Amazon CloudWatch Reviews

Name: Amazon CloudWatch
Brand: Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Rating: 4.0 (45 reviews)

4.0 out of 5

45 reviews
89% willing to recommend

259 followers

What is Amazon CloudWatch?

Amazon CloudWatch is used for monitoring, tracking logs, and organizing metrics across AWS services. It detects anomalies, sets dynamic alarms, and automates actions to optimize cloud utilization, troubleshoot, and ensure service availability.

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Amazon CloudWatch is the #9 ranked solution in top Cloud Monitoring Software, #12 ranked solution in APM tools, and #12 ranked solution in Log Management Software. PeerSpot users give Amazon CloudWatch an average rating of 8.0 out of 10. Based on the analysis of the 45 most recent Amazon CloudWatch reviews, the overall sentiment is positive, with a sentiment score of 7.2. Amazon CloudWatch is most commonly compared to Datadog: Amazon CloudWatch vs Datadog. Amazon CloudWatch is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 64% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a financial services firm, accounting for 17% of all views.

Helped 824,067 peers since 2012

Featured reviews

Rasanpreet Singh

Senior Consultant at Infosys

The choice of logging solution should always be determined by the specific business requirements. It is crucial to align the logging strategy with what type of logs are needed and how they should be used. There are instances where we require custom solutions to retrieve logs, especially application logs that may not be easily accessible through CloudWatch or similar services. When we heavily rely on AWS native services, CloudWatch is indeed a robust choice. However, in certain scenarios, we might need integration capabilities with other tools, and if they can incorporate such features, it would enhance overall logging capabilities. I would rate it eight out of ten.

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Rahul Kundu

AWS Engineer at Abbott

We use CloudWatch for monitoring and logging. It helps us monitor our applications' performance, particularly in ensuring that every API hit returns a response within four seconds, which is our SLA. We also monitor invocation errors in Lambda and use CloudWatch alerts to notify us of any issues…

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Karthick Selvam

Senior Software Engineer at Saama

In my company, we have created a Lambda function to collect logs from CraC. Our company particularly uses Lambda function in Amazon CloudWatch's log groups. From Amazon CloudWatch, in my company, we are not getting proper logs from particular services. When my company faces the aforementioned issues, we have to get involved in the troubleshooting process while also keeping a check on Lambda functions. In my company, we are unable to get proper logs even with Lambda functions, making it one of the areas that needs improvement. The monitoring part and GUI are areas in Amazon CloudWatch that have shortcomings currently and can be considered for improvements in the future.

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Amazon CloudWatch mindshare

Product category:

As of December 2024, the mindshare of Amazon CloudWatch in the Cloud Monitoring Software category stands at 4.5%, down from 5.8% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Cloud Monitoring Software

PeerAnalyst reports

Type	Title	Date
Category	Cloud Monitoring Software	Dec 22, 2024	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Dec 22, 2024	Download
Comparison	Amazon CloudWatch vs Datadog	Dec 22, 2024	Download
Comparison	Amazon CloudWatch vs Zabbix	Dec 22, 2024	Download
Comparison	Amazon CloudWatch vs Auvik Network Management (ANM)	Dec 22, 2024	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
Datadog	4.3	8.7%	96%	186 interviews Add to research
Zabbix	4.1	22.2%	95%	103 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

Amazon CloudWatch provides valuable features such as seamless integration with AWS, real-time alerts, detailed metrics, and logs collection. Its user-friendly interface allows for easy setup and task automation. Users appreciate its monitoring capabilities, robust analytical tools, and ability to track performance metrics and logs. It supports infrastructure monitoring, triggers events, and sets CPU thresholds. Its dashboards, application insights, and event scheduling enhance usability, making it a comprehensive tool for AWS environments.

"It's useful to analyze past data and compare it with recent activities."
"CloudWatch provides essential monitoring capabilities that integrate seamlessly with other AWS services."
"The most valuable part is the metrics part, which is really good."

Room for Improvement

Amazon CloudWatch needs better drill-down capabilities on the dashboard, improved log streaming and search functionality, a more flexible alerting mechanism, and enhanced UI customization. Users express concerns about high costs and complex integration. The lack of built-in analytics, real-time monitoring, and comprehensive reporting also need addressing. Scalability, database integration, and ease of use for non-experts require enhancements. Additionally, there is demand for improved performance when not using core AWS services and more human-readable metrics.

"Maybe Amazon Web Services can improve by providing a library for CloudWatch with some useful features."
"Adding conditional expressions would enhance its functionality."
"There is some delay in logging that they need to improve on."

ROI

Many companies benefit from Amazon CloudWatch by enhancing cloud instance visibility and reducing manual monitoring, leading to significant cost savings. They increase usage for better performance metrics like RUM and job monitoring. Users often report a positive return on investment even with initial small investments. Current migrations may delay realizing full benefits, but once complete, more savings are anticipated. Most organizations find Amazon CloudWatch effective in meeting business requirements and securing positive financial returns.

