---
title: "Dynamic Sampling"
description: "Dynamic Sampling is a feature of the ingestion pipeline that allows Sentry to automatically adjust the amount of data retained based on the value of the data."
url: https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/
---

# Dynamic Sampling

From all the data received by the SDKs, Sentry is able to extract low-granularity information through metrics, while Dynamic Sampling makes the decision of whether to keep or drop data.

The goals of Dynamic Sampling are:

* **Value at any scale**: Sentry has a full view of your application and can accurately show performance metrics, detect trends and performance issues from 100% of your events.
* **Get value out of the box**: Sentry automatically biases data retention in order to store sufficient samples of the highest value events in full detail.
* **Prioritize based on your needs**: Sentry provides a mechanism to express priorities as a set of rules and then adjusts data retention as much as is practical to honor them.

A high-level overview on how Dynamic Sampling works is shown in the following illustration:

## [Learn More About Dynamic Sampling](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling.md#learn-more-about-dynamic-sampling)

* #### [The Big Picture](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/the-big-picture.md)

  The lifecycle of an event in Sentry is a complex process which involves many components. Dynamic Sampling is one of these components, and it is important to understand how it fits into the bigger picture.

* #### [Fidelity and Biases](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/fidelity-and-biases.md)

* #### [Architecture](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/architecture.md)

* #### [The “Indexed” Outcome Category](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/outcomes.md)

* #### [Extrapolation](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/extrapolation.md)

## Pages in this section

- [The Big Picture](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/the-big-picture.md)
- [Fidelity and Biases](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/fidelity-and-biases.md)
- [Architecture](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/architecture.md)
- [The “Indexed” Outcome Category](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/outcomes.md)
- [Extrapolation](https://develop.sentry.dev/application-architecture/dynamic-sampling/extrapolation.md)