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E-Commerce · head to head

Hotjar vs Moz

Hotjar logo

Hotjar

E-Commerce

Understand how users behave on your site

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Moz logo

Moz

Marketing

SEO platform built around Domain Authority, local listings management and a weekly campaign workflow

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Hotjar website performance impact - Hotjar tracking code can cause noticeable slowdowns affecting site speed and Google rankings; Moz moz refreshes its link index less often and discovers fewer links than Ahrefs, so a new backlink frequently appears in Ahrefs days before it shows up in Link Explorer, which matters if link acquisition reporting is your job.
  • They diverge on capability: Hotjar covers Heatmaps, Moz covers Keyword Explorer.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Hotjar and Moz actually diverge.

Attributes where Hotjar and Moz differ
AttributeHotjarMoz
Pricing modelUnknownPer month by usage limits
CategoryE-CommerceMarketing
Founded20142004

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web), 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 Hotjar

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

Only in Moz

  • Keyword Explorer
  • Link Explorer
  • Site Crawl
  • Rank Tracking
  • Page Optimization
  • Competitive research
  • Local SEO tools
  • Fresh Web Explorer

Both cover

  • Google Analytics
  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

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

Hotjar

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

Moz

  • SEO auditsnot Hotjar
  • Keyword researchnot Hotjar
  • Link buildingnot Hotjar
  • Local SEOnot Hotjar
  • Competitive analysisnot Hotjar

Where each one falls short

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

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

Moz

  • Moz refreshes its link index less often and discovers fewer links than Ahrefs, so a new backlink frequently appears in Ahrefs days before it shows up in Link Explorer, which matters if link acquisition reporting is your job.
  • Rank tracking is weekly on every tier, so a site watching a volatile SERP or validating a same-week change cannot see daily movement without buying a separate rank tracker.
  • The Standard plan allows only 150 keyword queries a month, which a single afternoon of research exhausts, and the jump to a workable 5,000 queries means paying 179 USD a month rather than 99.
  • Almost every limit is separately metered and separately billable: extra seats are 49 USD each, campaigns 10 USD, tracked keywords 20 USD per 200, crawl capacity 15 USD per 50,000 pages, so the real bill drifts well above the plan price.
  • Domain Authority is a Moz score, not a Google ranking factor, and teams that optimise for it directly are optimising for a proxy that its own vendor sells.
  • Moz Local is a separate subscription per location, so a business with twenty sites is buying a second product at twenty times the per-location price on top of Moz Pro.

Pricing, plan by plan

Hotjar

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Hotjar review.

Moz

Free
  • Free toolsFree
    • Domain Analysis and Domain Authority lookups
    • Limited Keyword Explorer and Link Explorer queries
    • Competitive Research and Brand Authority checks
  • Starter$49/month
    • Entry plan for an individual managing a single website
    • Sits below Standard on the published pricing page
    • Upgrade path into the campaign-based tiers
  • Standard$99/month
    • 79 USD per month billed annually, 950 USD for the first year
    • 1 user seat
    • 3 campaigns and 300 tracked keyword rankings
  • Medium$179/month
    • 143 USD per month billed annually, 1,719 USD for the first year
    • 2 user seats
    • 10 campaigns and 1,500 tracked keyword rankings

Which should you pick?

Choose Hotjar if

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

Choose Moz if

  • You need keyword explorer.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want link explorer.
Moz review

Questions people ask

Is Hotjar or Moz better?
Neither clearly leads. Hotjar starts at Free and Moz at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Hotjar or Moz?
Hotjar starts at Free and Moz at Free.
Does Hotjar or Moz run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Hotjar for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Hotjar best used for?
Hotjar is most often used for user behavior analysis, conversion optimization, ux research, customer feedback. Of those, user behavior analysis and conversion optimization are not what Moz is typically brought in for.
What can Hotjar do that Moz cannot?
Hotjar covers Heatmaps, Session recordings, Feedback widgets, Surveys. Moz covers Keyword Explorer, Link Explorer, Site Crawl, Rank Tracking. Both handle Google Analytics, Cloud deployment.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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
Moz: How much does Moz Pro cost?

Starter is 49 USD a month for a single site. Standard is 99 USD a month or 79 USD billed annually, Medium 179 or 143, and Large 299 or 239. Moz lists first-year annual totals of 950, 1,719 and 2,868 USD respectively.

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
Moz: Is Moz or Ahrefs better?

Ahrefs is the stronger choice for backlink depth, index freshness and competitive research, and its Lite plan is 129 USD against Moz Standard at 99. Moz is the better buy if you need Domain Authority as a reportable metric, if local listings management matters, or if 49 USD a month for a single site is the budget.

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
Moz: What do the Moz free tools give you?

Free Domain Analysis with Domain Authority, limited Keyword Explorer and Link Explorer queries, Competitive Research, a Brand Authority check and MozCast volatility tracking. Campaigns, site crawls and rank tracking all require a paid plan.

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
Moz: Is Domain Authority a Google ranking factor?

No. It is a Moz model that predicts ranking strength on a 1 to 100 scale. Google does not use it. It is useful as a comparative shorthand, not as a target.

Moz: How often does Moz update rankings?

Weekly on every Moz Pro tier. Competitors such as SE Ranking update daily as standard.

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