The 10 Best GA4 Alternatives (+ Features and Pricing)

The best Google Analytics 4 (GA4) alternatives include platforms like Amplitude, Mixpanel, and Matomo. Use our roundup of the top 10 GA4 alternatives to find more user-friendly and privacy-focused analytics tools.

When Google sunset Universal Analytics in July 2023, you likely migrated to Google Analytics 4 automatically.

But if your experience is anything like that of many other website owners, the switch hasn’t exactly been smooth.

From user experience issues and privacy concerns to data gaps and attribution limitations, GA4 has created challenges for some. Fortunately, you have plenty of other options to track website and mobile app analytics — either as a complement to GA4 or a full replacement.

In this article, we’ll cover 10 top alternatives to GA4 and why to try them, including HawkSEM Senior SEM Manager Cristin Barta‘s top picks.

Top 10 GA4 alternatives

Whether you need to monitor website traffic, track app usage, or understand user behavior, here are the top Google Analytics alternatives to consider.

We’ll compare each one by analytics features, pros, cons, and pricing.

1. Adobe Analytics

Adobe Analytics is an enterprise-level tool that’s part of the Adobe Experience Cloud. It offers both mobile app and website analytics, including real-time insights.

Barta recommends this platform for its “advanced customization, robust reporting, and many integration options.” However, “it’s rather pricey,” she cautions.

Adobe Analytics’ features include:

• Website and marketing analytics with a complete view of the customer experience
• Attribution features that reveal which channels and campaigns drive results
• Predictive analytics that help your team identify opportunities and plan campaigns

Consider using Adobe Analytics if:

• You already use the Adobe Experience Cloud ecosystem
• You want to integrate Adobe’s Mix Modeler, Customer Journey Analytics, and other tools

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You need a free or more affordable option
• You don’t need extensive software integrations

Adobe Analytics pricing:

• Available upon request

2. Clicky

Clicky is one of the simplest GA4 alternatives and one of the easiest analytics tools to install. But don’t let its basic website deceive you.

It’s a popular choice for marketers and data analysts because of its real-time insights and heatmaps. Clicky is also one of the more privacy-friendly analytics tools.

Clicky features include:

• Real-time website traffic analytics
• Visitor, page view, and event logs
• Bot and referral spam detection
• Heatmaps with page, visitor, and segment analysis

Consider using Clicky if:

• You want to track the same website analytics GA4 offers but you want a better UX
• You’re concerned about privacy and you need a solution that doesn’t use cookies

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You want a full-featured platform with A/B testing and conversion rate optimization (CRO) tools
• You need extensive integrations, as Clicky’s integration library is relatively small

Clicky pricing:

• A free plan is available for up to 3,000 daily page views
• Paid plans start at $9.99 per month for up to 30,000 daily page views

3. Fathom Analytics

Another simple GA4 alternative, Fathom Analytics is a privacy-first tool that protects customer data and visitor privacy. It’s known for being one of the most user-friendly options, thanks to its intuitive dashboard.

Fathom Analytics is also one of the fastest analytics tools to set up. You can install its single line of code and start collecting data on page views and events in minutes.

Fathom Analytics features include:

• Real-time analytics so you can see the impact of campaigns in the moment
• Bot, spam, and scraper blockers so you can focus on human website visitors
• Privacy-first tech with an IP address anonymizer

Consider using Fathom Analytics if:

• Customer privacy is one of your primary concerns, as Fathom Analytics collects no personal data
• You want access to your website analytics data forever (instead of GA4’s 26-month time limit)

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You need mobile app or product analytics
• You want a tool that works with everything, as Fathom Analytics’ native integrations are somewhat limited

Fathom Analytics pricing:

• Starts at $15 per month for up to 100,000 data points

4. Heap

Heap is a digital insights platform that analyzes visitor behavior, maps customer journeys, and tracks events that matter to your business. It works with both website and mobile app analytics.

Heap goes beyond simply tallying page views and events. It also enriches analytics data to help you understand how and why visitors use your site or app — so you can optimize their experience.

Heap features include:

• Heatmaps and session recordings so you can see how visitors use your site or app
• Key performance indicator (KPI) charts so you can measure the metrics that matter
• Funnels so you can monitor whether users follow preset sequences
• Journeys so you can track how users move through your website or app

Consider using Heap if:

• You’re looking for a fully featured analytics solution that integrates with your marketing tools.
• You need a platform with APIs so you can collect more in-depth data.

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You just need a simple analytics solution that tracks page views and events.
• You don’t need a customizable solution with dozens of integrations.

Heap pricing:

• A free plan is available for up to 10,000 monthly sessions. Paid plan prices are available upon request.

