chmonitorch-ui vs chmonitor: ClickHouse UI vs monitoring
ch-ui is a ClickHouse workspace (SQL editor, pipelines). chmonitor is an operational monitoring dashboard over system tables. How they differ — and why search mixes the names.
If you searched ch-ui, ch ui, chouse ui, or ch-ui docker, you might have meant three different projects:
- chmonitor — this docs site. Read-only ClickHouse monitoring (queries, parts, merges, replication, AI agent).
- ch-ui (caioricciuti/ch-ui) — a ClickHouse workspace: SQL editor, pipelines, models, optional Pro cluster-health modules.
- CHouse UI (chouse-ui.com) — another GUI, not related to either.
Short names, different jobs. This page compares ch-ui and chmonitor honestly.
What ch-ui is
Public positioning: a self-hosted ClickHouse control plane / workbench. SQL tabs and results, dashboards, pipelines, dbt-style models, an AI copilot aimed at writing queries. Docker or a single binary is the usual install story (people searching ch-ui docker are in the right neighborhood for that repo).
Query insights and cluster health exist as product modules (often in Pro). Category: management and data work, with ops features attached.
What chmonitor is
A client-rendered dashboard that reads ClickHouse system.* tables: overview, running/slow queries, table size and parts, merges, replication, metrics, health, a customizable dashboard canvas, plus an AI agent and MCP for the same tools.
Default posture is read-only. Optional kill-query / optimize grants. Deploy Docker, Kubernetes, or Cloudflare Workers. Category: operational monitoring.
The SQL console and Data Explorer exist so you can inspect — they are not a full pipeline/IDE product.
Side by side
| ch-ui | chmonitor | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Workspace / control plane | Ops monitoring dashboard |
| Core loop | Write SQL, ship pipelines | Watch system.* continuously |
| Pipelines, models, governance | Yes | No |
| Query / cluster health | Strong in Pro modules | Core OSS pages |
| AI | Copilot for SQL / schema | Agent + MCP for diagnostics |
| Default grants | Interactive work + admin | SELECT on system.* |
| Typical deploy | Go binary + Docker | Dashboard app (Docker / Helm / Workers) |
Overlap is real: both can look at query_log. The product bet is different. ch-ui is where analysts live in a tab. chmonitor is the wall you leave up for parts, merges, and lag.
When to choose ch-ui
You want one binary for authoring: multi-tab SQL, pipelines, models, governance. Cluster health is a module, not the reason you opened the app.
Follow their install docs for Docker — this site will not re-host their compose file.
When to choose chmonitor
You want continuous CH health: slow and running queries, part pressure, merge storms, replication lag, storage growth, multi-host ?host= switching, MCP for coding agents. You do not want a second data catalog.
docker run --rm -p 3000:3000 \
-e CLICKHOUSE_HOST=http://clickhouse:8123 \
ghcr.io/chmonitor/chmonitorGetting started: local / Docker, Docker deploy.
Can you run both?
Yes. Two clients, one ClickHouse. Give each a least-privilege user. Use ch-ui to write the pipeline; use chmonitor when on-call asks why inserts stalled.
If you landed here because Google mixed chmonitor with ch-ui / chouse ui, pick the row in the table that matches the job — not the one that matches the typo.
Related
ClickHouse monitoring: Grafana vs Datadog vs a dedicated dashboard
How Grafana, Datadog, and a ClickHouse-native dashboard differ for query, storage, and cluster monitoring — and when to use each (or all three).
ClickHouse vs Apache Druid vs Apache Pinot
Honest OLAP comparison — query model, ingestion, ops complexity, and when each wins. If you already run ClickHouse, you still need query, storage, and replication monitoring.