Pricing

Enterprise users report that Amazon CloudWatch offers diverse pricing experiences. Many appreciate the pay-as-you-go model, though scalability can increase costs significantly. While some find it affordable, with costs as low as $25-$30 per month for multiple systems, others note expenses vary based on usage and data storage. Monthly licensing fees can reach $300-$350. CloudWatch is often cheaper than competitors, with costs justified by its cloud integration and capability benefits.

"The tool is not expensive."
"The pricing is average."
"Amazon CloudWatch is a cheap solution."

Popular Use Cases

Amazon CloudWatch is primarily used by organizations for monitoring instances, infrastructure, and applications on AWS. It helps track logs, set alarms, and automate processes. Users monitor metrics like CPU usage, memory, and application performance. It is used for incident alerts and optimizing cloud utilization. Clients benefit from its ability to detect anomalies, automate actions, and integrate with other services like Lambda and GuardDuty for security and performance insights.

Service and Support

Amazon CloudWatch's customer service and support are generally rated highly, with technical support often considered good to excellent. Users appreciate the availability and knowledge of support staff, noting the tiered service offering different levels of response times. Some users find premium support expensive but efficient, resolving issues promptly. Response times and experiences vary based on the support package chosen. Documentation and workshops also provide valuable assistance, contributing to a positive user experience.

Deployment

Amazon CloudWatch's initial setup is generally described as straightforward and quick. Users appreciate its ease of use, often requiring minimal technical knowledge, especially with AWS's comprehensive documentation. However, complexity can increase depending on the client's size and the specific integrations needed. Some found custom alarms more challenging, requiring script adjustments. Deployment time varies, often taking just minutes to days, influenced by the number of integrations and the complexity involved.

Scalability

Amazon CloudWatch is highly scalable, utilized extensively by infrastructure teams to monitor cloud performance. It efficiently handles large user bases, supporting thousands across enterprises and medium-sized businesses. Users report excellent scalability, rating it between eight to ten out of ten. Organizations use it extensively for log management and scaling demands, with many emphasizing its seamless scalability features as integral to their operations. No significant challenges in scalability have been reported, making Amazon CloudWatch a preferred choice.

Stability

Amazon CloudWatch is described as very stable with no issues related to bugs, glitches, crashes, or unavailability. Users report consistent performance, high reliability, and good stability features. Some mention occasional logging delays or complexity in custom queries. Ratings range from seven to ten for stability, highlighting dependable functionality and impressive results. It effectively assists in understanding components, application behavior, and data patterns. Overall consensus indicates a strong and stable performance from Amazon CloudWatch.

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

Download our Amazon CloudWatch Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.

Review data by company size

By reviewers

By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

17%

Financial Services Firm

17%

Manufacturing Company

University

Government

Healthcare Company

Real Estate/Law Firm

Non Profit

Retailer

Comms Service Provider

Energy/Utilities Company

Media Company

Transportation Company

Insurance Company

Legal Firm

Educational Organization

Hospitality Company

Recreational Facilities/Services Company

Construction Company

Outsourcing Company

Consumer Goods Company

Recruiting/Hr Firm

Performing Arts

Aerospace/Defense Firm

Marketing Services Firm

Pharma/Biotech Company

Sports Company

Compare Amazon CloudWatch with alternative products

Learn more about Amazon CloudWatch

Organizations leverage Amazon CloudWatch for collecting and analyzing logs, triggering alerts, and profiling application performance. It's also employed for monitoring bandwidth, virtual machines, Lambda functions, and Kubernetes clusters. Valuable features include seamless integration with AWS, real-time data and alerts, detailed metrics, and a user-friendly interface. It provides robust monitoring capabilities for infrastructure and application performance, log aggregation, and analytics. Users appreciate its scalability, ease of setup, and affordability. Additional key aspects are the ability to create alarms, dashboards, and automated responses, along with detailed insights into system and application health. Room for improvement includes dashboards and UI enhancements for better visualization and customizability, log streaming speed, advanced machine learning and reporting capabilities, pricing, and integration with non-AWS services and databases. Users also seek more real-time monitoring and comprehensive application performance features, and simpler alerts and configuration processes.

What are the most important features?

Seamless integration with AWS: Ensures smooth operation with AWS services.
Real-time data and alerts: Provides immediate insights and notifications.
Detailed metrics: Offers in-depth data on infrastructure and application performance.
Scalability: Supports growing needs with ease.
Ease of setup: Quick and straightforward installation.
Affordability: Cost-effective monitoring solution.
Alarms and dashboards: Customizable alerts and visual insights.
Automated responses: Facilitates automatic actions based on set criteria.
System and application health insights: Delivers comprehensive health reports.

What benefits and ROI can users expect?

Optimized cloud utilization: Ensures efficient use of resources.
Improved troubleshooting: Identifies and resolves issues quickly.
Enhanced service availability: Keeps services running smoothly.
Effective log analysis: Provides valuable insights from collected logs.
Performance profiling: Assesses and optimizes application performance.
Scalable monitoring: Adapts to growing business needs.

Amazon CloudWatch is implemented across a range of industries, including technology, finance, healthcare, and retail. Technology firms use it to monitor application performance and traffic, while financial organizations leverage it for ensuring compliance and system reliability. Healthcare entities rely on it for maintaining service availability and monitoring data flow, and retail companies utilize it for tracking customer interactions and optimizing server usage.