> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-rust/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Exporters Overview

> Learn about the different exporters available in OpenTelemetry Rust for sending telemetry data to observability backends

Exporters are responsible for sending telemetry data (traces, metrics, and logs) from your application to observability backends. OpenTelemetry Rust provides several exporters to integrate with different monitoring platforms.

## Available Exporters

### OTLP Exporter

The **OpenTelemetry Protocol (OTLP)** exporter is the recommended choice for most use cases. It supports all three telemetry signals (traces, metrics, and logs) and can send data to:

* OpenTelemetry Collector
* Any OTLP-compatible backend (Jaeger, Prometheus, Grafana, etc.)
* Commercial observability platforms

**Protocols supported:**

* gRPC (port 4317)
* HTTP with binary protobuf (port 4318)
* HTTP with JSON

[Learn more about OTLP →](/exporters/otlp)

### Stdout Exporter

The **stdout exporter** prints telemetry data to standard output. It's useful for:

* Local development and debugging
* Understanding the structure of telemetry data
* Educational purposes and testing

**Signals supported:** Traces, metrics, and logs

<Warning>
  The stdout exporter is not optimized for production use and should only be used for development and debugging.
</Warning>

[Learn more about stdout →](/exporters/stdout)

### Zipkin Exporter

The **Zipkin exporter** sends trace data to Zipkin, a popular distributed tracing system. Use this when:

* You have an existing Zipkin infrastructure
* You need compatibility with Zipkin's data format
* You're migrating from Zipkin to OpenTelemetry

**Signals supported:** Traces only

[Learn more about Zipkin →](/exporters/zipkin)

### Prometheus Exporter

<Warning>
  The Prometheus exporter has been **discontinued** as of version 0.29. It depends on an unmaintained `protobuf` crate with security vulnerabilities.
</Warning>

For Prometheus integration, use the **OTLP exporter** instead. Prometheus natively supports OTLP, providing a more stable and actively maintained solution.

[Learn more about Prometheus integration →](/exporters/prometheus)

## Choosing an Exporter

### For Production Use

**Use OTLP** for production workloads. It's:

* Actively maintained and part of the OpenTelemetry specification
* Supports all telemetry signals
* Compatible with most observability backends
* Optimized for performance with batching and compression

### For Development

**Use stdout** for local development when you want to:

* Debug telemetry data structure
* Verify instrumentation without a backend
* Learn how OpenTelemetry works

### For Legacy Integration

**Use Zipkin** if you:

* Have existing Zipkin infrastructure
* Need to maintain compatibility with Zipkin clients
* Are gradually migrating to OpenTelemetry

## Common Configuration

All exporters share common configuration patterns:

### Resource Configuration

Define service information that applies to all telemetry:

```rust theme={null}
use opentelemetry_sdk::Resource;

let resource = Resource::builder()
    .with_service_name("my-service")
    .with_service_version("1.0.0")
    .build();
```

### Batch vs Simple Export

**Batch export** (recommended for production):

* Exports telemetry in batches for better performance
* Configurable batch size and timeout
* Reduces network overhead

```rust theme={null}
let provider = SdkTracerProvider::builder()
    .with_batch_exporter(exporter)
    .build();
```

**Simple export** (for development/testing):

* Exports each span immediately when it ends
* Simpler but less performant

```rust theme={null}
let provider = SdkTracerProvider::builder()
    .with_simple_exporter(exporter)
    .build();
```

### Shutdown

Always shutdown providers to ensure all telemetry is exported:

```rust theme={null}
tracer_provider.shutdown()?;
meter_provider.shutdown()?;
logger_provider.shutdown()?;
```

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="OTLP Exporter" icon="arrow-right" href="/exporters/otlp">
    Production-ready exporter for all telemetry signals
  </Card>

  <Card title="Stdout Exporter" icon="terminal" href="/exporters/stdout">
    Debug telemetry data during development
  </Card>

  <Card title="Zipkin Exporter" icon="diagram-project" href="/exporters/zipkin">
    Send traces to Zipkin backends
  </Card>

  <Card title="Prometheus Integration" icon="chart-line" href="/exporters/prometheus">
    Export metrics to Prometheus via OTLP
  </Card>
</CardGroup>