Self-hosted error tracking that fits a 512 MB VPS
On a $4 Hetzner box the deciding numbers are documented RAM floor and container count. Self-hosted Sentry publishes 16 GB RAM plus 16 GB swap. GlitchTip, Bugsink, Telebugs, and Epure still leave room for your app, on different licenses and databases.
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A $4 VPS dies on compose sprawl before it dies on missing features. Score each tracker on RAM floor and process count first, then license and database. Replay and APM stay out of this list. If those are daily jobs, buy Sentry Cloud instead of stuffing the official self-host onto 512 MB.
Epure’s idle number is a dated docker stats measurement, not a vendor minimum: ~82 MiB (app + Postgres) on 2026-09-12, Docker Desktop. Re-measure on the box you pay for. Sources: Sentry self-hosted docs, GlitchTip install docs, Bugsink and Telebugs public pages, as of 2026-09.
Published floors, not screenshots
- Sentry self-host: 16 GB RAM plus 16 GB swap, 20+ containers. Off this list on purpose.
- GlitchTip: 256 MB minimum, 512 MB recommended. About four containers (web, worker, Postgres, Valkey).
- Bugsink: one container, SQLite default. No idle RAM published. Throughput numbers they show on 4 GB are not idle RAM.
- Telebugs: 1 GB RAM and 1 CPU documented minimum. One Rails + SQLite container. $299 once.
- Epure: two containers, Rust binary + PostgreSQL 16. Idle ~82 MiB measured 2026-09-12. No Redis.
SQLite vs Postgres
Bugsink defaults to a SQLite file and can attach Postgres. Telebugs is SQLite in the Rails image. GlitchTip and Epure default to Postgres. Pick the store you already back up. One container still beats two on a host that bills by RAM and by how many images you pull. Epure loses that row to Bugsink and Telebugs (2 vs 1) because Postgres is a separate process.
License on a box you operate
GlitchTip is MIT. Epure is Apache 2.0. Bugsink is Polyform Shield (source-available; self-host if you are not competing with it). Telebugs is a $299 paid binary. Sentry self-host is FSL. OSI counsel usually lands on GlitchTip or Epure. Shield is a product decision, not a footnote.
Official Sentry SDK
GlitchTip, Bugsink, Telebugs, and Epure take a DSN swap on official Sentry SDKs. That is envelope ingest, not a clone of Sentry Cloud. Set traces, replay, and profile sample rates to 0. More on the wire: Sentry SDK compatible.
Scoreboard
Containers
- Sentry
- 20+
- GlitchTip
- ~4
- Bugsink
- 1
- Telebugs
- 1
- Epure
- 2
RAM / docs
- Sentry
- 16 GB RAM + 16 GB swap min
- GlitchTip
- 512 MB rec / 256 MB min
- Bugsink
- No idle RAM published; throughput on 4 GB
- Telebugs
- 1 GB RAM / 1 CPU min
- Epure
- ~82 MiB idle measured 2026-09-12
License
- Sentry
- FSL / cloud-shaped
- GlitchTip
- MIT
- Bugsink
- Polyform Shield
- Telebugs
- $299 binary
- Epure
- Apache 2.0
SDK
- Sentry
- Native
- GlitchTip
- DSN swap
- Bugsink
- DSN swap
- Telebugs
- DSN swap
- Epure
- DSN swap
DB
- Sentry
- Postgres (heavy stack)
- GlitchTip
- Postgres
- Bugsink
- SQLite default · PG optional
- Telebugs
- SQLite
- Epure
- PostgreSQL 16 default
Cost to run
- Sentry
- 16 GB-class VPS
- GlitchTip
- $0 license + ~4 containers
- Bugsink
- $0 if Shield fits + 1 container
- Telebugs
- $299 once + 1 GB box
- Epure
- $0 license + 2 containers · Cloud $24 coming
| Dimension | Sentry | GlitchTip | Bugsink | Telebugs | Epure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Containers | 20+ | ~4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| RAM / docs | 16 GB RAM + 16 GB swap min | 512 MB rec / 256 MB min | No idle RAM published; throughput on 4 GB | 1 GB RAM / 1 CPU min | ~82 MiB idle measured 2026-09-12 |
| License | FSL / cloud-shaped | MIT | Polyform Shield | $299 binary | Apache 2.0 |
| SDK | Native | DSN swap | DSN swap | DSN swap | DSN swap |
| DB | Postgres (heavy stack) | Postgres | SQLite default · PG optional | SQLite | PostgreSQL 16 default |
| Cost to run | 16 GB-class VPS | $0 license + ~4 containers | $0 if Shield fits + 1 container | $299 once + 1 GB box | $0 license + 2 containers · Cloud $24 coming |
Sentry RAM: develop.sentry.dev self-hosted docs. GlitchTip RAM: glitchtip.com/documentation/install. Bugsink 4 GB figures are throughput. Telebugs 1 GB min, $299. Epure idle ~82 MiB (22.7 MiB app + 59.3 MiB Postgres) measured 2026-09-12 on Docker Desktop. Re-measure on the VPS you run.
Pick by the box you already pay for
Pick Epure if
- Apache 2.0, clone and run, no Shield clause.
- PostgreSQL 16 is already how you take backups.
- You refuse Redis in the error stack.
- Cloud Pro $24 is a later path (coming, not live).
Pick another tool if
- MIT plus Django (and a worker) is already home: GlitchTip.
- One container and a SQLite file is the ops model: Bugsink.
- The box has 1 GB and you want their installer: Telebugs ($299).
- You still want Sentry’s suite: buy Sentry Cloud, not a 16 GB self-host on a $4 VPS.
Roster context: Sentry alternatives. Install Epure: self-host. Repo: GitHub.