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LogRhythm SIEM vs syslog-ng comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 9, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

LogRhythm SIEM
Ranking in Log Management
14th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
175
Ranking in other categories
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) (8th)
syslog-ng
Ranking in Log Management
17th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
3.2
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Log Management category, the mindshare of LogRhythm SIEM is 2.2%, down from 2.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of syslog-ng is 2.4%, down from 2.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Log Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
LogRhythm SIEM2.2%
syslog-ng2.4%
Other95.4%
Log Management
 

Featured Reviews

SumitKumar20 - PeerSpot reviewer
Tool consistently aids in effective threat detection and monitoring but could benefit from improved log source management and resource optimization
One major area for improvement in LogRhythm SIEM is the lack of volume measurement capability in terms of storage. There is currently no way to determine how much data is being consumed in terms of gigabytes, terabytes, or petabytes from particular devices or environments. This information is crucial for planning future storage needs and scalability. The system monitor (collector) agent has issues with resource consumption. Even when not actively collecting data, the agent continues to consume significant CPU and memory resources, which can be particularly problematic for small business environments with limited resources. LogRhythm SIEM could improve by adding more default device support. While they have good default settings for devices such as Palo Alto firewalls, custom log sources often require extensive work. Increasing the number of supported devices with built-in policies and functionality would reduce the need for custom work. Competitive SIEM tools often provide more comprehensive coverage for various devices and vendors.
RyanVargas - PeerSpot reviewer
It's a user-friendly open-source solution that can replace or augment a commercial product in some cases
I rate syslog-ng 10 out of 10. It's free and easy to use. It has built-in tools that help us index the various logs sent to it. It's a solid log product. If you're looking for a SIEM solution, syslog-ng will work as a stopgap measure at beginning of the project. It can also work as an injector for a true SIEM solution. You can send all the logs to syslog-ng and forward all the data to the SIEM solution after you've cleaned up the data and got the pertinent information. It's a good front end for a commercial SIEM solution, which becomes more expensive as you load more data into it. I would highly recommend syslog-ng for that use case. However, if you lack the expertise, you might need to go with a cloud-based SIEM instead. You need some in-house expertise or an outside consultant to manage it and set it up.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"It allows us to automate a lot of things with a smaller team."
"LogRhythm's GUI is easy to explore. We also like other features, such as its integration with other security solutions, log correlation, and the deployment of use cases."
"I would rate the product a ten out of ten. The solution is very user-friendly and straightforward. The tool's report customization is interesting."
"The dashboards in the LogRhythm SIEM really help us as a starting point. It gives us a starting point we can go to every day. We walk through several dashboards to see anomalous activity for further investigation."
"I would say the most valuable feature of LogRhythm is that it has built-in UEBA functionality, among other basic Windows packages."
"We use this solution to examine disparate log sources and provide a cohesive method to search for anomalous behavior."
"The daily alerts allow me to quickly find security and operations issues which need to be addressed."
"It's positively affected our overall rate of efficiency."
"We chose syslog-ng because it is easy to install, easy to maintain, easy to update, and due to the fact that all data arrive in raw format, we can manipulate it as we want."
"Syslog-ng has built-in features that we can use to create alerts for a SIEM solution. It isn't a true SIEM solution, but it's sufficient for the time being."
"Syslog-ng provides easy access to all my logs. It helps me show managers and other clients precisely where an incident occurred. I also like it because you can integrate syslog-ng with multiple solutions to allow real-time monitoring."
"The ability to extract and store the logs is the most valuable feature of syslog-ng."
"For us, the most valuable feature is the use of compound search for searching logs at a specific time, by a specific user, or specific behavior."
"Syslog-ng has a separate config file in addition to the core configuration."
 

