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Free InfluxDB alternatives: 4 apps ranked by verified data

Facts checked Nov 8, 2026AppBreakup editorialHow we rank

4 of the 5 InfluxDB alternatives we track can be used for free (free, open source, or with a free plan). ClickHouse, QuestDB and Prometheus rank highest, with facts last verified Nov 8, 2026.

Quick comparison

#AppPricingVerified priceOpen sourcePlatformsVerified factsScore
1ClickHouse logoClickHouseOpen source30 days with $300 creditsNoWeb, Linux, macOS +15 of 566.2
2QuestDB logoQuestDBOpen source—YesSelf-hosted, Linux, macOS +15 of 557.5
3Prometheus logoPrometheusOpen source—YesSelf-hosted, Linux, macOS +14 of 456.8
4VictoriaMetrics logoVictoriaMetricsOpen sourceFrom $200/monthYesSelf-hosted, Linux, macOS +14 of 454.4
  1. ClickHouse logo

    1. ClickHouseTop pick

    Best for: Engineering teams building real-time dashboards, observability or analytics over billions of rows

    Open sourceWeb, Linux, macOS, Self-hosted

    66.2

    score / 100

    Why switch from InfluxDB

    Fast column-oriented analytics database that handles large time series and log workloads with SQL.

    Pros

    • Very fast aggregations over large tables, suited to live dashboards
    • Apache 2.0 open source, so it can be self-hosted at no licence cost
    • Strong compression keeps storage costs down
    • Managed cloud option on AWS, Google Cloud and Azure

    Cons

    • Schema and table-engine choices need care to get good performance
    • Updates, deletes and large joins are weaker than in general-purpose warehouses
    • Self-hosting a cluster takes real operational work
    Visit ClickHouse Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.341
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.15100
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is ClickHouse a good InfluxDB alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    License
    Apache-2.0
    Checked Oct 29, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Open source
    Yes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026clickhouse.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free trial
    30 days with $300 credits
    Checked Nov 8, 2026clickhouse.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Pricing model
    Compute and storage metered separately
    Checked Nov 8, 2026clickhouse.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Cloud providers
    AWS, Google Cloud, Azure
    Checked Nov 8, 2026clickhouse.com(opens source in a new tab)
  2. QuestDB logo

    2. QuestDB

    Best for: Teams storing high-volume timestamped data who want to query it in plain SQL

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Linux, macOS, Windows

    57.5

    score / 100

    Why switch from InfluxDB

    Open-source time-series database that accepts InfluxDB line protocol but is queried in standard SQL.

    Pros

    • Apache 2.0 licence for the full single-node engine
    • Standard SQL with time-series extensions instead of a custom query language
    • Postgres wire protocol lets Grafana and Postgres drivers connect directly
    • Takes InfluxDB-style line protocol, Kafka and Telegraf for ingestion

    Cons

    • Replication, high availability and access control need the paid Enterprise edition
    • The open-source edition only has basic auth without encryption in transit
    • Smaller ecosystem and fewer hosted options than InfluxDB or TimescaleDB
    Visit QuestDB Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.363
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is QuestDB a good InfluxDB alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    License
    Apache 2.0
    Checked Nov 6, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Platforms
    Linux, macOS, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026questdb.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Postgres wire protocol
    Yes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026questdb.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Open-source edition security
    Basic auth, no TLS
    Checked Nov 8, 2026questdb.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Enterprise trial
    Yes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026questdb.com(opens source in a new tab)
  3. Prometheus logo

    3. Prometheus

    Best for: Engineers running Kubernetes or microservices who want the de facto standard for metrics

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Linux, macOS, Windows

    56.8

    score / 100

    Why switch from InfluxDB

    Free, pull-based metrics store that is the default choice for monitoring Kubernetes and cloud-native services.

    Pros

    • Industry-standard metrics format supported almost everywhere
    • PromQL is expressive for alerts and analysis
    • Simple single-binary deployment

    Cons

    • No built-in long-term or clustered storage
    • Metrics only, so logs and traces need other tools
    • Basic UI, so you will want Grafana too
    Visit Prometheus Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.360
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Prometheus a good InfluxDB alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    License
    Apache-2.0
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Origin
    Built at SoundCloud, started 2012
    Checked Nov 8, 2026prometheus.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Governance
    CNCF, joined 2016
    Checked Nov 8, 2026prometheus.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Query language
    PromQL
    Checked Nov 8, 2026prometheus.io(opens source in a new tab)
  4. VictoriaMetrics logo

    4. VictoriaMetrics

    Best for: Teams outgrowing Prometheus who want cheaper long-term metrics storage

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Linux, macOS, Windows

    54.4

    score / 100

    Why switch from InfluxDB

    Open source, Prometheus-compatible time series store known for low resource use at high scale.

    Pros

    • Uses far less memory and disk than many alternatives
    • Drop-in compatible with Prometheus and Grafana
    • Simple single-binary option, cluster when needed

    Cons

    • Some features are enterprise-only
    • MetricsQL extensions can reduce portability
    • Logs and traces products are newer
    Visit VictoriaMetrics Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.352
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is VictoriaMetrics a good InfluxDB alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    License
    Apache-2.0
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Cloud price
    From $200/month
    Checked Nov 8, 2026victoriametrics.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Cloud free trial
    30 days
    Checked Nov 8, 2026victoriametrics.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Editions
    Open source and enterprise
    Checked Nov 8, 2026victoriametrics.com(opens source in a new tab)