Web analytics tools, compared on measured data

What a web analytics tool is, and what this table compares

A web analytics tool counts visits to a website and reports which pages people opened, where they came from and what they did, such as signing up or downloading a file. The table compares 44 of them on compressed script size, price at 100k a month in each vendor’s unit, cookies, where the data is stored and whether the code is open. Every value shows the date it was checked.

How to choose a web analytics tool

Start with the requirement you cannot change. For many sites, that is where the data may be stored or whether the tool may use cookies. Narrow the list with it first, then compare price, hosting and script size among the tools that remain. This order keeps a low price or a light script from hiding a deal-breaker.

1. Where the data is stored. If your data has to stay in the EU, start with the Data in EU column. A self-hosted tool keeps the data wherever you run it.
2. Whether the tool uses cookies. The Cookieless column shows which tools count visits without cookies by default. Whether you need a consent banner is a separate question; see what “cookieless” means here.
3. What it costs at your traffic. Estimate your monthly volume in the unit each vendor bills; the unit is shown under the At 100k / month price. Check what counts toward that unit, because some vendors count custom events as well as pageviews. On the vendor’s pricing page, also check what a plan includes, such as the number of sites and how long data is kept.
4. Whether you want to run it yourself. The label under each tool name shows whether the tool runs in the vendor’s cloud, on your own server or both. Self-hosting comes with its own work; see cloud or your own server and open-source tools you can self-host.
5. How much script it adds. The Script, gzip column shows the compressed size of the tracking file your pages load, on the day it was measured. The methodology explains what this number covers.

To use the table, click a column heading to sort by it and click it again to reverse the order; empty values stay at the bottom. The criterion pages listed above show the same columns for a narrower set of tools. A linked tool name opens the tool’s card, with its features and the dates of its checks. The Status column shows whether a tool is active, paused or closed, and shutdowns are also recorded in the market log. A dash means the value is not confirmed, “On request” means the vendor does not list the price, and “No longer sold” marks a service that has closed.

Free web analytics tools

22 of the 44 tools have a free plan in the vendor’s cloud, and they are not the same offer. The volume is counted in the unit that vendor bills, so one plan counts pageviews and the next counts events, sessions or tracked users, and the numbers do not line up. Two other limits decide as often: how long the data is kept, and how many sites a plan covers. On a free plan from a large product the volume is usually the generous part, while the cap sits in a shorter history or in reports held back for the paid plans. A price of Free in the main table can also mean the tool is offered only for self-hosting, so you pay for a server instead of a subscription.

A dash means the vendor does not publish a monthly limit for its free plan. The unit differs by vendor, so compare these numbers only between tools that bill in the same one. See how we check every value.

Read each limit together with the unit it is counted in; rows in different units are not comparable. Tools that cost nothing only because you run them yourself are not in this list: in the main table they show Free in the price column and Your server in the Data in EU column.

Cloud or self-hosted web analytics software

In the cloud the vendor runs the software and you pay by the month for the volume you send; 33 tools in the table offer hosting in the EU. On your own server the subscription goes away and the cost moves to the machine, the database, updates and backups, and to whoever deals with them when a query slows down; some vendors charge a licence for the on-premise build. The data then sits wherever you put the server.

Open source and self-hosted are two different labels. 16 tools publish their code and 17 can run on your own server, and the sets do not match: some published code is sold only as a hosted service, and some closed products ship an on-premise build. The open-source tools you can self-host page lists the ones that are both, and several vendors there sell the same software either way.

Questions and answers

How current are the values in the table?

The table shows three dates: under the status, the day of the last status check; under the price at 100k, the day we last read the pricing page; and under the script size, the day of the measurement. The dates differ because each of these values is checked on its own. If a date looks old for the decision you are making, confirm the value on the vendor’s site. To report a value that has changed, see the Corrections section of the methodology.

What does “At 100k / month” mean?

It is the monthly price of the cheapest hosted plan that covers 100,000 units a month, in the unit the vendor bills, such as pageviews or events; the unit is shown under the price. Prices are for monthly billing, without VAT, in the vendor’s currency. Compare this column directly only between tools that bill in the same unit. “Free” means that a free plan covers this volume or that the tool is offered only for self-hosting, in which case you pay for your own server instead.

Does a cookieless tool remove the need for a consent banner?

Not by itself. The Cookieless column describes what a tool stores in the browser by default. Whether you need consent depends on the rules that apply to your site and your visitors, on what else your pages load and on how you configure the tool. Where a vendor says its tool needs no banner, the tool card shows this as the vendor’s position. This directory does not give legal advice; the page on what “cookieless” means here explains the difference in more detail.

Why is there no overall score or ranking?

Because the right tool depends on the trade-off you can accept, and a single number would make that choice for you. Instead, the table shows values you can check, with dates for status, prices and script sizes, sorted by name until you sort it yourself. The page on why there is no overall score explains the approach.

Which web analytics tool is the best?

There is no single best one, and this directory does not name one. The choice is usually settled by the requirement you cannot change, such as where the data may be stored or whether the tool may set cookies; what survives that filter is then compared on price, hosting and script size. The section on how to choose a web analytics tool works through that order, and why there is no overall score explains the reasoning.

What is the best free web analytics tool?

That depends on which limit you hit first. Free plans differ in the volume they cover, the unit that volume is counted in, how long the data is kept and how many sites are included, so a plan that looks generous on one of those can be tight on another. The section on free web analytics tools covers 22 of them, with the stated limit where a vendor publishes one.

Is there a free alternative to Google Analytics?

Yes. 22 tools in the table have a free plan, and some of the open-source ones are free to run on your own server. Whether one of them covers what you use Google Analytics for is the harder question: start with the free web analytics tools section for what each free plan covers, then read the rest of the columns against the Google Analytics 4 card.