head to head · open source
Apache SkyWalking vs dd-trace-dotnet
Apache SkyWalking has 24,958 GitHub stars, 6,633 forks, 41 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. dd-trace-dotnet has 575 stars, 168 forks, 335 open issues and last shipped today. Apache SkyWalking leads on adoption by 4,241% (24,958 vs 575 stars). Apache SkyWalking is written in Java under Apache-2.0; dd-trace-dotnet is written in C# under Apache-2.0. Apache SkyWalking has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, dd-trace-dotnet 29%. dd-trace-dotnet was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (apm), 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 | dd-trace-dotnet | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 25K | ★ 575 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Java | C# |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-20 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.6K | ⑂ 168 |
| 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 dd-trace-dotnet if
- You want the dd-trace-dotnet feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C#
- You evaluated both and dd-trace-dotnet 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 dd-trace-dotnet
dd trace dotnet is the Apache 2.0 C repository containing Datadog's .NET client libraries for application telemetry collection, distributed tracing, and continuous profiling, built for .NET developers and operators who need to instrument .NET applications and send telemetry to the Datadog product suite.
read the full dd-trace-dotnet overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Apache SkyWalking or dd-trace-dotnet more popular?
Apache SkyWalking has 24,958 GitHub stars and dd-trace-dotnet has 575. Apache SkyWalking has the larger community by that measure.
Are Apache SkyWalking and dd-trace-dotnet free?
Both are open source. Apache SkyWalking is licensed under Apache-2.0 and dd-trace-dotnet under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Apache SkyWalking and dd-trace-dotnet?
Apache SkyWalking is written in Java and dd-trace-dotnet in C#. 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 dd-trace-dotnet?
Choose Apache SkyWalking if you want the larger community (24,958 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose dd-trace-dotnet if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.