---
id: datadog-checks-base
version: "38.0.0"
license: BSD-3-Clause
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# datadog-checks-base — The Datadog Check Toolkit

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 753.6K/mo

## What it is and what it does

Datadog Checks Base is the toolkit that powers Datadog Agent integrations. It provides the base classes and utilities that checks use to collect metrics and send them to Datadog. The package serves two main purposes: when running inside the Datadog Agent's embedded Python interpreter, it supplies the full integration framework; when installed in a standalone Python environment, it mocks the Agent so checks can be tested and developed locally without a running Agent.

The package is designed for lean resource usage through lazy-loading and selective imports, balancing a simple API with minimal memory overhead. It is actively maintained and used by integrations-core, making it the standard foundation for anyone building or testing Datadog Agent checks.

Use it for:

- Develop and test custom Datadog Agent checks locally before deploying to production
- Build new integrations that collect metrics from applications or infrastructure
- Run integration tests for checks in CI/CD pipelines without a full Agent setup
- Mock Agent behavior in a standalone Python environment for check validation

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

Provides the Python base classes and utilities that Datadog Agent integrations need to run, and mocks an Agent environment for standalone testing and development.

Yes. This is the official toolkit for Datadog Agent integration development, actively maintained with no known vulnerabilities, permissive licensing, and zero runtime dependencies. Install it if you are building, testing, or maintaining Datadog checks.

## Install

pip install datadog-checks-base
uv add datadog-checks-base
poetry add datadog-checks-base

## Installing datadog-checks-base

Before you install: Low friction install with no runtime dependencies. Actively maintained with a release 8 days ago.

License in practice: BSD-3-Clause is permissive and imposes minimal restrictions on use or redistribution.

Quickstart:

pip install datadog-checks-base

Verify before relying:

- Whether the package works with Python versions older than 3.13 despite no explicit requires_python constraint
- What lazy-loader and selective import strategies add to the actual install footprint
- How to instantiate and use the base classes in a standalone environment

## Package facts

- License: BSD-3-Clause (permissive)
- Python support: unspecified
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 753.6K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

datadog agent check development, datadog integration testing, datadog check base classes, agent-based monitoring toolkit, datadog check utilities, datadog-integration, agent-checks, monitoring-toolkit

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