head to head · open source
Apache SkyWalking vs client_python
Apache SkyWalking has 24,958 GitHub stars, 6,633 forks, 41 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. client_python has 4,375 stars, 876 forks, 150 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. Apache SkyWalking leads on adoption by 470% (24,958 vs 4,375 stars). Apache SkyWalking is written in Java under Apache-2.0; client_python is written in Python under Apache-2.0. Apache SkyWalking has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, client_python 20%. Apache SkyWalking was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (metrics, prometheus), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Apache SkyWalking | client_python | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 25K | ★ 4.4K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Java | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.6K | ⑂ 876 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Apache SkyWalking if
- You weight community size — 25K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick client_python if
- You want the client_python feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and client_python fits your workflow better
About Apache SkyWalking
Apache SkyWalking is an open source application performance monitoring (APM) system for distributed systems in cloud native architectures, built for teams that run microservices across Kubernetes and container based environments.
read the full Apache SkyWalking overview →
About client_python
client python is the official Prometheus instrumentation library for Python applications, letting Python code expose metrics that a Prometheus server collects, and it is aimed at Python developers and reliability engineers who need their services measurable inside a Prometheus monitoring stack.
read the full client_python overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Apache SkyWalking or client_python more popular?
Apache SkyWalking has 24,958 GitHub stars and client_python has 4,375. Apache SkyWalking has the larger community by that measure.
Are Apache SkyWalking and client_python free?
Both are open source. Apache SkyWalking is licensed under Apache-2.0 and client_python under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Apache SkyWalking and client_python?
Apache SkyWalking is written in Java and client_python in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Apache SkyWalking or client_python?
Choose Apache SkyWalking if you want the larger community (24,958 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose client_python if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.