diff --git a/packages/core/src/integrations/inboundfilters.ts b/packages/core/src/integrations/inboundfilters.ts
index f9f91415e18c..ca71d13873ce 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/integrations/inboundfilters.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/integrations/inboundfilters.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { Event, EventProcessor, Hub, Integration, StackFrame } from '@sentry/types';
-import { getEventDescription, isMatchingPattern, logger } from '@sentry/utils';
+import { getEventDescription, logger, stringMatchesSomePattern } from '@sentry/utils';
 
 // "Script error." is hard coded into browsers for errors that it can't read.
 // this is the result of a script being pulled in from an external domain and CORS.
@@ -107,9 +107,7 @@ function _isIgnoredError(event: Event, ignoreErrors?: Array<string | RegExp>): b
     return false;
   }
 
-  return _getPossibleEventMessages(event).some(message =>
-    ignoreErrors.some(pattern => isMatchingPattern(message, pattern)),
-  );
+  return _getPossibleEventMessages(event).some(message => stringMatchesSomePattern(message, ignoreErrors));
 }
 
 function _isDeniedUrl(event: Event, denyUrls?: Array<string | RegExp>): boolean {
@@ -118,7 +116,7 @@ function _isDeniedUrl(event: Event, denyUrls?: Array<string | RegExp>): boolean
     return false;
   }
   const url = _getEventFilterUrl(event);
-  return !url ? false : denyUrls.some(pattern => isMatchingPattern(url, pattern));
+  return !url ? false : stringMatchesSomePattern(url, denyUrls);
 }
 
 function _isAllowedUrl(event: Event, allowUrls?: Array<string | RegExp>): boolean {
@@ -127,7 +125,7 @@ function _isAllowedUrl(event: Event, allowUrls?: Array<string | RegExp>): boolea
     return true;
   }
   const url = _getEventFilterUrl(event);
-  return !url ? true : allowUrls.some(pattern => isMatchingPattern(url, pattern));
+  return !url ? true : stringMatchesSomePattern(url, allowUrls);
 }
 
 function _getPossibleEventMessages(event: Event): string[] {
diff --git a/packages/node/src/integrations/http.ts b/packages/node/src/integrations/http.ts
index 634b13db1930..e4da4195f54e 100644
--- a/packages/node/src/integrations/http.ts
+++ b/packages/node/src/integrations/http.ts
@@ -3,9 +3,9 @@ import { EventProcessor, Integration, Span, TracePropagationTargets } from '@sen
 import {
   dynamicSamplingContextToSentryBaggageHeader,
   fill,
-  isMatchingPattern,
   logger,
   parseSemver,
+  stringMatchesSomePattern,
 } from '@sentry/utils';
 import * as http from 'http';
 import * as https from 'https';
@@ -169,9 +169,7 @@ function _createWrappedRequestMethodFactory(
       return headersUrlMap[url];
     }
 
-    headersUrlMap[url] = tracingOptions.tracePropagationTargets.some(tracePropagationTarget =>
-      isMatchingPattern(url, tracePropagationTarget),
-    );
+    headersUrlMap[url] = stringMatchesSomePattern(url, tracingOptions.tracePropagationTargets);
 
     return headersUrlMap[url];
   };
diff --git a/packages/tracing/src/browser/request.ts b/packages/tracing/src/browser/request.ts
index bfcd5e4146d7..c3ebc1e00240 100644
--- a/packages/tracing/src/browser/request.ts
+++ b/packages/tracing/src/browser/request.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ import {
   BAGGAGE_HEADER_NAME,
   dynamicSamplingContextToSentryBaggageHeader,
   isInstanceOf,
-  isMatchingPattern,
+  stringMatchesSomePattern,
 } from '@sentry/utils';
 
 import { getActiveTransaction, hasTracingEnabled } from '../utils';
@@ -123,8 +123,7 @@ export function instrumentOutgoingRequests(_options?: Partial<RequestInstrumenta
     typeof shouldCreateSpanForRequest === 'function' ? shouldCreateSpanForRequest : (_: string) => true;
 
   const shouldAttachHeaders = (url: string): boolean =>
-    tracingOrigins.some(origin => isMatchingPattern(url, origin)) ||
-    tracePropagationTargets.some(origin => isMatchingPattern(url, origin));
+    stringMatchesSomePattern(url, tracingOrigins) || stringMatchesSomePattern(url, tracePropagationTargets);
 
   const spans: Record<string, Span> = {};
 
diff --git a/packages/utils/src/string.ts b/packages/utils/src/string.ts
index 2b9259e5bade..90b76b6f4621 100644
--- a/packages/utils/src/string.ts
+++ b/packages/utils/src/string.ts
@@ -84,11 +84,18 @@ export function safeJoin(input: any[], delimiter?: string): string {
 }
 
