Seq vs syslog-ng
Seq
datalust.cosyslog-ng
syslog-ng.comSide by side
| Figure | Seq | syslog-ng |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $90.83/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 5 | 6 |
| Spec score · Log Management Software | 8.6 (#23) | 9.1 (#11) |
| Documentation depth | The documentation covers ingestion, querying, dashboards, alerting, authentication, storage, backups, Docker, Kubernetes, Azure, clustering, APIs and troubleshooting. | The documentation center contains searchable administration and developer guides, contribution instructions, mailing-list support and GitHub issue tracking. |
| Headquarters | Datalust lists Level 1, 240 Queen Street, Brisbane 4000, Australia. | Aliso Viejo, California, United States |
| Integrations | Documented ingestion options include Serilog, Microsoft.Extensions.Logging, OpenTelemetry, Node.js libraries, HTTP, GELF, syslog, RabbitMQ, Docker and Kubernetes. | The product pages list destinations and integrations including Elasticsearch, Hadoop, Kafka, MongoDB, SQL databases, Redis, Splunk, and SIEM tools. |
| License | Seq is proprietary subscription software; its agreement grants a non-exclusive, non-transferable internal-use license and forbids copying, resale and source-code derivation. | The public project combines LGPL and GPL licensing: core reusable code is generally LGPL 2.1-or-later while many modules are GPLv2-or-later. |
| Purpose | Seq is a self-hosted telemetry server that stores structured application events and makes them searchable through its web interface. | syslog-ng collects logs from infrastructure sources, processes them, and routes or stores them for analysis. |
| Rating on SourceForge | 5 out of 5 from 2 reviews | No rating shown from 0 user reviews |
| Security | Official security guidance describes HTTPS transport, salted one-way password and API-key hashes, encrypted feed secrets, role-based permissions and audit logging. | Premium Edition supports TLS-encrypted transfer and encrypted log storage, with X.509 certificates for host and server mutual authentication. |
| Support | The Individual plan includes community support; paid plans include priority email support, and Datacenter includes a 45-minute onboarding call with the engineering team. | Commercial customers can access certified engineers, global coverage, and support services; Open Source Edition users are directed to community support and documentation. |
| What it does | Seq is a self-hosted, real-time server for searching and analyzing structured application logs, traces and metrics. | syslog-ng is an enhanced log daemon that receives syslog, unstructured text, message queues, SQL and NoSQL data and routes or stores it. |
Plans
Seq
- IndividualFree
- IndividualFree
- Team$1,090 a year
- Standard$2,990 a year
- Datacenter$10,990 a year
syslog-ng
- syslog-ng Open Source EditionFree
- syslog-ng Premium Edition trialFree
- Syslog-ng Basic$2,800, paid once
- syslog-ng Premium EditionPriced on request
- syslog-ng Premium Edition MarketplacePriced on request
- syslog-ng Store BoxPriced on request
In their own words
syslog-ng
syslog-ng collects infrastructure logs, processes them, and routes or stores them for analysis. Its free Open Source Edition can collect, parse, classify, rewrite, and correlate logs before sending them to analysis tools or storing them. Premium Edition adds filtering and real-time pattern correlation to reduce and normalize log data, plus disk buffering, client-side failover, and application-layer acknowledgements. It supports TLS-encrypted transfer and encrypted log storage with X.509 certificates for mutual authentication. Store Box offers access-controlled search and custom reports that can help with compliance work. Listed destinations include Elasticsearch, Hadoop, Kafka, MongoDB, SQL databases, Redis, Splunk, and SIEM tools. Premium licensing is based on Log Source Hosts, with annual support available; Store Box licensing depends on Log Source Hosts and hardware configuration. Open Source Edition is GPL/LGPL licensed and community supported. Commercial customers can access certified engineers and support services; Premium Edition and Store Box offer free trials.