Compare IBM Instana and ServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep) 
At a Glance
Market Segments
Mid-Market (42.4% of reviews)
Enterprise (47.4% of reviews)
Entry-Level Pricing
Starting at $18.00
Free Get started quickly
IBM Instana
Star Rating
(475)4.4 out of 5
Market Segments
Mid-Market (42.4% of reviews)
Pros & Cons
Entry-Level Pricing
Starting at $18.00
Free Trial is available
Browse all 2 pricing plansServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep)
Star Rating
(20)4.6 out of 5
Market Segments
Enterprise (47.4% of reviews)
Pros & Cons
Not enough data
Entry-Level Pricing
Free Get started quickly
Browse all 3 pricing plansSummary
AI Generated Summary
AI-generated. Powered by real user reviews.
- G2 reviewers report that IBM Instana excels in real-time monitoring capabilities, allowing users to quickly identify performance issues across APIs, backends, and databases. This feature is particularly praised for its effectiveness during testing phases, making it a valuable tool for teams focused on application performance.
- Users say that ServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep) stands out for its seamless integration capabilities, which enable easy connection with various applications. This feature is highlighted as a significant advantage for developers, facilitating quick troubleshooting and log monitoring.
- Reviewers mention that IBM Instana offers robust end-user experience monitoring and transaction tracing, providing clarity in tracking transactions from the front-end UI through cloud APIs. This level of detail is crucial for teams needing to understand user interactions and pinpoint issues effectively.
- According to verified reviews, ServiceNow Cloud Observability is recognized for its strong logging and metrics generation features, which simplify the troubleshooting process for developers. Users appreciate how these capabilities help in quickly identifying and resolving errors, enhancing overall productivity.
- G2 reviewers highlight that while IBM Instana has a solid overall satisfaction score, it faces challenges in specific areas like automation, where users feel it could improve. In contrast, ServiceNow Cloud Observability shines with its high automation scores, making it a preferred choice for teams looking to streamline their monitoring processes.
- Users report that IBM Instana's automated anomaly detection and service communication mapping are invaluable for security teams, as they help flag unusual patterns instantly. This proactive approach to monitoring is a significant advantage for organizations prioritizing security and performance management.
Pricing
Entry-Level Pricing
IBM Instana
Essentials
Starting at $18.00
Automatic discovery, mapping and monitoring of Infrastructure
- Includes All Infrastructure Monitoring Features
- Includes End User Monitoring
- Includes Unbounded Analytics
ServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep)
Community
Free
Get started quickly
- Best for small projects
- Explore every feature
- Community support
Free Trial
IBM Instana
Free Trial is available
ServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep)
Free Trial is available
Ratings
Meets Requirements
8.6
355
9.0
14
Ease of Use
8.6
369
9.2
14
Ease of Setup
8.8
206
Not enough data
Ease of Admin
8.4
129
Not enough data
Quality of Support
8.6
320
9.6
14
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
8.5
129
Not enough data
Product Direction (% positive)
8.5
340
7.9
11
Features by Category
Functionality
9.2
20
Not enough data
9.4
20
Not enough data
9.3
20
Not enough data
9.2
19
Not enough data
9.3
19
Not enough data
8.8
18
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Website Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Experience
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Digital Experience Monitoring (DEM)
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Management
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Performance
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Functionality
9.4
13
Not enough data
8.8
13
Not enough data
8.7
13
Not enough data
8.6
13
Not enough data
8.8
12
Not enough data
8.5
13
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Database Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Monitoring
8.9
131
Not enough data
8.4
121
Not enough data
8.9
129
Not enough data
8.7
133
Not enough data
9.7
6
Not enough data
Administration
8.6
126
Feature Not Available
8.7
104
Not enough data
8.5
100
Not enough data
9.4
6
Not enough data
Analysis
8.5
114
Not enough data
8.5
131
Not enough data
8.3
99
Feature Not Available
Agentic AI - Cloud Infrastructure Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
AI Automation - Cloud Infrastructure Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Functionality
8.7
27
Not enough data
8.4
25
Not enough data
9.0
34
Not enough data
Issue Resolution
9.1
34
Not enough data
8.9
32
Not enough data
8.7
33
