Side by side
BCC vs Kubeshark
Both stand on ebpf observability tools. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.
Free plan LinuxSelf-hosted
Choose BCC if you need a free, self-hosted toolkit for eBPF kernel tracing or manipulation on Linux. Its included system tracing tools and several supported kernel hooks make it relevant to performance and network work. Check the kernel version and configuration requirements before choosing it.
Visit BCC Free plan Open source APILinuxMac+3
Kubeshark combines Kubernetes-aware traffic queries, snapshots, and service mapping, with a free tier for smaller clusters. Check plan limits against cluster size, API needs, and connectivity requirements before choosing a tier.
Visit KubesharkThe facts
| BCC | Kubeshark | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Not published | Yes |
| Runs on | Linux, Self-hosted | API, Linux, Mac, Self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| Lowest paid plan | Free or on request | See the plans |
| Plans published | 1 | 6 |
| Maker | Not published | Not published |
| Website | github.com | kubeshark.com |
| On ebpf observability tools | #6 of 29 | #2 of 29 |
BCC: what it does well
- Free to use under the Apache-2.0 license.
- Provides instrumentation in C with Python and Lua front ends.
- Supports socket filters, tc classifiers and actions, and kprobes.
- Includes tracing tools for disk I/O, processes, networking, and filesystems.
- Installation guidance covers multiple Linux distributions and WSL.
What to know first
- Requires Linux kernel 4.1 or newer in general.
- Specified kernel configuration options are also required.
- Ubuntu Universe and iovisor BCC packages are described as outdated.
- A load failure with “Operation not permitted” may require sudo.
Kubeshark: what it does well
- Indexes cluster-wide Kubernetes traffic using eBPF
- Decrypts TLS and mTLS without keys or sidecars
- Exports filtered retrospective snapshots as PCAP files
- Supports more than 23 network protocols
- Exposes cluster data through MCP to AI assistants
What to know first
- Community plan requires internet connectivity
- Community plan is limited to 3 nodes or 60 pods
- Pro has limited API call capacity
- Air-gapped operation is listed for Enterprise
Alternatives to BCC Alternatives to Kubeshark The whole list