 /**
- * Checks if the value matches a regex or includes the string
- * @param value The string value to be checked against
- * @param pattern Either a regex or a string that must be contained in value
+ * Checks if the given value matches a regex or string
+ *
+ * @param value The string to test
+ * @param pattern Either a regex or a string against which `value` will be matched
+ * @param requireExactStringMatch If true, `value` must match `pattern` exactly. If false, `value` will match
+ * `pattern` if it contains `pattern`. Only applies to string-type patterns.
  */
-export function isMatchingPattern(value: string, pattern: RegExp | string): boolean {
+export function isMatchingPattern(
+  value: string,
+  pattern: RegExp | string,
+  requireExactStringMatch: boolean = false,
+): boolean {
   if (!isString(value)) {
     return false;
   }
@@ -96,12 +103,31 @@ export function isMatchingPattern(value: string, pattern: RegExp | string): bool
   if (isRegExp(pattern)) {
     return pattern.test(value);
   }
-  if (typeof pattern === 'string') {
-    return value.indexOf(pattern) !== -1;
+  if (isString(pattern)) {
+    return requireExactStringMatch ? value === pattern : value.includes(pattern);
   }
+
   return false;
 }
 
+/**
+ * Test the given string against an array of strings and regexes. By default, string matching is done on a
+ * substring-inclusion basis rather than a strict equality basis
+ *
+ * @param testString The string to test
+ * @param patterns The patterns against which to test the string
+ * @param requireExactStringMatch If true, `testString` must match one of the given string patterns exactly in order to
+ * count. If false, `testString` will match a string pattern if it contains that pattern.
+ * @returns
+ */
+export function stringMatchesSomePattern(
+  testString: string,
+  patterns: Array<string | RegExp> = [],
+  requireExactStringMatch: boolean = false,
+): boolean {
+  return patterns.some(pattern => isMatchingPattern(testString, pattern, requireExactStringMatch));
+}
+
 /**
  * Given a string, escape characters which have meaning in the regex grammar, such that the result is safe to feed to
  * `new RegExp()`.
diff --git a/packages/utils/test/string.test.ts b/packages/utils/test/string.test.ts
index 316328d9ee13..bb49a7833a11 100644
--- a/packages/utils/test/string.test.ts
+++ b/packages/utils/test/string.test.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { isMatchingPattern, truncate } from '../src/string';
+import { isMatchingPattern, stringMatchesSomePattern, truncate } from '../src/string';
 
 describe('truncate()', () => {
   test('it works as expected', () => {
@@ -18,13 +18,31 @@ describe('truncate()', () => {
 });
 
 describe('isMatchingPattern()', () => {
-  test('match using string substring', () => {
+  test('match using string substring if `requireExactStringMatch` not given', () => {
     expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'foobar')).toEqual(true);
     expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'foo')).toEqual(true);
     expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'bar')).toEqual(true);
     expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'nope')).toEqual(false);
   });
 
+  test('match using string substring if `requireExactStringMatch` is `false`', () => {
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'foobar', false)).toEqual(true);
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'foo', false)).toEqual(true);
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'bar', false)).toEqual(true);
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'nope', false)).toEqual(false);
+  });
+
+  test('match using exact string match if `requireExactStringMatch` is `true`', () => {
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'foobar', true)).toEqual(true);
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'foo', true)).toEqual(false);
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'nope', true)).toEqual(false);
+  });
+
+  test('matches when `value` constains `pattern` but not vice-versa', () => {
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'foo')).toEqual(true);
+    expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', 'foobarbaz')).toEqual(false);
+  });
+
   test('match using regexp test', () => {
     expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', /^foo/)).toEqual(true);
     expect(isMatchingPattern('foobar', /foo/)).toEqual(true);
@@ -45,3 +63,48 @@ describe('isMatchingPattern()', () => {
     expect(isMatchingPattern([] as any, 'foo')).toEqual(false);
   });
 });
+
+describe('stringMatchesSomePattern()', () => {
+  test('match using string substring if `requireExactStringMatch` not given', () => {
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['foobar', 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['foo', 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['baz', 'nope'])).toEqual(false);
+  });
+
+  test('match using string substring if `requireExactStringMatch` is `false`', () => {
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['foobar', 'nope'], false)).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['foo', 'nope'], false)).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['baz', 'nope'], false)).toEqual(false);
+  });
+
+  test('match using exact string match if `requireExactStringMatch` is `true`', () => {
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['foobar', 'nope'], true)).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['foo', 'nope'], true)).toEqual(false);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['baz', 'nope'], true)).toEqual(false);
+  });
+
+  test('matches when `testString` constains a pattern but not vice-versa', () => {
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['foo', 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', ['foobarbaz', 'nope'])).toEqual(false);
+  });
+
+  test('match using regexp test', () => {
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', [/^foo/, 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', [/foo/, 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', [/b.{1}r/, 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foobar', [/^foo$/, 'nope'])).toEqual(false);
+  });
+
+  test('should match empty pattern as true', () => {
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('foo', ['', 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('bar', ['', 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern('', ['', 'nope'])).toEqual(true);
+  });
+
+  test('should bail out with false when given non-string value', () => {
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern(null as any, ['foo', 'nope'])).toEqual(false);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern(undefined as any, ['foo', 'nope'])).toEqual(false);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern({} as any, ['foo', 'nope'])).toEqual(false);
+    expect(stringMatchesSomePattern([] as any, ['foo', 'nope'])).toEqual(false);
+  });
+});