Wakestack vs Better Stack: A Fair Comparison

Quick Comparison

What Each Tool Does

Wakestack

Wakestack provides:

1. Server monitoring: Agent collects CPU, memory, disk, network
2. Uptime monitoring: External HTTP checks
3. Status pages: Public and private incident pages

Focus: Infrastructure visibility from the inside out.

Better Stack

Better Stack provides:

1. Uptime monitoring: External availability checks
2. Logtail: Log aggregation and search
3. Status pages: Polished incident communication
4. Incident management: On-call and escalation

Focus: External availability plus log intelligence.

Different Philosophies

Wakestack's Approach

"Know your servers and know when they're reachable."

Wakestack assumes you're running infrastructure and need visibility into:

• What's happening on the machines
• Whether users can reach your services
• How to communicate status

Better Stack's Approach

"Know when you're down, and have the logs to understand why."

Better Stack assumes you're collecting logs elsewhere or want them centralized:

• External availability monitoring
• Log aggregation for debugging
• Incident management workflow

Both approaches are valid. They serve different primary needs.

Feature Deep Dive

Server Monitoring

Verdict: Wakestack for server metrics. Better Stack doesn't focus on this.

Uptime Monitoring

Verdict: Both are capable. Better Stack has slightly faster minimum intervals.

Log Management

Verdict: Better Stack (Logtail) wins here. Wakestack doesn't do logging.

Status Pages

Verdict: Both are capable. Better Stack's design polish is notable.

Incident Management

Verdict: Better Stack has more developed incident management features.

Pricing Comparison

Wakestack

• Free tier for small setups
• Paid plans scale with hosts
• Predictable, host-based pricing
• No per-log or per-query charges

Better Stack

• Free tier available
• Uptime: From ~$24/month
• Logtail: Usage-based (GB ingested)
• Can scale quickly with log volume

Comparison: Wakestack is more predictable if you have many logs. Better Stack can be cheaper if you have few logs but want that capability.

When to Choose Wakestack

You need server monitoring

If your primary need is:

• Seeing CPU, memory, disk on your servers
• Understanding resource utilization
• Preventing resource exhaustion issues

Wakestack provides this; Better Stack doesn't focus on it.

You manage your own infrastructure

If you're running:

• Cloud VMs
• Bare metal servers
• Containers you need to monitor

Server metrics are essential, and Wakestack delivers.

You don't need log aggregation

If you:

• Have logs handled elsewhere
• Use cloud-native logging (CloudWatch, GCP Logging)
• Don't need centralized log search

You don't need to pay for Better Stack's Logtail.

You want server + uptime in one tool

Wakestack's value is the combination:

• One agent provides server metrics
• Same platform provides uptime checks
• One dashboard, one bill

When to Choose Better Stack

You need log aggregation

If your primary need is:

• Centralizing logs from many sources
• Searching and analyzing log data
• Alerting on log patterns

Better Stack's Logtail is purpose-built for this.

You want polished incident management

If you need:

• Sophisticated on-call scheduling
• Multi-tier escalation
• Beautiful status pages

Better Stack's incident features are more developed.

You're already using another server monitoring tool

If you have:

• Datadog, Prometheus, or another tool for server metrics
• Need for uptime + logs specifically

Better Stack complements your existing setup.

You value design aesthetics

Better Stack's UI and status pages are notably well-designed. If brand presentation matters, this could be a factor.

Common Scenarios

Scenario 1: Startup with 10 servers, running Kubernetes

Need: Server metrics + uptime + some logging

Analysis:

• Server metrics: Wakestack (agent-based monitoring)
• Logging: Better Stack or cloud-native options

Recommendation: Wakestack for servers/uptime, evaluate logging needs separately

Scenario 2: SaaS with public API, need incident communication

Need: Uptime monitoring + status page + on-call

Analysis:

• Better Stack has stronger incident management
• Wakestack has good basics

Recommendation: Better Stack if incident management is primary concern

Scenario 3: Agency running client projects

Need: Uptime monitoring for many sites + log collection

Analysis:

• Many sites benefit from Better Stack's uptime focus
• Log aggregation useful for debugging client issues

Recommendation: Better Stack aligns well with this use case

Scenario 4: Small team with 5 self-managed servers

Need: Know when servers are struggling, know when services are down

Analysis:

• Server metrics are essential
• Logging might be handled differently

Recommendation: Wakestack provides server + uptime in one tool

Using Both Together

Some teams use both:

• Wakestack: Server metrics + uptime monitoring
• Better Stack: Log aggregation + incident management

This gives comprehensive coverage:

• Server health (Wakestack)
• Availability checks (either)
• Log analysis (Better Stack)
• Incident workflow (Better Stack)

The trade-off is managing two platforms.

Honest Assessment

Where Wakestack Wins

• Server monitoring: Agent-based metrics Better Stack doesn't offer
• Combined server + uptime: One tool for both
• Predictable pricing: Host-based, no log volume surprises
• Simplicity: Focused on core monitoring

Where Better Stack Wins

• Log management: Full-featured log aggregation
• Design: More polished UI and status pages
• Incident management: More sophisticated workflows
• Uptime features: Slightly more advanced checks

The Bottom Line

These tools solve different adjacent problems:

• Need server metrics? → Wakestack
• Need log aggregation? → Better Stack
• Need both? → Consider using both, or pick based on primary need

There's no wrong choice—just different fits for different needs.

Summary

Choose Wakestack if:

• You need server monitoring (CPU, memory, disk)
• You want server + uptime in one tool
• You don't need centralized logging
• You prefer predictable, host-based pricing

Choose Better Stack if:

• You need log aggregation
• You want sophisticated incident management
• You value UI design polish
• You have server monitoring covered elsewhere

Both are modern, capable tools built for contemporary teams. The choice comes down to whether your primary need is server visibility (Wakestack) or logs + incident workflow (Better Stack).