Comparison
AgentCost vs Langfuse
Langfuse is an open-source LLM engineering platform covering tracing, evaluation, and prompt management, available both self-hosted and as a paid cloud service.
Langfuse is the broader product. It covers tracing, evaluations, prompt management, and datasets — cost tracking is one part of a larger LLM engineering platform.
AgentCost is deliberately narrower: it answers which agent spent what, across which models, and what to do about it. If you want a full evaluation and prompt-management stack, Langfuse does considerably more. If you want cost attribution without adopting a platform, AgentCost is smaller.
AgentCost vs Langfuse at a glance
| Feature | AgentCost | Langfuse |
|---|---|---|
| Price (cloud) | No cloud tier — self-hosted and free | Hobby free; Core $29/mo; Pro $199/mo; Enterprise $2,499/mo |
| Free tier limits | None — unlimited events and users | 50k units/month, 30 days data access, 2 users |
| Usage overage | Not applicable | $8 per 100k units, decreasing at higher volume |
| Self-hosting | The default — Docker, your infrastructure | Yes, free and open source, via Docker Compose or Kubernetes |
| Scope | Cost tracking and optimization | Tracing, evaluations, prompt management, datasets |
| Integration | Two lines of Python, auto-instrumented | SDK instrumentation, decorators, or OpenTelemetry |
| Model pricing database | 3,500+ models, synced from LiteLLM | Maintained by Langfuse |
| Maturity | Alpha — young project, small team | Widely adopted, large community |
Langfuse details read from their own pricing page on 2026-07-28. Pricing changes — check the source before deciding.
When to choose Langfuse
- You need evaluations, prompt management, or dataset tooling as well as cost data.
- You want deep, span-level tracing of complex chains, not just cost attribution.
- You'd prefer a managed cloud option with a support relationship.
- You want a mature project with a large community behind it.
When to choose AgentCost
- Cost is the actual problem you're solving, and you don't want to adopt a whole platform to solve it.
- You want setup measured in minutes: pip install, two lines, done.
- You want unlimited retention and users without a monthly bill.
- You want per-agent cost attribution and optimization suggestions specifically.
Frequently asked questions
Langfuse is also open source and self-hostable — what's different?
Scope and setup cost. Langfuse is a full LLM engineering platform; AgentCost does cost observability only, with a two-line integration. If you need evaluations and prompt management, Langfuse is the better fit.
Does AgentCost do tracing?
It records every LLM call with model, tokens, cost, latency, and the agent responsible. It does not offer span-level tracing of arbitrary application logic the way a full tracing platform does.
Can I use both together?
Yes. They instrument independently, so you can run Langfuse for tracing and evaluation while AgentCost handles cost attribution.
Try AgentCost in two minutes
Free, MIT-licensed, self-hosted. No signup needed for the live demo.
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