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Technology · head to head

GitHub vs Umami

GitHub logo

GitHub

Technology

Where the world builds software

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: GitHub acquired by Microsoft in 2018, reducing pure independence despite operational autonomy; 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: GitHub covers Git repositories, Umami covers Cookie-free tracking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which GitHub and Umami actually diverge.

Attributes where GitHub and Umami differ
AttributeGitHubUmami
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer month by event count
PlatformsWeb, Desktop, MobileWeb, Linux
CategoryTechnologyMarketing
Founded2008Unknown

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 GitHub

  • Git repositories
  • Pull requests
  • Code review
  • Issues & projects
  • GitHub Actions CI/CD
  • GitHub Pages
  • Security scanning
  • Dependency management

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.

GitHub

  • Version controlnot Umami
  • Code collaborationnot Umami
  • CI/CD pipelinesnot Umami
  • Project managementnot Umami
  • Documentation hostingnot Umami

Umami

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

Where each one falls short

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

GitHub

  • Acquired by Microsoft in 2018, reducing pure independence despite operational autonomy
  • Primary focus on source control differs from purpose-built project management tools like Jira
  • Pricing for enterprise features and private repositories adds up compared to some self-hosted alternatives

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

GitHub

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited public/private repos
    • 2,000 CI/CD minutes/month
    • 500MB package storage
  • Team$4/month
    • Everything in Free
    • 3,000 CI/CD minutes/month
    • 2GB package storage
  • Enterprise$21/month
    • Everything in Team
    • 50,000 CI/CD minutes/month
    • 50GB package storage

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 GitHub if

  • You need git repositories.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Desktop, Mobile.
  • You also want pull requests.
GitHub 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 GitHub or Umami better?
Neither clearly leads. GitHub 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, GitHub or Umami?
GitHub starts at Free and Umami at Free.
Does GitHub or Umami run on more platforms?
GitHub runs on Web, Desktop, Mobile. Umami runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use GitHub for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is GitHub best used for?
GitHub is most often used for version control, code collaboration, ci/cd pipelines, project management. Of those, version control and code collaboration are not what Umami is typically brought in for.
What can GitHub do that Umami cannot?
GitHub covers Git repositories, Pull requests, Code review, Issues & projects. Umami covers Cookie-free tracking, Self-hosting, Small tracking script, Custom events.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

GitHub: What is a Git repository and how does GitHub use it?

A repository is the centralized database that stores the complete collection of files and folders for a codebase, along with the revision history. GitHub uses Git to provide distributed version control access to repositories with version tracking, branching, and collaboration features.

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.

GitHub: How does GitHub authentication work?

When you connect to a GitHub repository from Git, you need to authenticate with GitHub using either HTTPS or SSH. GitHub supports multiple authentication methods including passwords, personal access tokens, SSH keys, and GitHub Apps.

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.

GitHub: How long has GitHub been operating?

GitHub was founded in 2008 and launched publicly on April 10, 2008, making it the dominant git hosting platform for nearly two decades.

Source
Umami: Can it replace Google Analytics?

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

GitHub: Who owns GitHub and when did the acquisition occur?

Microsoft acquired GitHub for $7.5 billion USD, with the deal announced June 4, 2018 and completed October 26, 2018. GitHub operates as an independent subsidiary within Microsoft.

Source
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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