Apache HertzBeat
Best for self-hosting
Why teams pick it
Control your scheduling stack on your own infrastructure.
Open-source alternatives to Splunk
Compare community-driven replacements for Splunk in log management workflows. We curate active, self-hostable options with transparent licensing so you can evaluate the right fit quickly.
Splunk
Splunk collects, indexes, and analyzes machine-generated data for security, IT, and business analytics. It offers dashboards, alerts, and ML-driven insights for real-time operational intelligence.Read more
Key stats
- 12Alternatives
- 5Support self-hosting
Run on infrastructure you control
- 11Active development
Recent commits in the last 6 months
- 6Permissive licenses
MIT, Apache, and similar licenses
Counts reflect projects currently indexed as alternatives to Splunk.
Start with these picks
These projects match the most common migration paths for teams replacing Splunk.
Grafana
Privacy-first alternative
Why teams pick it
Flexible deployment options with self-hosted and cloud variants
All open-source alternatives
OpenObserve
Petabyte‑scale observability platform, 10x easier, 140x cheaper
Active developmentFast to deployAI-powered workflowsTypeScript
Why teams choose it
- Logs, metrics, traces & RUM with OpenTelemetry compatibility
- SQL and PromQL query engine with dynamic schema
- Single binary or HA deployment supporting local, S3, MinIO, GCS, Azure storage
Watch for
Enterprise‑only features like SSO and advanced RBAC require a paid plan
Migration highlight
Kubernetes log aggregation
Reduce storage cost up to 140× while retaining fast query performance
SigLens
Unified observability engine delivering 100x Splunk efficiency
Active developmentFast to deployIntegration-friendlyGo
Why teams choose it
- Supports OpenTelemetry, Elastic, Splunk HEC, and Loki ingestion formats
- Query with Splunk SPL or standard SQL
- Single binary with zero external dependencies
Watch for
AGPL-3.0 license may limit commercial embedding
Migration highlight
Log aggregation for microservice fleet
Collects logs from 10,000 services, queries them instantly with SPL, cutting storage costs by 90%.
logkit
Unified log and metric collector with web console
Permissive licenseFast to deployAI-powered workflowsGo
Why teams choose it
- Supports 15+ data sources including files, databases, Kafka, Redis, SNMP
- Web console for real‑time monitoring and runner configuration
- Cross‑platform binaries, Docker image, and Kubernetes deployment
Watch for
Primary output target is Pandora; other destinations need custom plugins
Migration highlight
Centralized web server logs
Collect nginx and Apache logs from multiple hosts, normalize them, and ship to Pandora for long‑term analysis.
Apache HertzBeat
Real-time agentless observability with custom monitoring and alerting
Self-host friendlyActive developmentPermissive licenseJava
Why teams choose it
- Agentless monitoring with zero-installation overhead across 100+ integrations
- YAML-based template system for custom monitoring types without coding
- Prometheus-compatible with native ecosystem support and metric collection
Watch for
Requires Java 17 runtime, which may necessitate infrastructure updates
Migration highlight
Multi-Cloud Infrastructure Monitoring
Monitor Kubernetes clusters, databases, and middleware across AWS, Azure, and on-premises without deploying agents, using collector clusters for isolated network segments.
Grafana
Open-source platform for monitoring, visualization, and observability
Self-host friendlyActive developmentPrivacy-firstTypeScript
Why teams choose it
- Mix multiple data sources in a single dashboard with per-query source specification
- Dynamic dashboards with reusable template variables and dropdown filters
- Seamless metrics-to-logs exploration with preserved label filters and live streaming
Watch for
AGPL-3.0 license may require legal review for commercial embedding
Migration highlight
Multi-Cloud Infrastructure Monitoring
Correlate metrics from AWS CloudWatch, Azure Monitor, and on-premise Prometheus in unified dashboards for holistic infrastructure visibility.
Netdata
Instant, per‑second visibility into every infrastructure component.
