Overview

The Metrics Explorer is a basic interface for examining your metrics in Datadog. For more advanced options, create a notebook or dashboard (screenboard, or timeboard).

Natural language queries

Use Natural Language Queries (NLQ) to describe what you’re looking for in plain English. Datadog automatically translates your request into a structured metric query, understanding context such as your services, attributes, and tags. This makes it easier to explore metrics without needing to write complex syntax.

To access this feature, click Ask in the search field and type your query.

To disable NLQ for your organization, you must have org_management permissions. Navigate to Organization Settings > Preferences and toggle off the Natural Language Queries feature.

Graphing

Use the query editor to customize the graph displayed on the Metrics Explorer page.

You can specify the time frame in the top right corner of the page. The default is Past 1 Hour.

Metrics that are not reported in the last 24 hours do not appear in the query editor. You can add these metrics to your graphs manually by entering the metric name or full query.

Scope

Define a filtering scope with the from text box by selecting or searching for tag values. For example, you can use the from text box to filter metric values from a specific host, cluster, environment, or region.

Space aggregation

Define the space aggregation used to combine a metric’s values.

The possible options are:

• Average of reported values (default)
• Max of reported values
• Min of reported values
• Sum of reported values

Note: The options may differ based on the metric type selected.

Functions and formulas

You can optionally add functions to your query using the function button. Not all functions are available for all metric types. For more information, see the querying documentation.

Split graph

Use the Split Graph button to view the data split into individual graphs by values for tags such as region, service, or environment.

Export

Use the Export button () to export your graph:

• Copy a link to the graph for sharing
• Add it to an incident
• Create a monitor
• Save it to a dashboard
• Save it to a notebook

Quick Graphs

With Quick Graphs, you have more options to visualize your data, without needing to create a Dashboard or Notebook. These graphs are useful for understanding and troubleshooting issues without creating permanent dashboards or complex visualization setups.

For more information, see the Quick Graphs documentation.

Further reading

Additional helpful documentation, links, and articles:

Metrics SummaryDOCUMENTATION Metrics DistributionsDOCUMENTATION Quick GraphsDOCUMENTATION