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Head-to-head · Distributed Tracing Tools

Jaeger vs Grafana Tempo

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 4 checks side by side
Higher score Jaeger #2 in Distributed Tracing Tools 9.2/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 3 features Visit Jaeger
Grafana Tempo #4 in Distributed Tracing Tools 9.0/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 3 of 3 features Visit Grafana Tempo

Jaeger leads on 0 checks, Grafana Tempo on 0, and 4 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 4 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreJaeger · 9.2/10
  • Free planboth
  • Most featuresGrafana Tempo · 3 of 3

Jaeger scores higher on our rubric for distributed tracing tools: 9.2 against 9.0 out of 10; our editors rank them #2 and #4.

Jaeger is the better fit for open-source tracing with sampling flexibility. Grafana Tempo is the better fit for grafana-based trace storage and analysis.

  • Jaeger fits best

    Open-source tracing with sampling flexibility

  • Grafana Tempo fits best

    Grafana-based trace storage and analysis

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature Jaeger 9.2/10 Visit ↗ Grafana Tempo 9.0/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 9.2 9.0
Ranking #2 in Distributed Tracing Tools #4 in Distributed Tracing Tools
Best for Open-source tracing with sampling flexibility Grafana-based trace storage and analysis
Pricing model Free Free
Starting price Free plan Free plan
Free plan ✓ ✓
Free trial — —
Deployment Cloud, Self-hosted Self-hosted
Platforms Web, Linux, Windows, macOS Linux
Support Community, Docs Community, Docs
Integrations 8 integrations 11 integrations
Built for Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Jaeger 0/3 · Grafana Tempo 3/3
OpenTelemetry support Not checked yet ✓ (best)
Service map Not checked yet ✓ (best)
Tail-based sampling Not checked yet ✓ (best)
Specs
Trace retention Not checked yet Not checked yet
Deployment model Self_hosted Self_hosted
Pricing basis Not checked yet Not checked yet
Our review
Pros
  • OTLP and Zipkin ingestion support
  • Head-, tail-, and adaptive sampling modes
  • Dependency graphs plus trace search and query APIs
  • OpenTelemetry, Jaeger, and Zipkin ingestion support
  • TraceQL, service graphs, and span metrics in one backend
  • Object-storage retention with monolithic or microservices deployment
Cons
  • Self-hosted deployment requires infrastructure ownership
  • Storage backend selection adds architectural decisions
  • Focused on distributed tracing rather than a broader observability suite
  • Self-managed deployment requires Linux or API-based infrastructure
  • Grafana Cloud Traces is a separate managed offering
  • Platform coverage is narrower than some distributed tracing tools
Our verdict

Jaeger is an open-source distributed tracing platform for developers and platform teams operating microservice-based and other distributed applications. It collects and visualizes traces, helping teams investigate errors, identify…

Read the review →

Grafana Tempo is an open-source distributed tracing backend for teams operating microservices and other distributed systems. It ingests trace data through OpenTelemetry, Jaeger, and Zipkin protocols, stores traces in object storage, and…

Read the review →
  1. JaegerDistributed Tracing Tools 9.2Free plan
  2. Grafana TempoDistributed Tracing Tools 9.0Free plan

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Jaeger — where it wins

    • OTLP and Zipkin ingestion support
    • Head-, tail-, and adaptive sampling modes
    • Dependency graphs plus trace search and query APIs

    Where it doesn't

    • Self-hosted deployment requires infrastructure ownership
    • Storage backend selection adds architectural decisions
    • Focused on distributed tracing rather than a broader observability suite

  • Grafana Tempo — where it wins

    • OpenTelemetry, Jaeger, and Zipkin ingestion support
    • TraceQL, service graphs, and span metrics in one backend
    • Object-storage retention with monolithic or microservices deployment

    Where it doesn't

    • Self-managed deployment requires Linux or API-based infrastructure
    • Grafana Cloud Traces is a separate managed offering
    • Platform coverage is narrower than some distributed tracing tools

More comparisons

All distributed tracing tools comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update