5. Mixpanel

Mixpanel tracks actions rather than just pageviews to give a clear picture of what drives engagement and conversions.

With detailed insights into how people engage with your site, app, or product, Mixpanel is designed for teams that want to dig into user behavior, optimize funnels, and improve retention.

This platform can help you make more informed decisions about your marketing and product strategy.

Mixpanel features include:

• Event-based tracking for user actions and behaviors
• Funnel analysis to identify drop-offs and optimize conversions
• Retention reports to measure user engagement over time
• Cohort analysis for deeper audience segmentation
• Custom dashboards and reporting for key metrics

Consider using Mixpanel if:

• Your top priority is understanding user behavior and improving conversions
• You want detailed insights into funnels, retention, and engagement
• You manage a product, app, or SaaS platform

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You need a more traditional, pageview-based analytics tool
• You want built-in marketing automation or CRM features
• You prefer a simpler analytics platform with less setup

Mixpanel pricing:

• A free plan is available with limited data tracking
• Paid plans are usage-based and scale based on events and data volume

6. Amplitude

Amplitude provides deep insights into user behavior across your site, product, or app — built for product and marketing teams that want to understand how users engage, convert, and stick around over time.

Amplitude focuses on event-based tracking and advanced behavioral analysis. The platform makes it easy to uncover patterns, optimize user journeys, and improve retention.

As a result, it’s especially valuable for teams focused on growth and product performance.

Amplitude features include:

• Event-based tracking for detailed user behavior insights
• Funnel analysis to identify conversion opportunities and drop-offs
• Retention analysis to measure user engagement over time
• Cohort analysis for segmenting and comparing user groups
• Predictive analytics and insights powered by machine learning
• Custom dashboards and reporting

Consider using Amplitude if:

• Your top priority is analyzing user behavior and improving retention
• You want advanced analytics and predictive insights
• You manage a product, app, or SaaS platform and need deep data analysis

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You need a simpler analytics tool
• You’re focused on basic website traffic metrics
• You want built-in marketing or CRM functionality

Amplitude pricing:

• A free plan is available with core analytics features
• Paid plans are usage-based and scale depending on data volume and advanced feature needs

7. Matomo

Matomo is an open-source analytics tool and one of the simplest GA4 alternatives. However, this user-friendly tool is easy to customize to meet your needs.

Barta recommends Matomo because “it focuses on data privacy and ownership, providing comprehensive analytics without compromising user data. This makes it suitable for privacy-conscious businesses.”

Matomo features include:

• Accurate, real-time analytics (instead of GA4’s data sampling)
• Unlimited data analysis and storage (instead of GA4’s time limits)
• Heatmaps and session recordings to show you how users navigate your site
• Keyword reports to improve your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts

Consider using Matomo if:

• You want a self-hosted analytics tool, as Matomo has an on-premise option
• You need a tool with a wide range of ecommerce, CRM, and content management system (CMS) integrations

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You want a sleek tool. “Matomo is very simplistic, like a 10-year-old Google Analytics,” Barta shares
• You need a free analytics tool

Matomo pricing:

• The cloud-hosted version starts at $26 per month for up to 50,000 page views
• The self-hosted version starts at $0 per month but has annual fees for add-ons like funnels and user flows

8. Piwik PRO

Piwik PRO is a web and app analytics tool that puts user privacy first. Its consent manager feature handles user permissions, and its multiple tracking options simplify compliance.

With Piwik PRO, you can monitor web and app usage, map customer journeys, and track SEO results. And with its customizable interface, you can build the ideal dashboard for your team.

Piwik PRO features include:

• Customer journey data, including conversion funnels and user flows
• Tag management, including personalized content and pop-ups
• Consent management, including options for collection, amendments, and withdrawals

Consider using Piwik PRO if:

• You need a tool with extensive data visualization, data storage, CMS, and A/B testing integrations
• You want a solution that uses complete datasets rather than data sampling

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You need to analyze a heavily trafficked site or app on a small budget
• You want a simple web or app analytics solution with no bells and whistles
• You need a free option

Piwik PRO pricing:

• Business plans start at around $40 per month (for 25,000 total monthly actions on one domain)
• Enterprise plans start at around $13,000 per year

9. Plausible

Another open-source tool, Plausible is a lightweight option for monitoring web analytics. It’s designed to track web traffic, conversions, campaigns, and revenue, as well as custom events.

Plausible is built and hosted in the EU. As a result, it’s one of the most privacy-focused options. It’s also compliant with all major privacy policies.

