Datadog SDKs can export traces in OTLP format to an OTLP-compatible receiver, including DDOT or any OpenTelemetry Collector.

Prerequisites

OTLP export requires:

• The Datadog SDK installed and attached to your service. OTLP export uses your existing Datadog SDK setup. You don’t need to configure the Datadog Agent for native trace export, because OTLP export sends traces to a receiver instead.
• An OTLP-compatible receiver that forwards data to Datadog, such as the DDOT Collector or an OpenTelemetry Collector. OTLP export sends data to a receiver rather than directly to Datadog, so the receiver must be reachable from your instrumented service. For production workloads, Datadog recommends DDOT for batching, performance, and processing benefits. You aren’t required to use DDOT.

Language support

Select your language to see the minimum SDK version and supported OTLP protocols.

Note: The OpenTelemetry specification defaults OTLP to http/protobuf, but Datadog SDK defaults vary by language. Python, Node.js, and .NET default to http/json, while Java and Go default to http/protobuf. Where a language supports multiple protocols, set OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_PROTOCOL or OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_PROTOCOL to override the default. Make sure your receiver accepts the protocol you use. By convention, OTLP/HTTP (http/protobuf or http/json) uses port 4318, and OTLP/gRPC (grpc) uses port 4317.

Enable OTLP trace export

To export traces in OTLP format, set the following environment variables on the instrumented service:

OTEL_TRACES_EXPORTER=otlp
DD_TRACE_OTEL_ENABLED=true

By default, traces are sent to http://localhost:4318/v1/traces.

To send traces to a different endpoint, set OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT or the trace-specific OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_TRACES_ENDPOINT. See the OTLP Exporter Configuration documentation for details.

Verify

After you enable OTLP export and your service receives traffic, confirm that traces appear in the Trace Explorer. If traces don’t arrive, verify that your receiver is running, reachable at the configured endpoint, and forwarding data to Datadog.

Current limitations

• OTLP trace export is in Preview and supports core APM functionality for automatic and manually created traces. Other Datadog features and capabilities may not be supported, or may require the Datadog Agent even if traces are not sent through it.
• Traces are exported with Datadog semantics. For example, an HTTP status code is represented as http.status_code in Datadog semantics and http.response.status_code in OTel semantics.

For details on which Datadog features each setup supports, see the feature compatibility table.

Further reading

Additional helpful documentation, links, and articles:

Using Datadog SDKs with OpenTelemetryDOCUMENTATION Datadog Distribution of the OpenTelemetry Collector (DDOT)DOCUMENTATION Datadog APMDOCUMENTATION