HyperDX vs Bugsink
Both are alternatives to Sentry. Here's how they stack up — verified facts, no spin.
Also searched as Bugsink vs HyperDX — same comparison, one verdict.
HyperDX is open source (MIT) and Bugsink is not (PolyForm Shield 1.0.0 (source-available; free to self-host and use, restricts building a competing hosted product)) — so the real question is whether you want to own the error tracking & exception monitoring stack or rent it.
HyperDX
An OpenTelemetry-native observability app with error tracking, logs, traces, and session replay in one.
HyperDX (built on ClickHouse, now part of ClickStack) unifies error tracking with logs, distributed traces, metrics, and session replay in a single self-hostable app, aimed at teams who want Sentry-style error visibility plus broader observability without stitching together several tools. It's fully MIT-licensed and OpenTelemetry-native, so instrumentation isn't tied to a proprietary SDK.
Bugsink
A minimal, actively-maintained self-hosted error tracker built to be a drop-in Sentry replacement.
Bugsink is a Python/Django error tracker built specifically to be self-hosted and Sentry-SDK-compatible: point an existing Sentry SDK's DSN at Bugsink and it starts receiving events with no code changes. It defaults to SQLite for both the app database and its task queue (no Redis or Celery required), with Postgres/MySQL available for larger deployments, making it one of the simplest error trackers to run on a single small server.
Side by side
10 points of comparison, every one read from a verified field. Green marks the side that wins a row outright. A dash means we do not hold that fact — never that it is zero.
| HyperDX | Bugsink | |
|---|---|---|
| Sovereignty ScoreOur transparent 0–100 composite for data ownership and exit cost. | 89 | 81 |
| Open source | Yes | No |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Local-first data | Yes | Yes |
| License | MIT | PolyForm Shield 1.0.0 (source-available; free to self-host and use, restricts building a competing hosted product) |
| Pricing | Free to self-host; hosted plan free up to 3GB/mo, then $20/mo for 50GB/mo plus $0.40/GB overage | Free to self-host; hosted plan also available, positioned as ~80% cheaper than Sentry at scale |
| RAM to run it wellThe figure that actually matters, not the vendor's minimum. | 8 GB. Four services share the box — ClickHouse, the HyperDX app, the OpenTelemetry collector and MongoDB — and ClickHouse's own sizing guide says total memory should not go below 8 GB. | — |
| Realistic running costWhat the box costs each month if you run it yourself. | $48/mo for an 8 GB, 4 vCPU VPS at DigitalOcean list price (read 2026-09-30), less on budget hosts; storage grows with retention | — |
| Setup timeHonest first-install estimate, not the marketing quickstart. | 10 minutes with the all-in-one image; a day to secure it, set retention and wire OpenTelemetry into your apps | — |
| Ongoing maintenanceThe part nobody budgets for. | ClickHouse and MongoDB upgrades, TTL tuning as volume grows, and securing ingestion with the API key from Team Settings. HyperDX is now built by ClickHouse as part of ClickStack, so follow the ClickStack docs on clickhouse.com. | — |
HyperDX edges it on the Sovereignty Score, but the right pick depends on the trade-offs below.
Weighing both against staying on Sentry? Is Sentry free? What it actually costs →
HyperDX
Strengths
- +Fully MIT-licensed with no field-of-use restrictions
- +One app covers errors, logs, traces, and session replay via OpenTelemetry standards
- +Active project (multiple 2026 releases) with a real Discord community
- +Data portability: OpenTelemetry data isn't locked to HyperDX's format
Trade-offs
- −Heavier self-host footprint than a dedicated error tracker — ClickHouse plus supporting services
- −Not a drop-in DSN swap for existing Sentry SDK code; requires OpenTelemetry instrumentation
- −Broader scope means more surface area to operate than a single-purpose tool
Bugsink
Strengths
- +Drop-in for Sentry SDKs — DSN swap, no application code changes
- +SQLite-first defaults mean no Redis/Celery to operate for small deployments
- +Very active (weekly-cadence releases as of mid-2026) with a responsive maintainer
- +Local variable capture on stack traces out of the box, a genuine debugging strength
Trade-offs
- −Not an OSI-approved open-source license — PolyForm Shield is source-available, not free software by OSI's definition
- −Explicitly forbids using the code to build a competing hosted error-tracking service
- −Smaller community and shorter track record than Sentry or GlitchTip
Which one fits you
The trade-offs above, turned into a decision. Find the line that describes your team.
Choose HyperDX
if you want the source and the option to fork it, and fully MIT-licensed with no field-of-use restrictions.
Choose Bugsink
if drop-in for Sentry SDKs — DSN swap, no application code changes.
Neither, yet
if both carry a real cost you should weigh first — heavier self-host footprint than a dedicated error tracker — ClickHouse plus supporting services, and not an OSI-approved open-source license — PolyForm Shield is source-available, not free software by OSI's definition. If either of those is a dealbreaker for your team, the shortlist is wrong rather than the choice.
What it takes to run these yourself
Real requirements and honest running costs, not the vendor quickstart.
HyperDX vs Bugsink — common questions
Is HyperDX a better fit than Bugsink for error tracking & exception monitoring?
It depends on what you are optimising for, and the honest split is this: HyperDX scores 89 to Bugsink's 81 on data ownership and exit cost, so it is the safer choice if you care about being able to leave. Bugsink earns its place on a different axis — drop-in for Sentry SDKs — DSN swap, no application code changes. Neither is a wrong answer for every team; the table above is the actual comparison.
What happens if we want to switch later?
HyperDX keeps its data local or in open formats, so leaving is an export rather than a negotiation. Bugsink is still self-hostable, so the files stay on your server either way — but it is not local-first by design, so check what its export produces before you rely on it.
Can I self-host HyperDX or Bugsink?
Both can be self-hosted. The difference is what it costs you in time rather than whether it is possible — see the setup and maintenance rows above.
Are HyperDX and Bugsink both alternatives to Sentry?
Yes — both appear in our Sentry comparison, which is why they are worth putting side by side. People usually arrive here already having decided to move off Sentry and now choosing between the two replacements, which is a narrower and much easier question.
More Sentry head-to-heads
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Facts verified 2026-07-09. Licenses and pricing change — spotted something out of date? That's a correction we want.