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KCNA · Question #22

What is the core metric type in Prometheus used to represent a single numerical value that can go up and down?

The correct answer is D. Gauge. The Prometheus Gauge metric type is used to represent a single numerical value that can increase or decrease over time.

Submitted by daniela_cl· May 4, 2026Cloud Native Observability

Question

What is the core metric type in Prometheus used to represent a single numerical value that can go up and down?

Options

  • ASummary
  • BCounter
  • CHistogram
  • DGauge

How the community answered

(41 responses)
  • A
    5% (2)
  • B
    2% (1)
  • D
    93% (38)

Why each option

The Prometheus Gauge metric type is used to represent a single numerical value that can increase or decrease over time.

ASummary

A Summary samples observations and provides a total count, sum, and configurable quantiles, rather than a single fluctuating value.

BCounter

A Counter is a cumulative metric that only ever increases or is reset to zero on restart, unlike a value that can arbitrarily go up and down.

CHistogram

A Histogram samples observations and counts them in configurable buckets, providing distributions of values rather than a single point-in-time value.

DGaugeCorrect

A Gauge in Prometheus is a metric type that represents a single numerical value that can arbitrarily go up and down, making it suitable for values like current temperature, memory usage, or queue length.

Concept tested: Prometheus metric types

Source: https://prometheus.io/docs/concepts/metric_types/

Topics

#Prometheus#Metric Types#Gauge#Observability

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