Softwr

E-Commerce · head to head

FullStory vs Google Cloud SQL

FullStory logo

FullStory

E-Commerce

Digital experience intelligence platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Google Cloud SQL logo

Google Cloud SQL

Databases

Fully managed relational database service for MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: FullStory free tier limited to 30,000 sessions per month, no 5,000+ monthly active user sites; Google Cloud SQL locked into Google Cloud ecosystem with limited cross-cloud portability
  • They diverge on capability: FullStory covers Session replay, Google Cloud SQL covers High Availability.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which FullStory and Google Cloud SQL actually diverge.

Attributes where FullStory and Google Cloud SQL differ
AttributeFullStoryGoogle Cloud SQL
Pricing modelquoteusage-based
PlatformsWeb, MobileGoogle Cloud Platform
CategoryE-CommerceDatabases
Founded20142008

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 FullStory

  • Session replay
  • Heatmaps
  • Conversion funnels
  • User journey mapping
  • Error tracking
  • Frustration signals
  • Search functionality
  • Custom events

Only in Google Cloud SQL

  • High Availability
  • Automated Backups
  • Point-in-time Recovery
  • Encryption
  • Regional/Zonal Instances
  • Read Replicas
  • Private IP
  • BigQuery

What people use each for

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

FullStory

  • User experience analysisnot Google Cloud SQL
  • Bug reproductionnot Google Cloud SQL
  • Conversion optimizationnot Google Cloud SQL
  • Customer supportnot Google Cloud SQL
  • Product developmentnot Google Cloud SQL

Google Cloud SQL

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

Where each one falls short

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

FullStory

  • Free tier limited to 30,000 sessions per month, no 5,000+ monthly active user sites
  • Personal email addresses cannot be used for signup; business email domain required
  • Paid plan pricing not publicly listed, requires sales contact for quotes
  • Free plan has no email support, only community-based assistance
  • Mobile app analytics requires a separate add-on purchase

Google Cloud SQL

  • Locked into Google Cloud ecosystem with limited cross-cloud portability
  • Pay-as-you-go pricing can become expensive with unpredictable workloads
  • Limited customization options compared to self-managed databases

Pricing, plan by plan

FullStory

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1,000 sessions/month
    • 14-day data retention
    • Basic analytics
  • Business$undefined/month
    • Custom sessions
    • 3-month retention
    • Advanced analytics
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Unlimited sessions
    • Custom retention
    • Advanced privacy controls

Google Cloud SQL

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • db-f1-micro instance
    • 30GB storage
    • Limited usage
  • Standard$25/month
    • High availability
    • Automated backups
    • Point-in-time recovery

Which should you pick?

Choose FullStory if

  • You need session replay.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want heatmaps.
FullStory review

Choose Google Cloud SQL if

  • You need high availability.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Google Cloud Platform.
  • You also want automated backups.
Google Cloud SQL review

Questions people ask

Is FullStory or Google Cloud SQL better?
Neither clearly leads. FullStory starts at Free and Google Cloud SQL at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, FullStory or Google Cloud SQL?
FullStory starts at Free and Google Cloud SQL at Free.
Does FullStory or Google Cloud SQL run on more platforms?
FullStory runs on Web, Mobile. Google Cloud SQL runs on Google Cloud Platform.
Can I use FullStory for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is FullStory best used for?
FullStory is most often used for user experience analysis, bug reproduction, conversion optimization, customer support. Of those, user experience analysis and bug reproduction are not what Google Cloud SQL is typically brought in for.
What can FullStory do that Google Cloud SQL cannot?
FullStory covers Session replay, Heatmaps, Conversion funnels, User journey mapping. Google Cloud SQL covers High Availability, Automated Backups, Point-in-time Recovery, Encryption.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

FullStory: What does FullStory's free tier include?

30,000 sessions per month, 10 user seats, 5,000 server-side events per month, 1 year of session replay retention, and 1 year of product analytics retention. Session capture pauses when you exceed the monthly limit, though existing sessions remain accessible.

Source
Google Cloud SQL: What database engines does Google Cloud SQL support?

Google Cloud SQL supports MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server. Users can choose their preferred engine when provisioning an instance and Google handles automated backups, replication, patching, and scaling.

Source
FullStory: What features are excluded from the free plan?

Dashboards, configurable form privacy, Go-Live functionality, Streams, client-side rate hooks, mobile app analytics, and StoryAI are not available on the free tier. Email support is also unavailable; only community-based help is provided.

Source
Google Cloud SQL: Does Google Cloud SQL have a free tier?

Google Cloud SQL does not have a free tier, though new users receive free trial credits from Google Cloud Platform. Pricing is based on compute resources (CPU and memory) and storage used, with options for committed use discounts.

Source
FullStory: Can I use a personal email to sign up for FullStory's free plan?

No. FullStory requires a business email domain for signup; personal email services like Gmail cannot be used for free plan registration.

Source
Google Cloud SQL: Can Google Cloud SQL scale automatically?

Yes. Cloud SQL automatically scales database storage and compute resources to handle increased workloads without manual intervention, and includes automated backups and high availability configurations.

Source
FullStory: How does FullStory integrate with Slack?

FullStory's Slack integration allows individual users to send noteworthy sessions to Slack channels. Advanced and Enterprise plans can configure Alerts to receive notifications in Slack when user metrics exceed defined thresholds.

Source
FullStory: What analytics platforms does FullStory integrate with?

FullStory integrates with Segment, Mixpanel, Adobe Analytics, Google Analytics, Salesforce, HubSpot, and others. These integrations allow you to attach FullStory session URLs to events in your analytics platform for cross-platform correlation.

Source
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