InfluxDB vs Apache SkyWalking

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?
FeatureInfluxDBApache SkyWalking
CategoryMonitoring & StatusMonitoring & Status
LicenseMITApache-2.0
LanguageRustJava
Setup difficultyMediumHard
Min. RAM512 MB2,048 MB
Deploymentdocker, kubernetes, binarydocker, kubernetes, helm
GitHub stars★ 31,683★ 24,915
First released20132015
ReplacesDatadog, AWS TimestreamNew Relic, Datadog

Why pick each one

Choose InfluxDB if…

  • Excellent for IoT and metrics
  • Rich tooling and integrations
InfluxDB details

Choose Apache SkyWalking if…

  • Full observability suite
  • Strong Apache governance
Apache SkyWalking details

Frequently asked questions

Is InfluxDB or Apache SkyWalking better?

InfluxDB is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Apache SkyWalking if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are InfluxDB and Apache SkyWalking free and open-source?

Yes. InfluxDB is licensed under MIT and Apache SkyWalking under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run InfluxDB and Apache SkyWalking with Docker?

InfluxDB: yes. Apache SkyWalking: yes.

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