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Databases · head to head

Amazon Aurora vs Hotjar

Amazon Aurora logo

Amazon Aurora

Databases

MySQL and PostgreSQL-compatible relational database built for the cloud

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Hotjar logo

Hotjar

E-Commerce

Understand how users behave on your site

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Amazon Aurora aurora requires AWS ecosystem knowledge and integration with other AWS services; Hotjar website performance impact - Hotjar tracking code can cause noticeable slowdowns affecting site speed and Google rankings
  • They diverge on capability: Amazon Aurora covers MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible, Hotjar covers Heatmaps.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amazon Aurora and Hotjar actually diverge.

Attributes where Amazon Aurora and Hotjar differ
AttributeAmazon AuroraHotjar
Pricing modelusage-basedUnknown
PlatformsAWS CloudWeb
CategoryDatabasesE-Commerce
Founded20062014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Amazon Aurora

  • MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible
  • 5x MySQL Performance
  • Auto-scaling Storage
  • Global Database
  • Serverless v2
  • Multi-master
  • Fault Tolerant
  • AWS Lambda

Only in Hotjar

  • Heatmaps
  • Session recordings
  • Feedback widgets
  • Surveys
  • User interviews
  • Conversion funnels
  • Form analytics
  • Rage click detection

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Amazon Aurora

  • Transaction processingnot Hotjar
  • Data storagenot Hotjar
  • Application backendnot Hotjar
  • Reportingnot Hotjar
  • Data analyticsnot Hotjar

Hotjar

  • User behavior analysisnot Amazon Aurora
  • Conversion optimizationnot Amazon Aurora
  • UX researchnot Amazon Aurora
  • Customer feedbacknot Amazon Aurora
  • Usability testingnot Amazon Aurora

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Amazon Aurora

  • Aurora requires AWS ecosystem knowledge and integration with other AWS services
  • Pricing can become expensive with high-traffic applications using many read replicas
  • Limited support for non-relational data types compared to NoSQL alternatives

Hotjar

  • Website performance impact - Hotjar tracking code can cause noticeable slowdowns affecting site speed and Google rankings
  • Session recording limits - free and lower-tier plans have monthly session recording caps that must be sampled above the limit
  • Inaccurate heatmaps on dynamic pages - heatmaps fail to display correctly on pages with modals, sticky navigation bars, and pop-up overlays
  • No mobile app - only web-based access available
  • Not real-time analytics - includes slight data processing delay

Pricing, plan by plan

Amazon Aurora

Free
  • Serverless v2$0.12/hour
    • Auto-scaling
    • Pay per ACU
    • Instant scaling
  • Provisioned$29/month
    • Dedicated instances
    • Predictable performance
    • Reserved capacity

Hotjar

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Hotjar review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Amazon Aurora if

  • You need mysql/postgresql compatible.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on AWS Cloud.
  • You also want 5x mysql performance.
Amazon Aurora review

Choose Hotjar if

  • You need heatmaps.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want session recordings.
Hotjar review

Questions people ask

Is Amazon Aurora or Hotjar better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon Aurora starts at Free and Hotjar at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon Aurora or Hotjar?
Amazon Aurora starts at Free and Hotjar at Free.
Does Amazon Aurora or Hotjar run on more platforms?
Amazon Aurora runs on AWS Cloud. Hotjar runs on Web.
Can I use Amazon Aurora for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Amazon Aurora best used for?
Amazon Aurora is most often used for transaction processing, data storage, application backend, reporting. Of those, transaction processing and data storage are not what Hotjar is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon Aurora do that Hotjar cannot?
Amazon Aurora covers MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible, 5x MySQL Performance, Auto-scaling Storage, Global Database. Hotjar covers Heatmaps, Session recordings, Feedback widgets, Surveys.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon Aurora: Is Amazon Aurora compatible with MySQL and PostgreSQL?

Yes, Amazon Aurora offers MySQL and PostgreSQL compatibility with full compatibility to their open-source counterparts, allowing you to migrate existing databases with standard tools.

Source
Hotjar: Does Hotjar have a free tier?

Yes. Hotjar's free plan (now under Contentsquare) includes 200,000 monthly sessions, 10,000 session replays, and unlimited heatmaps, with no time limit on the free tier.

Source
Amazon Aurora: What uptime SLA does Amazon Aurora provide?

Aurora is designed for up to 99.99% single-region uptime and 99.999% multi-region uptime with automatic failover.

Source
Hotjar: Can I export my data from Hotjar?

Yes. Hotjar allows exporting heatmaps as JPG images, survey responses as CSV files, and session recording metadata. Advanced export options are available through the Hotjar API.

Source
Amazon Aurora: How much does Amazon Aurora cost?

Aurora uses serverless, usage-based pricing where you pay only for consumed capacity. Typical pricing ranges from $50-70 per month for minimal setups to $400-600 per month for small production clusters.

Source
Hotjar: Does Hotjar provide real-time analytics?

No. Hotjar has a slight delay in data processing and does not offer true real-time analytics compared to some competitors.

Source
Amazon Aurora: Can Amazon Aurora scale automatically?

Yes, Aurora automatically scales to match workload demands without performance degradation, supporting both read and write scaling.

Source
Hotjar: What integrations does Hotjar support?

Hotjar integrates with Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Slack, HubSpot, Jira, Linear, Microsoft Teams, Zapier, and hundreds of other tools through its API and partner integrations.

Source
Amazon Aurora: How many read replicas does Aurora support?

Aurora supports up to 15 low-latency read replicas for distributing read traffic across your application.

Source
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