As conversations around user privacy intensify, businesses are seeking analytics solutions that prioritize privacy without compromising the quality of insights. This is my run down of four alternatives to Google Analytics, each of which embodies the ethos of privacy-first analytics, offering you quality data while respecting your visitors’ privacy… plus my top pick and personal favourite.
If you’re wondering why you should consider ditching Google Analytics, check out my previous post here.
Matomo
One of the most renowned alternatives to Google Analytics, Matomo, strikes a balance between in-depth information and privacy. It’s an open-source tool that can be installed on-premises, negating the need to share data with third parties.
Matomo fits businesses of all sizes seeking a Google Analytics substitute. The cloud-based variant is user-friendly and quick to set up, perfect for non-tech savvy users. Matomo even offers cookie-less tracking, although it slightly compromises data quality.
Fathom
Fathom, another Google Analytics rival, is built on the foundation of user privacy. This single-page application tracks essential web statistics, including unique visitors, page views, time on site, bounce rate, and referral data. It also features a basic event tracking system to measure metrics like downloads, mailing list signups, and purchases.
Ditch complex, intrusive web analytics for Fathom – a better Google Analytics alternative. Experience ease of use, forever data retention, and complete, worry-free GDPR compliance – all while protecting your time and your visitors’ digital privacy. That means you don’t have to clutter your site or slow it down with cookie consent banners and notices for your site’s analytics.
Plausible
For those in need of a lightweight tool, Plausible serves as a fitting alternative to Google Analytics. It effectively tracks simple web metrics like page views and unique visitors but falls short of a full-fledged product analytics platform.
Plausible is ideal for small content and marketing teams requiring basic website metrics tracking, and for freelancers or bloggers who need to monitor smaller sites. With a focus on simplicity, Plausible presents essential insights on a single page without the need for custom reports or dashboards. Pricing is pageview-based, with up to 100k views costing £19 per month.
Cabin
Cabin stands on the principles of privacy-by-design, rendering it impossible to identify individual visitors due to its data collection and storage method. Cabin ensures 100% anonymous visitor data, meeting global privacy law standards.
My Top Pick
As privacy becomes a critical concern for users, transitioning to privacy-first analytics tools can be a valuable step for your business. Whether it’s Matomo’s on-premise deployment, Fathom’s simplicity, Plausible’s lightweight nature, or Cabin’s comprehensive privacy design, each of these alternatives brings unique benefits. The right choice depends on your specific needs and how much you value privacy in your analytics solution.
Personally, I’m using Fathom for my own sites now. I’m also adding this as a feature to all my Maintenance Plans, so you can track your website using all the pro features of Fathom.
Plus – if you sign up with this link you’ll get $10 off your first invoice (aff link).