head to head · open source
Apache SkyWalking vs qtap
Apache SkyWalking has 24,958 GitHub stars, 6,633 forks, 41 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. qtap has 1,460 stars, 55 forks, 8 open issues and last shipped 9 days ago. Apache SkyWalking leads on adoption by 1,609% (24,958 vs 1,460 stars). Apache SkyWalking is written in Java under Apache-2.0; qtap is written in C under Apache-2.0. Apache SkyWalking has attracted 27% as many forks as stars, qtap 4%. 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 (ebpf, observability), 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| Apache SkyWalking | qtap | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 25K | ★ 1.5K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Java | C |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-11 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.6K | ⑂ 55 |
| 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 qtap if
- You want the qtap 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 qtap 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 qtap
Qtap is an Apache 2.0 eBPF agent that intercepts network traffic inside the Linux kernel at the TLS/SSL layer, letting platform engineers, SREs, security auditors, and application developers inspect egress connections and the originating processes without modifying applications, deploying proxies, or managing certificates.
More in Infrastructure & Operations
Related comparisons
More Monitoring & Observability projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Monitoring & Observability field.
Frequently asked questions
Is Apache SkyWalking or qtap more popular?
Apache SkyWalking has 24,958 GitHub stars and qtap has 1,460. Apache SkyWalking has the larger community by that measure.
Are Apache SkyWalking and qtap free?
Both are open source. Apache SkyWalking is licensed under Apache-2.0 and qtap under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Apache SkyWalking and qtap?
Apache SkyWalking is written in Java and qtap 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 qtap?
Choose Apache SkyWalking if you want the larger community (24,958 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose qtap if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.