Overview
AppSignal is a bootstrapped APM company from Amsterdam, founded in 2012. Its agents auto-instrument Ruby, Elixir, Python and Node.js apps, showing slow endpoints, N+1 queries, memory leaks and event timelines, alongside error tracking with deploy correlation.
The same product includes host monitoring (CPU, disk, memory, network), anomaly detection triggers on any metric, custom dashboards, log management with live tail, uptime monitoring from four locations with a free public status page, and check-ins for cron jobs. An MCP server connects it to AI coding assistants.
Pricing is by monthly request volume with every feature and unlimited users, teams and apps included. AppSignal promises no overage bills and no monitoring cut-off; if you exceed your plan for two of three months it will ask you to upgrade. Data is stored in Europe, with US hosting available as a business option.
Pricing and plans
Free tier · no card
50K requests a month, 1 GB of logging, 5-day retention, unlimited users and apps.
At the limit Not stated Monitoring continues and nothing is charged; AppSignal asks you to upgrade only after two of three months over.
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 50K requests, 1 GB logging, 5-day retention |
| Paid (250K requests) | $279/yr ($23.25/mo) | Price rises with request volume; 1 GB logging free, more as a paid add-on |
| Business add-ons | $89/mo each | HIPAA compliance, long-term log storage to S3; SAML SSO and US hosting via sales |
What it does
- Performance monitoring
- Auto-instrumented response times, slow and N+1 queries, and memory leak detection.
- Error tracking
- Exceptions with backtraces, context, deploy correlation and issue-tracker links.
- Host monitoring
- CPU, disk I/O, load, memory and network per host.
- Logging
- Search, live tail and log-based alerts; 1 GB a month free, with optional S3 long-term storage.
- Uptime and check-ins
- HTTP checks from four locations with a public status page, plus cron job check-ins.
- Anomaly detection
- Alerts on any metric with warm-up and cool-down periods.
Strengths and limitations
Strengths
- Never bills overages or stops monitoring when you go over.
- Unlimited users, teams and apps on every plan.
- EU-based data storage with ISO 27001 certification.
- First-class Elixir and Ruby support.
Limitations
- Free plan retention is only 5 days.
- Auto-instrumentation targets Ruby, Elixir, Python and Node.js; other languages are less covered.
- HIPAA and long-term log storage cost $89 a month each.
- Distributed tracing was still labelled beta.
Who it suits
Good for
- Rails and Phoenix apps
- Small product teams wanting one APM with predictable bills
- EU companies needing data kept in Europe
Look elsewhere if
- Polyglot microservices in languages it does not instrument
- Large enterprises needing extensive compliance programs
Alternatives to AppSignal
| Tool | From | Free option | Stages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hyperping Uptime monitoring, status pages and on-call | $24/mo | Free tier | |
| Checkly Synthetic and uptime monitoring as code | $24/mo | Free tier | |
| OneUptime Open-source uptime, status pages, on-call, APM and logs | $22/mo | Free tier | |
| Axiom Log and event data platform | $25/mo | Free tier | |
| Sentry Error tracking and application monitoring | $26/mo | Free tier | |
| Honeybadger Error tracking, logging, uptime and status pages | $26/mo | Free tier |
Questions
Is AppSignal free?
Yes, the free plan includes 50,000 requests a month, 1 GB of logs and 5-day retention.
How much does AppSignal cost?
Paid plans are priced by request volume; 250,000 requests cost $279 a year ($23.25 a month).
What happens if I exceed my AppSignal plan?
Monitoring continues and there is no overage charge; AppSignal only discusses an upgrade after two of three months over.
Where does AppSignal store data?
In the EU by default; US hosting is available as a business feature.
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