Observium 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?
FeatureObserviumApache SkyWalking
CategoryMonitoring & StatusMonitoring & Status
LicenseGPL-3.0Apache-2.0
LanguageShellJava
Setup difficultyMediumHard
Min. RAM1,024 MB2,048 MB
Deploymentbare-metal, sourcedocker, kubernetes, helm
GitHub stars★ 1★ 24,915
First released20102015
ReplacesSolarWinds, PRTGNew Relic, Datadog

Why pick each one

Choose Observium if…

  • Discovers devices automatically
  • Clean interface
Observium details

Choose Apache SkyWalking if…

  • Full observability suite
  • Strong Apache governance
Apache SkyWalking details

Frequently asked questions

Is Observium or Apache SkyWalking better?

Neither is universally better. Apache SkyWalking has the larger community, while Observium is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.

Are Observium and Apache SkyWalking free and open-source?

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

Can I run Observium and Apache SkyWalking with Docker?

Observium: check the project docs for container support. Apache SkyWalking: yes.

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