Not enough data
Management
9.0
33
Not enough data
8.9
33
Not enough data
8.7
30
Not enough data
Generative AI
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Agentic AI - AIOps Platforms
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Visibility
7.3
5
Not enough data
8.0
5
Not enough data
7.7
5
Not enough data
Monitoring and Management
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Hardware Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Visibility
9.7
6
9.5
7
9.2
6
7.9
7
8.6
6
9.3
7
Monitoring and Management
7.8
6
9.8
7
7.2
6
9.0
7
8.1
6
8.8
7
Agentic AI - Log Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Visibility
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Monitoring and Management
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Cloud environment support
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Server Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Functionality
10.0
6
Not enough data
10.0
6
Not enough data
10.0
6
Not enough data
9.7
6
Not enough data
Management
10.0
6
Not enough data
10.0
6
Not enough data
10.0
6
Not enough data
10.0
6
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Enterprise Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Monitoring
8.5
166
8.3
5
8.7
179
8.7
5
8.9
183
8.0
5
7.6
126
Not enough data
8.5
162
Not enough data
Response
8.6
177
Not enough data
8.5
170
Not enough data
8.2
161
8.7
5
Agentic AI - Application Performance Monitoring (APM)
7.3
11
Not enough data
8.3
13
Not enough data
7.4
11
Not enough data
7.4
11
Not enough data
7.2
12
Not enough data
Performance
8.3
143
Not enough data
8.4
156
Not enough data
Functionality
8.1
134
Not enough data
8.4
132
Not enough data
8.2
131
Not enough data
8.5
155
Not enough data
Alerts management
8.1
41
Not enough data
8.1
44
Not enough data
8.5
57
Not enough data
Monitoring
8.3
56
Not enough data
8.8
61
Not enough data
8.2
56
Not enough data
8.9
55
Not enough data
Automation
7.9
35
Not enough data
7.9
37
Not enough data
Analysis
8.2
54
Not enough data
8.1
45
Not enough data
8.6
61
Not enough data
8.5
41
Not enough data
Issue Resolution
8.5
52
Not enough data
7.6
44
Not enough data
8.2
46
Not enough data
Generative AI
8.7
10
Not enough data
Agentic AI - IT Alerting
8.0
5
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
8.0
5
Not enough data
8.3
5
Not enough data
Telemetry Collection & Ingestion - Observability
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Observability Software
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Visualization & Dashboards - Observability
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Correlation & Root Cause Analysis - Observability
Not enough data
Not enough data
8.3
5
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Scalability & Ecosystem Integration - Observability
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
AI Features - Observability
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Categories
Categories
Shared Categories
IBM Instana and ServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep) are categorized as Log Monitoring, Enterprise Monitoring, Observability Software, Database Monitoring, Cloud Infrastructure Monitoring, Container Monitoring, and Application Performance Monitoring (APM)
Unique Categories
IBM Instana is categorized as Hardware Monitoring, Server Monitoring, AIOps Platforms, Digital Experience Monitoring (DEM), Website Monitoring, and IT Alerting
ServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep) has no unique categories
Reviews
Reviewers' Company Size
IBM Instana
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
ServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep)
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
Small-Business
(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market
(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise
(> 1000 emp.)
Reviewers' Industry
Information Technology and Services
19.5%
Computer Software
11.0%
Financial Services
6.6%
Telecommunications
6.3%
Retail
5.4%
Other
51.2%
Computer Software
47.4%
Information Technology and Services
10.5%
Financial Services
10.5%
Computer Games
10.5%
Telecommunications
5.3%
Other
15.8%
Discussions
What is Application Performance Monitoring (APM)?
2 Comments
TS
Application performance monitoring (APM) is the practice of tracking key software application performance metrics using monitoring software and telemetry...Read more
What is Instana?
2 Comments
SB
Hi,
Instana is a leading Enterprise Observability Platform, powered by automated Application Performance Monitoring. It discovers and maps all services,...Read more
Is there a chatbot available?
2 Comments
OG
Best join a webinar or customer demo to learn more about it. It took me also a while to understand all the bits and pieces. Since IBM was acquired by IBM,...Read more
ServiceNow Cloud Observability (formerly LightStep) has no discussions with answers
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