Plausible features include:

• Custom events and goals so you can track the metrics your team cares about
• Funnels so you can monitor whether users complete certain series of actions
• Filters and segmentation for deeper insight into visitor behavior
• Integration with Google Search Console for easy search query analysis

Consider using Plausible if:

• You want a simple, user-friendly analytics tool
• You need a lightweight option that won’t slow down your website

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You need a free option
• You want native integrations beyond Google Search Console and popular CMS platforms

Plausible pricing:

• Starts at $9 per month for up to 10,000 page views

10. Simple Analytics

As its name suggests, Simple Analytics is one of the simplest web analytics tools. Its user-friendly dashboard reveals key metrics like page views, traffic sources, user segments, and conversion events.

Simple Analytics also prioritizes privacy. It complies with all major privacy policies, and it stores no personal data on website visitors.

Simple Analytics features include:

• Goal tracker and event explorer features that monitor events and conversion funnels
• AI chatbot that provides insights and answers questions about your analytics
• Easy exports to Looker Studio and other business intelligence tools

Consider using Simple Analytics if:

• You need an analytics tool based and hosted in the EU for privacy or compliance reasons
• You prefer automated, AI-powered insights over manual report analysis

Choose another GA4 alternative if:

• You need an analytics tool with robust integrations, as Simple Analytics’ are relatively limited
• You need to onboard a large team, as Simple Analytics standard plans allow five users only

Simple Analytics pricing:

• A free plan is available for personal sites
• Paid plans start at $15 per month

How does Google Analytics 4 compare to Universal Analytics?

If you were accustomed to using Universal Analytics, you’ve probably noticed several differences in GA4. Most significantly, Universal Analytics tracked user sessions, while GA4 tracks website or app events.

It’s true that GA4 keeps a running tally of website visitors and page views. But it’s engineered to track website and app actions like page loads, link clicks, and purchases — including custom events.

On the surface, these changes are positive. After all, event tracking makes the user journey easier to map.

However, GA4 has several downsides:

• Its user interface (UI) isn’t intuitive. Instead, it’s challenging to navigate, leading to a poor UX and creating a steep learning curve.
• Many standard Universal Analytics reports aren’t available in GA4, causing users to spend time developing their own.
• Tool integration is necessary for maximum value. Yet teams with limited resources can’t always leverage tools like Looker Studio or BigQuery.
• Privacy concerns persist, particularly for businesses subject to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

When to consider an alternative to GA4

GA4 may meet some brands’ website and app analytics needs.

But Barta explains that you should “consider alternatives to GA4 if you need a more straightforward setup, detailed custom reporting, real-time data access, or if you prioritize data privacy and ownership.”

In other words, choose one of the analytics solutions above if you:

• Can’t find the data your team needs in GA4, which compromises your ability to make data-driven decisions.
• Need real-time analytics so you can reliably see the impact of marketing and advertising efforts in the moment.
• Want customizable reports but you don’t have data scientists available to handle data collection and exports in Looker Studio or BigQuery.
• Need a CCPA- or GDPR-compliant solution that doesn’t create user privacy issues and that allows you to maintain ownership of your data.

What to watch for when switching analytics tools

Switching analytics platforms isn’t always a foolproof process. As you consider your options, keep these issues in mind so you can avoid major problems with your website or app data.

Historical data loss

If you’ve been using GA4 since it first rolled out, then the analytics suite already holds years’ worth of your website or app data.

However, “switching to a GA4 alternative can cause data migration challenges, including potential loss of historical data,” Barta explains.

To avoid losing data, confirm that any analytics tool you consider allows historical data imports. Make sure to check the cost and any limits on imports so you aren’t surprised when you start the migration.

Higher costs

One of the biggest perks of GA4 is the fact that it’s completely free to use. While some GA4 competitors have free plans, many are paid software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions.

As Barta explains, switching to an alternative almost always means higher costs. This is especially true for websites or apps that attract substantial traffic.

Before switching, weigh the true cost of the solution — including the cost of inaction.

Integration issues

As a Google product, GA4 integrates seamlessly with the entire Google product suite. As a result, it works with Looker Studio, Google Search Console, Google Ads, Google Tag Manager, and many other tools.

If you rely on these or other tools to run your website or app, make sure they integrate with any GA4 alternative you choose before you make the switch.

Training needs

GA4 is known for being one of the more challenging app and web analytics platforms to use. Yet any time you add new software to your tech stack, you can expect a learning curve.

Barta cautions, “Moving platforms means additional training.” Before making the switch, review the platform’s onboarding and training materials so you feel confident you’ll get your team up to speed quickly.

The takeaway

Adopting a new analytics platform can be daunting. But with the right tools, you can gain new insight into the customer journey, analyze campaign results, and manage your marketing more effectively.

To enhance your digital marketing strategy, get in touch with our experienced team. Contact HawkSEM for a free search engine marketing (SEM) consultation today.

This article has been updated and was originally published in July 2024.