Documentationbreadcrumb arrow Grafana Cloudbreadcrumb arrow Telemetry signalsbreadcrumb arrow Query and visualize your databreadcrumb arrow Visualize and query
Grafana Cloud

Visualize and query

You can use Grafana Explore to write queries in PromQL, LogQL, or TraceQL that let you explore telemetry data. Queries provide precise control over data filtering, aggregation, and transformation. Use queries when you need complex filtering or want to create custom dashboards.

You use the following query languages to query data sources in the Grafana telemetry stack:

When to use Grafana Explore

Grafana Explore serves different data exploration needs compared to the visualization tools in Grafana Cloud. Whereas visualization tools, such as the Grafana Drilldown apps, offer point-and-click visual interfaces for exploration and pattern discovery, Grafana Explore allows you to write queries for precise filtering and custom analysis.

Drilldown apps are separate from Grafana Explore and provide queryless experiences. Many users start with Drilldown apps, then use Explore for deeper analysis and dashboard creation. You can access the Explore feature from the Grafana Cloud navigation menu.

Refer to Get started with Explore for information about using query editor, history, and inspector.

Add queries to dashboards

You can add queries to dashboards to monitor key metrics over time. Dashboards let you visualize multiple queries and share insights with your team.

To add a query to a dashboard, follow these steps.

  1. In the Grafana Cloud navigation menu, open Explore.
  2. Create your query.
  3. In the toolbar, click Add to add panels to existing dashboards or create new ones.

For more information about creating dashboards, refer to Dashboards.

Add queries to alert rules

You can add queries to alert rules to monitor conditions and get notified when thresholds are exceeded. Alert rules evaluate your queries on a schedule and trigger notifications when conditions are met.

To add a query to an alert rule, follow these steps.

  1. In the Grafana Cloud navigation menu, open Alerting.
  2. Create a new alert rule.
  3. Add your query to define the condition to monitor.
  4. Configure the alert rule threshold and notification settings.

For more information about creating alerts, refer to Alerting.

Next steps