Cons

"Sometimes the error-logging is not altogether helpful. For example, on an upgrade, a systems data processor, a Windows box, was throwing an error code like 1083. Then it just stopped and it died right out of the installer and nobody looked. We searched through Google and what it means is the Windows Firewall wasn't turned on so that it could create a rule for the product. Why wouldn't they bubble up that description so that I wouldn't have to call support and I could just know, "Okay, the firewall wasn't turned on. Turn it back on. Re-run the installer and keep going.""
"Granted, we haven't enabled the UEBA module, but we're forwarding all our proxy logs to LogRhythm and we have a really hard time pulling those proxy logs back out of LogRhythm. However, when we take LogRhythm and forward the same logs into somebody else's user-based analytics software, we get the majority of what we were missing... If we've got all our proxy logs and I go out to Google or Facebook or the like, we should be able to go in and pull that information out ten minutes later, but it's a big challenge to do that."
"It will definitely help if the parsing side would be much easier, meaning it would be better if we could easily make adjustments on the parser, both on standard and non-standard log sources."
"Parsing is totally controlled by LogRhythm and they do not allow any partner or any third-party to handle this part and this is a key challenge on my end."
"It should be improved for automated setup and auto-configuration. There should be ease of integration and ease of setup."
"One area for improvement in LogRhythm NextGen SIEM is that it's a Windows-based tool, and I feel it should be on the Linux operating system instead. Another area for improvement in the tool is the UI. There should be minor changes in the UI to make it better, though I like the dashboards in LogRhythm NextGen SIEM."
"There is room for improvement with separate running sources or better integration."
"I have probably submitted half a dozen log parser requests, and I keep finding more stuff that we need to keep an eye on that doesn't have a definition in LogRhythm."
"In syslog-ng, I think a GUI would be beneficial. I am unsure if the premium module has a GUI to administer it."
"There is room for improvement in terms of observability."
"It's hard to find people who know how to use syslog-ng. I often find problems with configurations, and solutions aren't integrated correctly with syslog-ng. For example, there might be data with extra decimals, or the collector agents are incorrectly named. It isn't a problem with the solution; it's a lack of professionals."
"Syslog-ng has built-in features that we can use to create alerts for a SIEM solution. It isn't a true SIEM solution, but it's sufficient for the time being."
"The filtering has room for improvement."
"There is always the potential for additional integration and protocol extensions."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We did a five-year agreement. We pay close to a quarter of a million dollars for our solution."
"In comparison to the competition, they are more affordable. This allows us to do more with less."
"The support which allows more customized to the environment when we are deploying new systems is called Professional Service and is very expensive. The technical annual support and there is an annual fee."
"We work with French-speaking African countries, and it costs more than the average SIEM solution. Also, the pricing isn't too flexible. AlienVault, Splunk, and IBM QRadar are more suitable for customers on a tight budget."
"We have seen a measurable decrease in the mean time to detect and respond to threats. As it comes out new features and new releases, the window is becoming a lot narrower because you can pivot a lot more with the data. Therefore, the new features and enhancements are reducing that."
"I give the price a six out of ten."
"In the context of our country, the price of this solution is too high."
"Everything is expensive with LogRhythm, and you don't get anything for free."
"Syslog-ng is a free open-source solution."
"Syslog-ng is open-source."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
10%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
13%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business38
Midsize Enterprise38
Large Enterprise83
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What is the difference between log management and SIEM?
Rony, Daniel's answer is right on the money. There are many solutions for each in the market, a lot depends upon your ability to manage such tools and your budget. A small operation may be best s...
What needs improvement with LogRhythm NextGen SIEM?
I cannot think of any specific features that LogRhythm SIEM can improve upon since it supports a wide variety of major vendors. However, they need to improve their parsing techniques; the tool shou...
What do you like most about LogRhythm SIEM?
I find LogRhythm's log management capabilities to be beneficial.
What do you like most about syslog-ng?
For us, the most valuable feature is the use of compound search for searching logs at a specific time, by a specific user, or specific behavior.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for syslog-ng?
The pricing is in the middle. I would rate the pricing a six out of ten, with one being expensive and ten being cheap.
What needs improvement with syslog-ng?
Something could potentially be improved, though it works effectively for me. In the early stages, over 10 years ago, syslog-ng was lacking some features, so I created a patch for it. I used a patch...
 

Also Known As

LogRhythm NextGen SIEM, LogRhythm, LogRhythm Threat Lifecycle Management, LogRhythm TLM
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Macy's, NASA, Fujitsu, US Air Force, EY, Abbott, HD Supply, SAB Miller, UCLA, Raytheon, Amtrak, Cargill
Tecnocom, University of Victoria, University of Exeter, Datapath
Find out what your peers are saying about LogRhythm SIEM vs. syslog-ng and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
867,349 professionals have used our research since 2012.