. Perfect for privacy-conscious teams.
Real Cost Comparison
Monitoring 5 servers with CPU, memory, disk, network stats and Docker containers.
- Datadog Infrastructure: $15/host x 5 = $75/mo
- Docker monitoring: included (basic)
- CPU / memory / disk / network: included
- Logs, APM, extra custom metrics: optional add-ons (not included here)
- InstaPods Launch plan: $3/mo
- Beszel hub: free (open source)
- Beszel agents: free (on your servers)
- Unlimited metrics and retention
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Beszel a serious alternative to Datadog?
For infrastructure monitoring (CPU, memory, disk, network, Docker), absolutely. Beszel covers the core metrics most teams need. Where Datadog pulls ahead is APM, log management, and enterprise features like anomaly detection. If you need basic server monitoring without the enterprise price tag, Beszel is the better choice.
Can Beszel monitor Docker containers?
Yes. Beszel has built-in Docker monitoring - it shows per-container CPU and memory usage alongside system metrics. No add-on fees, no extra configuration.
How many servers can Beszel monitor?
There's no built-in limit. Install the lightweight agent (~15MB RAM) on each server, point it at your hub, and it appears in the dashboard. The $3/mo InstaPods pod can comfortably handle 20+ monitored hosts.
Does Beszel support alerting?
Yes. You can set threshold-based alerts for any metric and get notified via email, webhook, or Telegram. It's not as feature-rich as Datadog's alerting (no anomaly detection or forecasting), but it covers the essentials.
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