Softwr

Cloud · head to head

Cilium vs Netdata

Cilium logo

Cilium

Cloud

eBPF-based networking, observability and security for Kubernetes

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Netdata logo

Netdata

Networking

Per-second metrics collection with automatic dashboards and on-node anomaly detection

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Cilium requires a recent Linux kernel, which rules out older distributions and some managed environments; Netdata the dashboard interface is under a restrictive Netdata licence rather than GPL and is served from Netdata infrastructure by default, so the deployment is not fully self-contained without extra configuration.
  • They diverge on capability: Cilium covers eBPF datapath, Netdata covers Per-second collection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cilium and Netdata actually diverge.

Attributes where Cilium and Netdata differ
AttributeCiliumNetdata
PlatformsKubernetes, LinuxLinux, macOS, FreeBSD, Docker, Kubernetes, Windows
CategoryCloudNetworking

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (Open source, no licence fee), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Cilium

  • eBPF datapath
  • Identity-based policy
  • Hubble observability
  • Sidecar-free mesh

Only in Netdata

  • Per-second collection
  • Zero-configuration discovery
  • Edge machine learning
  • Tiered database engine
  • Streaming and replication
  • Health alarms

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Cilium

  • Kubernetes networking at a scale where iptables-based CNI performance degradesnot Netdata
  • Network policy expressed on workload identity rather than fragile IP rulesnot Netdata
  • Seeing which services actually talk to each other, and what policy is droppingnot Netdata

Netdata

  • Diagnosing a short-lived performance incident where one-minute averages hide the spike entirelynot Cilium
  • Kubernetes clusters where per-series billing from a hosted vendor has become the largest observability costnot Cilium
  • Adding dense host visibility to an estate that already has Prometheus for application metricsnot Cilium
  • Small teams with no monitoring engineer who need working dashboards on the day of installationnot Cilium

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Cilium

  • Requires a recent Linux kernel, which rules out older distributions and some managed environments
  • eBPF is genuinely hard to debug when it misbehaves, and the skill is rare on most teams
  • Broad scope — CNI, policy, mesh, observability — means the learning curve covers several domains at once

Netdata

  • The dashboard interface is under a restrictive Netdata licence rather than GPL and is served from Netdata infrastructure by default, so the deployment is not fully self-contained without extra configuration.
  • Retention is limited by disk on each node unless you build and maintain a parent tier, which makes it a poor archive for year-over-year capacity planning.
  • Per-second collection consumes noticeable CPU and memory on small or heavily loaded nodes, and on constrained edge hardware the monitoring becomes part of the problem.
  • Default alerting is generous and fires on conditions many teams consider normal, so the first weeks involve pruning alarms rather than responding to them.
  • Fleet-level features that make it usable across hundreds of nodes sit in Netdata Cloud, so the free agent alone leaves you visiting individual node dashboards.

Pricing, plan by plan

Cilium

Free
  • CiliumFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Netdata

Free
  • Netdata AgentFree
    • GPLv3 agent with unlimited nodes
    • Per-second metrics and edge anomaly detection
    • Local dashboards and alerting
  • Netdata Cloud paid tiers$undefined/month
    • Per-node subscription for fleet management features
    • Role based access control and longer alert history
    • Business and enterprise support options

Which should you pick?

Choose Cilium if

  • You need ebpf datapath.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Kubernetes, Linux.
  • You also want identity-based policy.
Cilium review

Choose Netdata if

  • You need per-second collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, FreeBSD, Docker, Kubernetes, Windows.
  • You also want zero-configuration discovery.
Netdata review

Questions people ask

Is Cilium or Netdata better?
Neither clearly leads. Cilium starts at Free and Netdata at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cilium or Netdata?
Cilium starts at Free and Netdata at Free.
Does Cilium or Netdata run on more platforms?
Cilium runs on Kubernetes, Linux. Netdata runs on Linux, macOS, FreeBSD, Docker, Kubernetes, Windows.
Can I use Cilium for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Cilium best used for?
Cilium is most often used for kubernetes networking at a scale where iptables-based cni performance degrades, network policy expressed on workload identity rather than fragile ip rules, seeing which services actually talk to each other, and what policy is dropping. Of those, kubernetes networking at a scale where iptables-based cni performance degrades and network policy expressed on workload identity rather than fragile ip rules are not what Netdata is typically brought in for.
What can Cilium do that Netdata cannot?
Cilium covers eBPF datapath, Identity-based policy, Hubble observability, Sidecar-free mesh. Netdata covers Per-second collection, Zero-configuration discovery, Edge machine learning, Tiered database engine.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cilium: Is Cilium free?

Yes, open source and CNCF-graduated. Isovalent sells an enterprise distribution and support.

Netdata: Is Netdata fully open source?

The agent is GPLv3. The current dashboard interface is under a separate restrictive licence, so the complete product is open core rather than open source.

Cilium: What does eBPF change?

It lets Cilium run packet-processing programs inside the kernel instead of relying on iptables rule chains, which behave poorly as the number of services grows.

Netdata: Can it run without any connection to Netdata Cloud?

Yes, agents work standalone and dashboards can be served locally, but you lose fleet-wide views and need to configure local interface serving deliberately.

Cilium: Does Cilium replace a service mesh?

It can cover much of what a mesh does without sidecars, though full mesh feature sets still favour Istio or Linkerd.

Netdata: Does it replace Prometheus?

For host and container infrastructure metrics it often does. For custom application metrics with an existing exporter ecosystem and long retention, most teams keep both.

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