Grafana Mimir vs OpenObserve
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted apps from related categories — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Grafana Mimir
Scalable long-term storage for Prometheus metrics
VS
OpenObserve
Open-source observability platform for logs, metrics and traces
| Feature | Grafana Mimir | OpenObserve |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Monitoring & Status | Developer Tools & Git |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, helm | docker, kubernetes, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,201 | ★ 20,592 |
| First released | 2022 | 2023 |
| Replaces | Datadog, Chronosphere | Datadog, Elasticsearch |
Why pick each one
Choose Grafana Mimir if…
- Proven at billion-series scale
- Easier to operate than Cortex
Choose OpenObserve if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 20.6k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is Grafana Mimir or OpenObserve better?
OpenObserve is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Grafana Mimir if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Grafana Mimir and OpenObserve free and open-source?
Yes. Grafana Mimir is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and OpenObserve under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Grafana Mimir and OpenObserve with Docker?
Grafana Mimir: yes. OpenObserve: yes.