---
title: Visualize OTLP Histograms as Heatmaps
description: Datadog, the leading service for cloud-scale monitoring.
breadcrumbs: >-
  Docs > OpenTelemetry in Datadog > Guides > Visualize OTLP Histograms as
  Heatmaps
---

# Visualize OTLP Histograms as Heatmaps

## Overview{% #overview %}

The OpenTelemetry Protocol (OTLP) supports sending OTLP Histograms, a type of metric that compresses information about a set of measurements by providing aggregate statistics, like sum, count, min, and max. OTLP Histograms also count how many of these measurements fall into user-configurable buckets.

You can visualize this datatype as a [heatmap](https://docs.datadoghq.com/dashboards/widgets/heatmap) in Datadog by following the steps on this page.

**Note**: The related OTLP Exponential Histogram type can also be displayed as a heatmap, since it is converted to a distribution. Read more about distributions on the [dedicated Distributions page](https://docs.datadoghq.com/metrics/distributions).

## Setup{% #setup %}

This guide assumes you already have a [functioning setup for sending OpenTelemetry metrics to Datadog](https://docs.datadoghq.com/opentelemetry/otel_metrics).

### OpenTelemetry SDK configuration{% #opentelemetry-sdk-configuration %}

If you are producing metrics from an OpenTelemetry SDK, take the following steps to configure them:

1. [Configure the SDK you are sending OTLP Histograms with delta temporality](https://docs.datadoghq.com/opentelemetry/guide/otlp_delta_temporality). This makes the minimum and maximum available for the heatmap widget.
1. Check if you want to override the [default bucket boundaries](https://opentelemetry.io/docs/reference/specification/metrics/sdk/#explicit-bucket-histogram-aggregation) from your aggregation. **Note**: Each additional bucket is considered a separate custom metric.

For metrics coming from other sources, ensure if possible that these come as delta OTLP Histograms with the minimum and maximum fields set.

### Datadog Exporter or Datadog Agent configuration{% #datadog-exporter-or-datadog-agent-configuration %}

Set the histogram mode and enable aggregation metrics on your Datadog Exporter or Datadog Agent.

{% tab title="Datadog Exporter (OpenTelemetry Collector)" %}
In the `collector.yaml` file for the Datadog Exporter, configure the histogram mode to `counters` and enable aggregation metrics with the `send_aggregation_metrics` flag.

```yaml
exporters:
  datadog:
    metrics:
      histograms:
        mode: counters
        send_aggregation_metrics: true
```

**Note**: `send_aggregation_metrics` is available starting with Datadog Exporter v0.75.0. If you are using an earlier version, use the `send_count_sum_metrics` flag instead. The minimum and maximum are missing in earlier versions.
{% /tab %}

{% tab title="Datadog Agent" %}
On the `otlp_config` section, configure the histogram mode to `counters` and enable aggregation metrics with the `send_aggregation_metrics` flag.

```yaml
otlp_config:
  metrics:
    histograms:
      mode: counters
      send_aggregation_metrics: true
```

**Note**: `send_aggregation_metrics` is available starting on the Datadog Agent v6.45.0/v7.45.0. If you are using an earlier version, use the `send_count_sum_metrics` flag instead. The minimum and maximum are missing in earlier versions.
{% /tab %}

### Heatmap widget configuration{% #heatmap-widget-configuration %}

The [heatmap widget](https://docs.datadoghq.com/dashboards/widgets/heatmap) uses the set of `<YOUR METRIC NAME>.bucket` metrics generated by the Datadog Exporter or Datadog Agent, each corresponding to a different histogram bucket. To visualize your histogram as a heatmap:

1. Select `<YOUR METRIC NAME>.bucket` as the metric to visualize.
1. Choose the `pre-binned data` option on the `distributions of` menu.

You can now see your OTLP Histogram as a heatmap widget.

## OpenMetrics compatibility{% #openmetrics-compatibility %}

The [Datadog Agent OpenMetrics check](https://docs.datadoghq.com/integrations/openmetrics) is also compatible with the pre-binned data heatmap widget option. If you want to send metrics to the OpenMetrics check directly without converting to OpenTelemetry, enable the `collect_histogram_buckets` and `non_cumulative_histogram_buckets` flags on your instance to ensure the data is sent in a compatible way to Datadog.

## Further reading{% #further-reading %}

- [OTLP Metric Types](https://docs.datadoghq.com/metrics/open_telemetry/otlp_metric_types)
- [OpenTelemetry Support in Datadog](https://docs.datadoghq.com/opentelemetry/)