Quick answer: Our top pick is Google Analytics 4, followed by Fathom Analytics and Matomo. Entry prices start near $9/mo. All 5 are compared below on price, strengths and the key trade-off of each, so you can match one to your needs.
Every pick is here for a concrete reason, spelled out below. This guide rounds up the 5 tools we'd actually recommend for this job, with what each does best, what it costs, and who should pick it.
We looked at where each tool genuinely earns its keep for this use case, what the entry tier really costs, and who walks away happy. Pricing reflects public plans at the time of writing.
Free Starter (up to ~50k MTUs); Plus from ~$49/mo; Growth/Enterprise custom
product-teams
The picks, ranked
1. Google Analytics 4 Web Analytics
The default, free, event-based web and app analytics standard, deeply integrated with Google Ads and Search Console for quantitative measurement. Best suited to teams that care most about measurement.
Why it's on this list: The free, default analytics standard, deeply tied to Google Ads and Search Console. Built for most websites and ecommerce teams wanting free quantitative measurement.
Standout features:
Event-based web and app analytics (GA4)
Real-time and exploration reports
Standout strength: Free and the de-facto measurement standard.
Worth knowing: Explorations sample once a dataset exceeds ~10M events; BigQuery export is unsampled.
Privacy-focused, GDPR/CCPA-compliant, cookie-free Google Analytics alternative with a simple dashboard and no data sampling. A strong default when privacy is the priority.
Why it's on this list: Privacy-first analytics with built-in EU Isolation and no data sampling. Built for privacy-focused businesses wanting compliant, accurate analytics without GA complexity.
Standout features:
Custom events and goals
Email/UI reports and uptime monitoring
Standout strength: Up to 50 sites included on the entry plan.
Worth knowing: CNIL confirmed cookieless analytics with no PII needs no consent banner.
Pricing: ~$15/mo (100k pageviews) scaling by volume; 30-day free trial
Open-source, fully data-owned web analytics platform positioned as an ethical Google Analytics alternative, available self-hosted (free) or cloud-hosted. It stands out for data-ownership without a heavy setup cost.
Why it's on this list: An open-source, fully data-owned GA alternative you can self-host for free. Built for privacy- and data-ownership-focused organisations wanting control over analytics.
Standout features:
Google Analytics importer
No data sampling
Standout strength: Free forever when self-hosted.
Worth knowing: Cloud counts a hit as a pageview, download or event.
Pricing: Self-hosted free (open source); Cloud from ~$26/mo by traffic volume; free trial
Lightweight, privacy-first, cookie-free Google Analytics alternative; open-source, EU-hosted and GDPR-friendly with a simple single-page dashboard. Best suited to teams that care most about privacy.
Why it's on this list: A privacy-first, cookie-free GA alternative that is open source and EU-hosted. Aimed squarely at privacy-conscious site owners and small businesses wanting simple GDPR-friendly analytics.
Standout features:
Custom events and goal conversions
Campaign/UTM tracking
Standout strength: Open source with a free self-hosted option.
Worth knowing: Cookie-free and stores no personal data or IP addresses; no consent banner required.
Pricing: ~$9/mo (10k pageviews) up to higher tiers by volume; self-hosted free (open source); free trial
Enterprise-grade digital analytics platform for product, behavioral and growth analytics with strong cohort, retention and experimentation features. It stands out for product-teams without a heavy setup cost.
Why it's on this list: Enterprise-grade product analytics with built-in experimentation and cohorting. Made for product, growth and data teams running experimentation and behavioural analysis.
Standout features:
Behavioural and product analytics
Cohorts, retention and funnels
Standout strength: Enterprise-grade behavioural and growth analytics.
Worth knowing: Billed by MTU (monthly tracked users); an MTU is a unique user with 1+ events in a month.
Pricing: Free Starter (up to ~50k MTUs); Plus from ~$49/mo; Growth/Enterprise custom
If you're optimising for budget, start at the lower-priced options and only move up when you hit a real limit. If output quality or team features matter more than price, the top picks above will save you time. When two options look close, try both free tiers on one real task before committing — the right fit is usually obvious within an hour.
FAQ
What is the best option in this list?
For most people, Google Analytics 4 is the strongest all-round pick in this guide, but the right choice depends on your budget and exact workflow.
Are there free options?
No permanent free plan stands out, but Fathom Analytics, Matomo and Plausible Analytics run a trial so you can test before committing.
How were these tools chosen?
Each pick is judged on fit for the specific job in this guide — its real strengths, pricing and who it suits — using features and facts drawn from independent reviews and the vendors' own documentation, cited in Sources below.
How often is this guide updated?
We revisit pricing and rankings regularly as vendors change plans and ship features.
Sources
The features, strengths and facts cited for each pick above are drawn from these independent reviews and vendor pages: