Backtrace vs Xdebug
Backtrace
backtrace.io
Xdebug
xdebug.orgSide by side
| Figure | Backtrace | Xdebug |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $50/mo | £16.67/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 5 | 2 |
| Spec score · Debugging Software | 8.8 (#6) | 7.3 (#22) |
| Support | The Professional plan includes priority support, and the contact page directs customers needing technical assistance to the support team. | Community support uses Stack Overflow with low issue priority, while paid Pro and Business tiers offer email technical support and medium or high issue priority. |
Plans
Backtrace
- DeveloperFree
- Standard — Mobile$600 a year
- Standard — Mobile and PC$900 a year
- Standard — Mobile, PC, Game Consoles, and Servers$1,200 a year
- ProfessionalPriced on request
In their own words
Xdebug
Xdebug is a PHP extension that adds debugging and analysis features to PHP development. Its step debugger lets developers move through code interactively to examine control flow and data structures. It improves var_dump() output and adds stack traces for notices, warnings, errors, and exceptions. Function tracing can record calls, arguments, and invocation locations, with optional variable assignments and return values. The profiler reports execution and memory use in Cachegrind-compatible files, while code coverage can show what runs during PHPUnit tests. Xdebug communicates with IDEs through DBGp, a protocol supported by nearly every PHP IDE, including Visual Studio Code and PhpStorm. Installation instructions cover Linux, macOS, Windows, and Unix-like systems, with compatibility information organized by PHP version. Xdebug itself is free. Paid Pro costs £200 per year for one developer; Business costs £1,000 per year for 2–20 developers. Both paid tiers include email technical support. Xdebug Cloud is described as a relay for situations where a network or firewall blocks direct debugger connections.