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Marketing · head to head

Google Analytics vs Roxhill

Google Analytics logo

Google Analytics

Marketing

Get to know your customers

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Roxhill logo

Roxhill

Marketing

UK-focused journalist database and media monitoring, founder-owned and annual only

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Google Analytics has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Google Analytics data retention limited to maximum 26 months on standard properties, with automatic deletion after retention period expires; Roxhill the database is UK-centric by reviewers’ own account, with weak US, Australian and broader Asian journalist coverage, so any multi-market programme needs a second vendor and the single-vendor cost case disappears.
  • They diverge on capability: Google Analytics covers Real-time analytics, Roxhill covers Journalist database.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Google Analytics and Roxhill actually diverge.

Attributes where Google Analytics and Roxhill differ
AttributeGoogle AnalyticsRoxhill
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android
Founded1998Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Marketing).

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 Google Analytics

  • Real-time analytics
  • Audience insights
  • Acquisition tracking
  • Behavior flow
  • Conversion tracking
  • Custom reports
  • Mobile analytics
  • E-commerce tracking

Only in Roxhill

  • Journalist database
  • Journalist profiles
  • Media lists and distribution
  • Media requests and alerts
  • Media monitoring
  • Bespoke newsletters
  • Historical search
  • Journalist Assistant

What people use each for

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

Google Analytics

  • Website and web application analyticsnot Roxhill
  • Event tracking and user behaviour analysisnot Roxhill
  • Traffic source and conversion trackingnot Roxhill

Roxhill

  • A UK in-house press office that needs journalist contacts with current pitching preferences rather than a scraped byline list.not Google Analytics
  • An agency tracking forward features across UK trade and consumer titles to place clients into planned coverage months ahead.not Google Analytics
  • A communications team monitoring named spokespeople and measuring their share of voice against competitors in UK media.not Google Analytics
  • A UK public sector body procuring through G-Cloud that needs EEA-hosted media monitoring with a published framework price band.not Google Analytics

Where each one falls short

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

Google Analytics

  • Data retention limited to maximum 26 months on standard properties, with automatic deletion after retention period expires
  • Large and XL properties capped at 2-month data retention only
  • Age, gender, and interest data always expire after 2 months regardless of retention settings
  • Free tier does not include GA360 advanced features

Roxhill

  • The database is UK-centric by reviewers’ own account, with weak US, Australian and broader Asian journalist coverage, so any multi-market programme needs a second vendor and the single-vendor cost case disappears.
  • Contact records go stale: reviewers report old email addresses and phone numbers, distribution bounces, and there is no self-serve verification step before you send.
  • At roughly 200,000 to 300,000 journalists it is far smaller than the million-plus figures Cision and Prowly claim, with repeated complaints about thin trade, academic and journal coverage.
  • Selling is annual only with no monthly plan and a trial functionally restricted to around two weeks, so you cannot genuinely pilot before a twelve-month commitment, which is a poor fit for project or retainer agency work.
  • Licence bands are 1, 3 and 5 seats, and extra logins, workspaces, smart folders, historical search, share of voice and the spokespeople platform are all chargeable add-ons, so a team of eight to fifteen pays well above any headline band.
  • Search behaviour is described as counter-intuitive and sometimes returns implausibly few results, which means a null result cannot be trusted and lists need manual cross-checking.
  • Monitoring accuracy takes time to settle after switching, so coverage is missed in the first weeks after a cutover, which is a real gap risk if you time the migration badly.

Pricing, plan by plan

Google Analytics

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Google Analytics review.

Roxhill

On request
  • Core$undefined/year
    • 1 licence
    • Standard database access
    • Journalist Assistant
  • Boutique$undefined/year
    • 3 licences
    • Adds press release distribution
    • 3 workspaces, 6 smart folders, 10 spokespeople, 3 newsletters
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • 5 licences
    • 5 workspaces, 10 smart folders, 5 newsletters
    • Spokespeople platform
  • Premium$undefined/year
    • Everything in Enterprise
    • Insights analysis and bespoke reporting
    • Competitor share of voice

Which should you pick?

Choose Google Analytics if

  • You need real-time analytics.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want audience insights.
Google Analytics review

Choose Roxhill if

  • You need journalist database.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want journalist profiles.
Roxhill review

Questions people ask

Is Google Analytics or Roxhill better?
Neither clearly leads. Google Analytics starts at Free and Roxhill at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Google Analytics or Roxhill?
Google Analytics has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Google Analytics and On request for Roxhill.
Does Google Analytics or Roxhill run on more platforms?
Google Analytics runs on Web. Roxhill runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Google Analytics for free?
Yes. Google Analytics has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Roxhill starts at On request.
What is Google Analytics best used for?
Google Analytics is most often used for website and web application analytics, event tracking and user behaviour analysis, traffic source and conversion tracking. Of those, website and web application analytics and event tracking and user behaviour analysis are not what Roxhill is typically brought in for.
What can Google Analytics do that Roxhill cannot?
Google Analytics covers Real-time analytics, Audience insights, Acquisition tracking, Behavior flow. Roxhill covers Journalist database, Journalist profiles, Media lists and distribution, Media requests and alerts.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Roxhill: How much does Roxhill cost?

Not published on the vendor site, but the UK G-Cloud 14 listing discloses £6,450 to £25,000 per instance per year. Use that as your anchor.

Roxhill: Is Roxhill owned by Cision or Access Intelligence?

No. Companies House shows a single individual holding over 75% of shares and no corporate PSC. It is founder-controlled and unfunded. Note the founder previously sold Gorkana to Cision, so ask for a change-of-control clause.

Roxhill: Is it usable for US or APAC media relations?

Not well. Reviewers describe US, Australian and Asian coverage as materially weaker than UK. Budget for a second database.

Roxhill: Can I buy monthly?

No. Contracts are annual, sales-gated, with a trial of around two weeks.

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