OpenTelemetry
An open source framework providing standardized APIs and tools for instrumenting cloud-native applications to generate observability data
- Also known as
- opentelemetry
Available worldwide
What is OpenTelemetry?
OpenTelemetry is an open-source framework that equips developers with SDKs, libraries, agents, and collector services to capture distributed traces, metrics, and logs from applications. It enables vendor-neutral observability by allowing teams to instrument code once and export telemetry data to any backend system without vendor lock-in.
OpenTelemetry pricing
We don't have OpenTelemetry's full plan breakdown yet (its pricing page resisted automated reading). Here's what we could confirm. Always check live pricing for exact numbers.
What OpenTelemetry does
The capabilities that matter for distributed tracing tools, normalised so it lines up with every alternative. “-” means we haven't confirmed it, not that it's missing.
- Trace role
- SaaS platform
- OpenTelemetry support
- OTel-native
- Multi-protocol (Jaeger + Zipkin + OTLP)
- ✓
- Trace search / filter by attributes
- ✓
- Service dependency graph
- ✓
- High-cardinality attribute exploration
- -
- Tail-based / dynamic sampling
- -
- Auto-instrumentation
- Agent-based
- Correlate traces with metrics/logs
- ✓
- Hosting
- Cloud + self-hosted
- Storage backend
- -
Platform & deployment
Independently observed- Windows
- Cloud / SaaS
- Hybrid
- On-premise
- Self-hosted
Integrations (3)
Independently observed- Jaeger
- Prometheus
- Zipkin
OpenTelemetry FAQ
Common questions about OpenTelemetry, answered from independent, dated evidence.
What is OpenTelemetry?
A standardized platform for instrumenting applications to collect traces, metrics, and logs. Data is collected through language-specific SDKs and services, then exported to any observability backend without requiring application code changes. It is indexed under Distributed Tracing Tools.
Source: https://opentelemetry.io
Is OpenTelemetry free to use?
OpenTelemetry is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the Apache-2.0 licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.
Source: https://opentelemetry.io
What platforms does OpenTelemetry support?
OpenTelemetry supports a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.
Source: https://opentelemetry.io
Can OpenTelemetry be self-hosted?
Yes. OpenTelemetry can be deployed cloud / SaaS, hybrid, on-premise and self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.
Source: https://opentelemetry.io
What does OpenTelemetry integrate with?
We have confirmed 3 integrations for OpenTelemetry, including Jaeger, Prometheus and Zipkin. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.
Source: https://opentelemetry.io
What security certifications does OpenTelemetry have?
We have independently confirmed GDPR for OpenTelemetry. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as OpenTelemetry not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.
Source: https://opentelemetry.io/bn/docs/security/handling-sensitive-data/
Is OpenTelemetry open source?
Yes. OpenTelemetry is published under the Apache-2.0 licence, a permissive licence that generally allows commercial use and modification. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.
Source: https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector
OpenTelemetry alternatives
Other distributed tracing tools we track, ranked by the same independent score.
- Grafana TempoA cost-effective distributed tracing backend that scales with minimal infrastructure complexitymedium · 53%
- AWS X-Raymedium · 63%
- UptraceAn observability platform providing unified traces, metrics, and logs with predictable, usage-based pricing instead of complex enterprise licensingmedium · 60%
- HoneycombReal-time observability platform for debugging production systems and monitoring AI workloadsmedium · 73%
- SigNozObservability platform unifying traces, metrics, and logs with OpenTelemetry-native designmedium · 55%
- Jaegerlow · 38%
Compare OpenTelemetry
Side by side against other distributed tracing tools, attribute by attribute, with a source on every value.
The vioscaleAI score: one lens on the evidence
Not user reviews and not a paid placement: a confidence-weighted blend of the independent signals below (adoption, activity, security posture, and more), which you can sort and re-weight yourself. Vendors can correct their listing but can never move their rank, and stars are weighted low as a vanity metric. It is one way to read the evidence for OpenTelemetry, not the verdict.
| Signal | Score | Weight | Contribution | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package downloads | 100 | 0.14 | 13.6 | ✓ |
| Development activity | 63 | 0.09 | 5.9 | ✓ |
| Capabilities | 92 | 0.06 | 5.8 | ✓ |
| Release cadence | 92 | 0.05 | 4.8 | ✓ |
| Security score | 78 | 0.04 | 3.3 | ✓ |
| Stars | 73 | 0.03 | 1.9 | ✓ |
| Integrations | 14 | 0.07 | 1.0 | ✓ |
| Dependent projects | 0 | 0.06 | 0.0 | - |
| Security posture | 10 | 0.12 | 0.0 | - |
| Developer Q&A activity | 0 | 0.06 | 0.0 | - |
Computed . Re-weight it by intent, or see the full method.
All data & sourcesshow ↓
Every value we hold, with its source, retrieval date, and confidence. This is the evidence behind the score: don't trust it, verify it.
Activity
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Commits last 30d | 100 | mediumsource · 2026-09-14 · 65% |
Adoption
Content
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Faq | 7 items | mediumsource · 2026-09-10 · 66% |
Features
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Capabilities | Logs: Yes · Hosting: both · Metrics: Yes · Tracing: Yes · Trace role: platform · Otel native: Yes | mediumsource · 2026-09-14 · 60% |
Integrations
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Count | 2 | mediumsource · 2026-09-14 · 60% |
Language
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | Go | highsource · 2026-09-14 · 90% |
License
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Spdx | Apache-2.0 | highsource · 2026-09-14 · 95% |
Market
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | PrimaryMarkets: … · AvailabilityScope: global · AvailableCountries: … · NotAvailableCountries: … | highsource · 2026-08-24 · 75% |
Pricing
Release
Reliability
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Status page | Yes | mediumsource · 2026-09-14 · 60% |
Security
Is OpenTelemetry the right choice for you?
Tell us the job, the constraints and what you weigh most, and we will rank OpenTelemetry against the rest of the distributed tracing tools we index, using the same dated evidence weighted your way.
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