Netdata vs Process Exporter

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?
FeatureNetdataProcess Exporter
CategoryMonitoring & StatusMonitoring & Status
LicenseGPL-3.0MIT
LanguageGoGo
Setup difficultyEasyMedium
Min. RAM256 MB64 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metal, kubernetesdocker, binary
GitHub stars★ 80,075★ 2,137
First released20132016
ReplacesDatadog, New RelicDatadog Agent

Why pick each one

Choose Netdata if…

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

Choose Process Exporter if…

  • Released under the MIT license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Active community (2.1k GitHub stars)
  • Written in Go
Process Exporter details

Frequently asked questions

Is Netdata or Process Exporter better?

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

Are Netdata and Process Exporter free and open-source?

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

Can I run Netdata and Process Exporter with Docker?

Netdata: yes. Process Exporter: yes.

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