Chronograf vs Sampler Dashboard
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted dashboards & startpages options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Chronograf
Visualization and admin interface for the InfluxData stack
VS
Sampler Dashboard
Terminal dashboard for visualizing shell command output
| Feature | Chronograf | Sampler Dashboard |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Dashboards & Startpages | Dashboards & Startpages |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, binary | bare-metal, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,566 | ★ 14,727 |
| First released | 2016 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Grafana Cloud, Datadog Dashboards | Grafana |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Chronograf or Sampler Dashboard better?
Neither is universally better. Sampler Dashboard has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Chronograf and Sampler Dashboard free and open-source?
Yes. Chronograf is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Sampler Dashboard under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Chronograf and Sampler Dashboard with Docker?
Chronograf: yes. Sampler Dashboard: check the project docs for container support.