collectd vs Netdata

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted monitoring & status options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
FeaturecollectdNetdata
CategoryMonitoring & StatusMonitoring & Status
LicenseMITGPL-3.0
LanguageCGo
Setup difficultyMediumEasy
Min. RAM32 MB256 MB
Deploymentbare-metal, binarydocker, bare-metal, kubernetes
GitHub stars★ 3,366★ 80,075
First released20052013
ReplacesDatadog AgentDatadog, New Relic

Why pick each one

Choose collectd if…

  • Extremely lightweight
  • Runs almost anywhere
collectd details

Choose Netdata if…

  • Instant insight out of the box
  • Beautiful real-time charts
  • Easy install
Netdata details

Frequently asked questions

Is collectd or Netdata better?

Netdata is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider collectd if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are collectd and Netdata free and open-source?

Yes. collectd is licensed under MIT and Netdata under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run collectd and Netdata with Docker?

collectd: check the project docs for container support. Netdata: yes.

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