Active developmentFast to deployIntegration-friendlyC
Why teams choose it
- Per‑second data collection with instant visualizations
- Zero‑configuration auto‑discovery of services and containers
- Edge‑based ML models for unsupervised anomaly detection
Watch for
High‑frequency data can increase storage requirements if long‑term retention is needed
Migration highlight
Production outage investigation
Engineers pinpoint the exact second a resource spike occurred, reducing mean time to resolution.
Quickwit
Fast, cloud-native search engine for logs and traces
Active developmentPermissive licenseIntegration-friendlyRust
Why teams choose it
- Sub‑second search on cloud storage (S3, Azure, GCS)
- Elasticsearch‑compatible API for seamless migration
- Jaeger and OpenTelemetry native ingestion
Watch for
Metrics support is still on the roadmap
Migration highlight
Centralized log analysis for microservices
Ingest logs from Kubernetes via Fluent Bit, query across all services in sub‑second time, and reduce storage costs.
Coroot
eBPF-powered observability platform with automated root cause analysis
Active developmentPermissive licenseFast to deployGo
Why teams choose it
- Zero-instrumentation telemetry collection via eBPF with automatic service discovery
- AI-powered root cause analysis with 80+ predefined application inspections
- Integrated deployment tracking and cost monitoring for Kubernetes environments
Watch for
eBPF-based instrumentation requires Linux kernel 4.14+ and specific permissions
Migration highlight
Troubleshooting Microservice Latency Spikes
Engineers click on anomalous requests to view distributed traces, identify slow dependencies, and profile CPU usage down to specific code lines—all from a single interface.
SigNoz
Unified observability: logs, metrics, and traces in one UI
Self-host friendlyActive developmentPrivacy-firstTypeScript
Why teams choose it
- Unified UI for logs, metrics, and traces with native correlation
- OpenTelemetry‑based ingestion eliminates vendor lock‑in
- ClickHouse backend delivers fast, scalable log analytics
Watch for
Self‑hosting requires Docker/Kubernetes expertise
Migration highlight
Root‑cause analysis of latency spikes
Correlate p99 latency metrics with trace flamegraphs and log entries to pinpoint bottlenecks.
Graylog
Free and open log management platform for centralized logging
Self-host friendlyActive developmentPrivacy-firstJava
Why teams choose it
- Multi-protocol log ingestion via GELF, Syslog, AMQP, and Kafka
- Real-time search and filtering across centralized log streams
- Security-focused features suitable for SIEM use cases
Watch for
Requires Java runtime and infrastructure setup
Migration highlight
Microservices Troubleshooting
Aggregate logs from distributed services into a single searchable interface, reducing mean time to resolution for production incidents.
HyperDX
ClickHouse-native observability platform unifying logs, traces, and replays
Self-host friendlyActive developmentPermissive licenseTypeScript
Why teams choose it
- Unified search across logs, traces, metrics, and session replays in one interface
- Schema-agnostic design works on top of existing ClickHouse clusters
- Intuitive full-text and property search syntax with optional SQL queries
Watch for
Requires ClickHouse expertise for production tuning and optimization
Migration highlight
Correlating Frontend Errors with Backend Traces
Engineers replay user sessions to see JavaScript errors, then jump directly to related API traces and logs to identify the root cause in minutes instead of hours.
Logfire
Simple Python‑centric observability platform for faster development
Active developmentPermissive licenseIntegration-friendlyPython
Why teams choose it
- Intuitive dashboard delivering powerful observability at a glance
- Deep Python‑specific telemetry, including object inspection and event‑loop profiling
- SQL‑based data exploration compatible with existing BI tools
Watch for
Dashboard UI is closed source; self‑hosting requires an enterprise license
Migration highlight
Debugging FastAPI request handling
View request payloads, validation errors, and database query timings in a unified dashboard.
Choosing a log management alternative
Teams replacing Splunk in log management workflows typically weigh self-hosting needs, integration coverage, and licensing obligations.
- 5 projects let you self-host and keep customer data on infrastructure you control.
- 11 options are actively maintained with recent commits.
Tip: shortlist one hosted and one self-hosted option so stakeholders can compare trade-offs before migrating away from Splunk.