Netdata vs Zipkin

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?
FeatureNetdataZipkin
CategoryMonitoring & StatusMonitoring & Status
LicenseGPL-3.0Apache-2.0
LanguageGoJava
Setup difficultyEasyMedium
Min. RAM256 MB512 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metal, kubernetesdocker, binary
GitHub stars★ 80,075★ 17,452
First released20132015
ReplacesDatadog, New RelicDatadog APM

Why pick each one

Choose Netdata if…

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

Choose Zipkin if…

  • Simple to run
  • Long-established project
Zipkin details

Frequently asked questions

Is Netdata or Zipkin better?

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

Are Netdata and Zipkin free and open-source?

Yes. Netdata is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Zipkin under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Netdata and Zipkin with Docker?

Netdata: yes. Zipkin: yes.

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