OpenObserve vs VictoriaMetrics
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?
OpenObserve
Open-source observability platform for logs, metrics and traces
VS
VictoriaMetrics
Fast, cost-effective time series database and monitoring solution
| Feature | OpenObserve | VictoriaMetrics |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Developer Tools & Git | Monitoring & Status |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, binary | docker, kubernetes, helm |
| GitHub stars | ★ 20,592 | ★ 17,488 |
| First released | 2023 | 2018 |
| Replaces | Datadog, Elasticsearch | Datadog, Grafana Cloud |
Why pick each one
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
Choose VictoriaMetrics if…
- Excellent compression and speed
- Easy single-binary deployment
Frequently asked questions
Is OpenObserve or VictoriaMetrics better?
Neither is universally better. OpenObserve has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are OpenObserve and VictoriaMetrics free and open-source?
Yes. OpenObserve is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and VictoriaMetrics under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run OpenObserve and VictoriaMetrics with Docker?
OpenObserve: yes. VictoriaMetrics: yes.