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Software · head to head

Hotjar vs Photopea

H

Hotjar

Software

Understand how users behave on your site

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Photopea logo

Photopea

Software

Free online photo editor

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; Photopea performance becomes sluggish and prone to crashes with high-resolution images or multi-layered files
  • They diverge on capability: Hotjar covers Heatmaps, Photopea covers Photo editing.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Hotjar and Photopea actually diverge.

Attributes where Hotjar and Photopea differ
AttributeHotjarPhotopea
Founded20142013

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (Unknown), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Photopea

  • Photo editing
  • PSD compatibility
  • Layer support
  • Selection tools
  • Filters and effects
  • Google Drive
  • Dropbox
  • Adobe fonts

What people use each for

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

Hotjar

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

Photopea

  • Quick photo editsnot Hotjar
  • PSD file editingnot Hotjar
  • Web designnot Hotjar
  • Social media graphicsnot 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

Photopea

  • Performance becomes sluggish and prone to crashes with high-resolution images or multi-layered files
  • Risk of losing work due to browser crashes or save failures
  • Aggressive advertising that can slow down the entire computer
  • No local installation option, always requires browser access
  • Basic file organization and version tracking compared to professional tools

Pricing, plan by plan

Hotjar

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Hotjar review.

Photopea

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Photopea review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Hotjar if

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

Choose Photopea if

  • You need photo editing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want psd compatibility.
Photopea review

Questions people ask

Is Hotjar or Photopea better?
Neither clearly leads. Hotjar starts at Free and Photopea at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Hotjar or Photopea?
Hotjar starts at Free and Photopea at Free.
Does Hotjar or Photopea 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 Photopea is typically brought in for.
What can Hotjar do that Photopea cannot?
Hotjar covers Heatmaps, Session recordings, Feedback widgets, Surveys. Photopea covers Photo editing, PSD compatibility, Layer support, Selection tools.

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
Photopea: Is Photopea free to use?

Yes, Photopea is completely free and supported by ads displayed within the browser. No subscription or payment is required to use the full feature set.

Source
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
Photopea: Does Photopea support Photoshop PSD files?

Yes, Photopea fully supports Photoshop PSD files including layers, masks, text, and effects. It can read and export files back to PSD, PNG, JPG, PDF, SVG, or GIF format.

Source
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
Photopea: What platforms does Photopea run on?

Photopea is a web-based editor accessible through any modern browser including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Opera. It can be added to desktop as a shortcut or Chrome extension.

Source
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
Photopea: Does Photopea upload my files to servers?

No. Photopea processes images entirely within your browser and does not upload files to external servers, keeping your work private and secure.

Source
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