---
id: logstash-formatter
version: "0.5.17"
license: MIT, see LICENSE file
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: abandoned
---

# logstash_formatter — JSON formatter meant for logstash

License: permissive · Maintenance: abandoned · Downloads: 102.9K/mo

## What it is and what it does

logstash_formatter is a Python logging formatter that converts standard log records into JSON objects matching Logstash's expected input format. It provides two formatter classes—LogstashFormatter and LogstashFormatterV1—that output logs with structured fields like @timestamp, @version, and custom extra fields, making it easy to pipe Python application logs directly into Logstash for centralized log aggregation.

The package has no runtime dependencies and integrates directly with Python's built-in logging module. You attach it as a formatter to any logging handler, and it automatically converts log messages to JSON with ISO 8601 timestamps, source host information, exception tracebacks when requested, and any custom fields you provide via the extra parameter or by passing dictionaries as messages.

Use it for:

- Centralize Python application logs in Logstash by formatting output as JSON that Logstash can ingest directly.
- Add structured metadata (account IDs, request IPs, custom fields) to logs for easier filtering and analysis in log aggregation systems.
- Capture exception tracebacks in JSON format when logging errors with exc_info=True for complete error context in log storage.
- Replace plain-text logging with JSON output to enable downstream log parsing, indexing, and alerting in ELK or similar stacks.

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

Formats Python logging output as JSON objects compatible with Logstash, allowing standard logs to be shipped as structured data.

No. The package is abandoned (last update 2018, last commit 2019) with no maintenance signal. While it has no known vulnerabilities and carries a permissive MIT license, the high install friction combined with lack of updates means compatibility with modern Python versions is uncertain. If you need JSON logging for Logstash, consider actively maintained alternatives.

## Install

pip install logstash-formatter
uv add logstash-formatter
poetry add logstash-formatter

## Installing logstash_formatter

Before you install: High install friction and abandoned maintenance status since 2019 with no recent updates. Last commit was 2019-08-12 and latest release 2018-02-13. No runtime dependencies, but the lack of active maintenance means compatibility with modern Python versions is uncertain.

License in practice: MIT license (permissive) means you can use, modify, and distribute this package freely with minimal restrictions, though you should retain the license notice.

Quickstart:

pip install logstash_formatter

import logging
from logstash_formatter import LogstashFormatterV1

logger = logging.getLogger()
handler = logging.StreamHandler()
formatter = LogstashFormatterV1()
handler.setFormatter(formatter)
logger.addHandler(handler)
logger.info("test message")

No explicit Python version requirement stated; compatibility with modern Python versions is unverified given the package's abandoned status since 2019.

Verify before relying:

- Whether LogstashFormatterV1 works correctly with current Python 3.x versions given no updates since 2018.
- Whether the Logstash schema version (1.2.0) is still compatible with current Logstash deployments.
- Whether there are known issues or breaking changes in Python versions released after the last update.

## Package facts

- License: MIT, see LICENSE file (permissive)
- Python support: unspecified
- Install friction: high
- Maintenance: abandoned
- Downloads: 102.9K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

json logging formatter, logstash json output, structured logging python, log to logstash, json log formatter, python logging json, logstash compatible logs, logging, json-output, abandoned

[View on SkillFed](https://skillfed.io/packages/logstash-formatter) · [View on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/logstash-formatter/)