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Browser Extensions · head to head

Ghostery vs Umami

Ghostery logo

Ghostery

Browser Extensions

Block ads and stop trackers

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Umami logo

Umami

Marketing

Open source, cookie-free web analytics you can self-host for the cost of a database

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Ghostery database of trackers requires regular updates to remain current; Umami there is no cohort analysis, retention curve, session replay or multi-touch attribution, so a marketing team that needs to justify channel spend will still buy a second tool and Umami becomes a supplementary dashboard.
  • They diverge on capability: Ghostery covers Tracker blocking, Umami covers Cookie-free tracking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Ghostery and Umami actually diverge.

Attributes where Ghostery and Umami differ
AttributeGhosteryUmami
Pricing modelUnknownPer month by event count
PlatformsFirefox, Chrome, Edge, Safari, OperaWeb, Linux
CategoryBrowser ExtensionsMarketing
Founded2009Unknown

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 Ghostery

  • Tracker blocking
  • Ad blocking
  • Privacy dashboard
  • Enhanced anti-tracking
  • Chrome support
  • Firefox support
  • Edge support
  • Safari support

Only in Umami

  • Cookie-free tracking
  • Self-hosting
  • Small tracking script
  • Custom events
  • Funnels and goals
  • Multi-site and teams
  • Public dashboards
  • API access

What people use each for

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

Ghostery

  • Blocking ads and sponsored content before they loadnot Umami
  • Preventing tracker profiling by replacing identifying data with random valuesnot Umami
  • Automatically rejecting non-essential cookie consentnot Umami
  • Seeing which companies track a given site through WhoTracks.Menot Umami

Umami

  • A developer who wants traffic numbers on a personal or client site without adding a consent bannernot Ghostery
  • An organisation whose legal or procurement team has ruled out sending visitor data to a US advertising companynot Ghostery
  • A high-traffic site where hosted analytics priced by pageview band has become expensive and self-hosting removes the ceiling entirelynot Ghostery
  • A team that wants analytics data in a database they already control so they can query and join it themselvesnot Ghostery

Where each one falls short

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

Ghostery

  • Database of trackers requires regular updates to remain current
  • Some sites break functionality when trackers are aggressively blocked

Umami

  • There is no cohort analysis, retention curve, session replay or multi-touch attribution, so a marketing team that needs to justify channel spend will still buy a second tool and Umami becomes a supplementary dashboard.
  • Self-hosting is only free in licence terms; you own the database, the upgrades, the backups and the query performance at scale, and a busy site's events table grows quickly enough to need real attention.
  • Because it stores no persistent identifier, it cannot follow a user across devices or sessions in any meaningful way, which makes returning-visitor and lifetime-value questions unanswerable by design rather than by omission.
  • Cloud overage is billed per event beyond the plan allowance, so a traffic spike or a badly instrumented custom event can produce a bill materially above the $20 or $200 headline before anyone notices.
  • It is maintained by a small team, so the pace of new capability is modest and enterprise expectations such as SSO, granular role permissions and formal support agreements are limited compared with commercial analytics vendors.

Pricing, plan by plan

Ghostery

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Ghostery review.

Umami

Free
  • Self-hostedFree
    • MIT licensed, no licence fee
    • No event limit imposed by the software
    • Unlimited websites and users
  • Cloud HobbyFree
    • Up to 100,000 events per month
    • 3 websites
    • 6 months data retention
  • Cloud Pro$20/month
    • Up to 1,000,000 events per month
    • Unlimited websites
    • Unlimited team members
  • Cloud Business$200/month
    • Up to 10,000,000 events per month
    • All Pro features
    • Higher volume overage rate

Which should you pick?

Choose Ghostery if

  • You need tracker blocking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Firefox, Chrome, Edge, Safari, Opera.
  • You also want ad blocking.
Ghostery review

Choose Umami if

  • You need cookie-free tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux.
  • You also want self-hosting.
Umami review

Questions people ask

Is Ghostery or Umami better?
Neither clearly leads. Ghostery starts at Free and Umami at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ghostery or Umami?
Ghostery starts at Free and Umami at Free.
Does Ghostery or Umami run on more platforms?
Ghostery runs on Firefox, Chrome, Edge, Safari, Opera. Umami runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use Ghostery for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Ghostery best used for?
Ghostery is most often used for blocking ads and sponsored content before they load, preventing tracker profiling by replacing identifying data with random values, automatically rejecting non-essential cookie consent, seeing which companies track a given site through whotracks.me. Of those, blocking ads and sponsored content before they load and preventing tracker profiling by replacing identifying data with random values are not what Umami is typically brought in for.
What can Ghostery do that Umami cannot?
Ghostery covers Tracker blocking, Ad blocking, Privacy dashboard, Enhanced anti-tracking. Umami covers Cookie-free tracking, Self-hosting, Small tracking script, Custom events.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Ghostery: Is Ghostery completely free?

Yes. Ghostery is a free ad blocking browser extension that you can install without paying a subscription. All of Ghostery's features are completely free to use, including ad blocking, tracker blocking, and cookie consent banner handling.

Source
Umami: Is Umami really free?

Self-hosted, yes; it is MIT licensed with no event cap. You pay for the server and database. Umami Cloud has a free tier at 100,000 events a month and paid tiers from $20.

Ghostery: What browsers does Ghostery support?

Ghostery is available for Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Edge and Safari as a browser extension.

Source
Umami: Do I need a cookie consent banner?

For Umami analytics specifically, generally no, because it sets no cookies and stores no personal data. Other tags on your site may still require one.

Ghostery: What data does Ghostery collect?

Ghostery collects no personal information, ensuring your privacy remains protected while using the extension.

Source
Umami: Can it replace Google Analytics?

For traffic, referrers and event counts, yes. For attribution modelling, audiences and advertising integration, no.

Umami: What does it need to run?

A container and a PostgreSQL or MySQL database. Most people deploy it on infrastructure they already pay for.

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