Glances vs VictoriaMetrics
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted monitoring & status options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Glances
Cross-platform system monitoring at a glance
VS
VictoriaMetrics
Fast, cost-effective time series database and monitoring solution
| Feature | Glances | VictoriaMetrics |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 98 · Excellent | 95 · Excellent |
| Category | Monitoring & Status | Monitoring & Status |
| License | LGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Python | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, binary | docker, kubernetes, helm |
| GitHub stars | ★ 33,666 | ★ 17,760 |
| First released | 2012 | 2018 |
| Replaces | Datadog | Datadog, Grafana Cloud |
What are Glances and VictoriaMetrics?
Glances
Glances is a cross-platform system monitoring tool that presents a wide range of host metrics in a terminal or web view. It targets administrators wanting a quick overview of a single machine. It is deployed via Docker, pip, or packages.
- Terminal and web monitoring views
- Wide range of metrics
- REST API and exporters
- Cross-platform support
VictoriaMetrics
VictoriaMetrics is a fast, cost-effective, and scalable monitoring solution and time series database. It is a drop-in replacement for Prometheus storage with lower resource usage and a high-performance query engine.
- Low memory footprint
- MetricsQL query language
- Single-binary or cluster mode
- Prometheus-compatible
Glances vs VictoriaMetrics: key differences
Glances is written in Python, while VictoriaMetrics is built with Go. Licensing differs — LGPL-3.0 for Glances versus Apache-2.0 for VictoriaMetrics. Glances is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for VictoriaMetrics. Glances is the more established project (first released 2012), while VictoriaMetrics arrived in 2018.
Why pick each one
Choose Glances if…
- Very easy to run
- Lightweight
- Good single-host overview
Watch out for
- Best for one host at a time
- Limited history
Choose VictoriaMetrics if…
- Excellent compression and speed
- Easy single-binary deployment
Watch out for
- MetricsQL differs slightly from PromQL
- Smaller ecosystem than Prometheus
Frequently asked questions
Is Glances or VictoriaMetrics better?
Glances is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider VictoriaMetrics if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Glances and VictoriaMetrics free and open-source?
Yes. Glances is licensed under LGPL-3.0 and VictoriaMetrics under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Glances and VictoriaMetrics with Docker?
Glances: yes. VictoriaMetrics: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Glances or VictoriaMetrics?
Glances has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for VictoriaMetrics. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.