Grafana vs Prometheus

The dashboard wizard that turns your metrics into beautiful, actionable art—if you can survive the panel configuration maze meets the time-series king for monitoring, if you don't mind writing queries that look like alien hieroglyphics. Here's our take.

Grafana

Nice Pick

The dashboard wizard that turns your metrics into beautiful, actionable art—if you can survive the panel configuration maze.

Pros

• Unmatched flexibility for visualizing time-series data from any source
• Vast plugin ecosystem for integrations with tools like Prometheus and Elasticsearch
• Real-time alerting that actually works without breaking the bank

Cons

• Steep learning curve for custom panels and complex queries
• Can get sluggish with too many dashboards or heavy data loads

Prometheus

The time-series king for monitoring, if you don't mind writing queries that look like alien hieroglyphics.

Pros

• Powerful multi-dimensional data model with labels for flexible metric organization
• PromQL query language allows for complex, real-time data analysis and alerting
• Open-source and integrates seamlessly with Kubernetes and other cloud-native tools

Cons

• Long-term storage is a pain, often requiring external solutions like Thanos or Cortex
• Steep learning curve for PromQL, making it tricky for beginners to master

The Verdict

Use Grafana if: You want unmatched flexibility for visualizing time-series data from any source and can live with steep learning curve for custom panels and complex queries.

Use Prometheus if: You prioritize powerful multi-dimensional data model with labels for flexible metric organization over what Grafana offers.

The Bottom Line

Grafana wins

The dashboard wizard that turns your metrics into beautiful, actionable art—if you can survive the panel configuration maze.