Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Pros & Cons summary

Buyer's Guide

Get pricing advice, tips, use cases and valuable features from real users of this product.
Get the report

Prominent pros & cons

PROS

IBM Instana Observability provides a one-second resolution, offering real-time status updates.
Performance and quick data collection are highlighted as valuable features of IBM Instana Observability.
IBM Instana Observability reduces error rates, improves response times, and enhances infrastructure oversight.
The affordable pricing of IBM Instana Observability allows for cost savings while addressing organizational issues.
IBM Instana Observability improves collaboration between development and operations by allowing early incident identification.

CONS

IBM Instana Observability should include log management and improve reporting and integration with Cognos.
Initial setup phase is not very easy and could be simplified, especially for hybrid, on-premise environments.
Automation part requires improvement, specifically automated actions like sending SMS.
Customer support was poor when features needed enabling or integration with IBM Instana Observability sensors.
Pricing is expensive and could be improved, offering better value compared to competitors.
 

IBM Instana Observability Pros review quotes

DA
Advisor at DCM infotech
May 22, 2024
The solution has a one-second resolution, giving you the status of your application within one second.
Tomas Kim - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Director at BA Solutions
Jul 31, 2024
The most valuable feature of the solution is performance.
MH
IT Operations Manager at Worex Technology
Sep 23, 2024
The most valuable features of IBM Instana are its quick data collection and analytics after installing the agent.
Learn what your peers think about IBM Instana Observability. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2026.
881,665 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Marahmed Marahmed - PeerSpot reviewer
Software engineer at EJADA
Dec 11, 2025
IBM Instana Observability has positively impacted our organization by decreasing our 500 errors, our errors in general have decreased, our response time has decreased, and so on.
Saisurya P - PeerSpot reviewer
DevOps engineer at Yara International
Dec 11, 2025
IBM Instana Observability has positively impacted my organization by making it easy to observe the entire infrastructure under one platform, which was the biggest advantage of onboarding onto IBM Instana Observability.
AA
UNIX/LINUX, ENTERPRISE SERVER AND STORAGE ADMINISTRATOR at Fidelity Bank Plc
Dec 13, 2025
IBM Instana Observability has impacted my organization positively in that it has helped me find out what the issue is in real-time because of its one-second granularity and its ability to identify issues as quickly as possible.
AP
Technical Manager, Consulting at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Dec 18, 2025
If we are using IBM Instana Observability, we can save money because first, the pricing is very affordable.
Mihajlo Borisavljevic - PeerSpot reviewer
DevOps at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Dec 22, 2025
IBM Instana Observability has positively impacted our organization because it has helped us solve many problems and sell some products.
Saroch Kamjikong - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Lead at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Jan 5, 2026
IBM Instana Observability has had a very positive impact on my organization because it shortens the time required to find the root cause when we have a problem.
FranciscoGálvez - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Manager at a consultancy with 1-10 employees
Jan 5, 2026
The impact of IBM Instana Observability on collaboration between development and operations teams is essential because it allows operations to identify incidents before they occur.
 

IBM Instana Observability Cons review quotes

DA
Advisor at DCM infotech
May 22, 2024
The solution should include log management and improve reporting and integration with Cognos.
Tomas Kim - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Director at BA Solutions
Jul 31, 2024
The product's initial setup phase is not very easy.
MH
IT Operations Manager at Worex Technology
Sep 23, 2024
One area that requires improvement is related to the automation part, specifically automated actions like sending SMS.
Learn what your peers think about IBM Instana Observability. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2026.
881,665 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Marahmed Marahmed - PeerSpot reviewer
Software engineer at EJADA
Dec 11, 2025
The interface of IBM Instana Observability is really slow, especially when there is a lot of data and when there are a lot of traces.
Saisurya P - PeerSpot reviewer
DevOps engineer at Yara International
Dec 11, 2025
One main issue I found with IBM Instana Observability was the customer support, which was very poor when we needed some features to be enabled or integrated into IBM Instana Observability sensors.
AA
UNIX/LINUX, ENTERPRISE SERVER AND STORAGE ADMINISTRATOR at Fidelity Bank Plc
Dec 13, 2025
IBM Instana Observability can be improved by providing access to the materials.
AP
Technical Manager, Consulting at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Dec 18, 2025
IBM Instana Observability can be improved by simplifying the installation process, reducing the number of manual steps and dependencies, especially for hybrid, on-premise environments.
Mihajlo Borisavljevic - PeerSpot reviewer
DevOps at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Dec 22, 2025
Customer support is good; sometimes it cannot go as deep as I expected, but overall it is good.
Saroch Kamjikong - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Lead at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Jan 5, 2026
The pricing for IBM Instana Observability is something I would address in terms of needed improvements because it is expensive.
FranciscoGálvez - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Manager at a consultancy with 1-10 employees
Jan 5, 2026
From my perspective, IBM Instana Observability is quite technical; compared to some competitors, it offers an abundance of information about system performance but lacks planning or capacity planning information.