Software · head to head
Matomo vs Kissmetrics
The short version
- Only Matomo has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Matomo the self hosted Community Edition is free but excludes A/B testing, heatmaps, session recording, cohorts, crash analytics and multi channel attribution, all of which are paid plugins; Kissmetrics overages are added automatically to the next invoice rather than blocked, so exceeding an event allowance bills without a decision point
- They diverge on capability: Matomo covers Web analytics, Kissmetrics covers Customer analytics.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Matomo and Kissmetrics actually diverge.
| Attribute | Matomo | Kissmetrics |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $500/month |
| Pricing model | freemium | quote |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Web, On-premise | Web |
| Founded | 2007 | 2009 |
Identical on both: 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 Matomo
- Web analytics
- Real-time reports
- Custom dimensions
- Goal tracking
- E-commerce tracking
- Google Search Console
- Privacy-focused
- On-premise deployment
Only in Kissmetrics
- Customer analytics
- Behavioral tracking
- Cohort analysis
- Funnel analysis
- Salesforce
- GDPR
- English language support
Both cover
- Cloud deployment
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Matomo
- Privacy focused web analytics as an alternative to Google Analyticsnot Kissmetrics
- Self hosting analytics so visitor data stays on owned infrastructurenot Kissmetrics
Kissmetrics
- Product and behavioural analytics tracking user eventsnot Matomo
- Analysing funnels and cohorts across a customer journeynot Matomo
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Matomo
- The self hosted Community Edition is free but excludes A/B testing, heatmaps, session recording, cohorts, crash analytics and multi channel attribution, all of which are paid plugins
- Premium plugin bundles for self hosted installs run from 275 EUR a month for 4 users to 3,400 EUR for 50
- Cloud pricing is banded by monthly hits, and anything above 10 million requires contacting sales
- Self hosting places all operation and upgrades on the operator while still needing paid plugins for the advanced features
Kissmetrics
- Overages are added automatically to the next invoice rather than blocked, so exceeding an event allowance bills without a decision point
- The free plan allows 100,000 events a month
- Per event rates fall with volume, from $0.20 per 1,000 events on Growth to $0.10 on Gold, so smaller customers pay double per event
- The vendor states Growth, Silver and Gold are the identical product, so the paid tiers differ only in unit price and volume
- Anything above 5 million events is custom priced
Pricing, plan by plan
Matomo
Free- Self-hostedFree
- Open-source
- Full analytics
- Privacy-focused
Kissmetrics
$500/month- Professional$500/month
- Customer analytics
- Behavioral tracking
Which should you pick?
Choose Matomo if
- You need web analytics.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, On-premise.
- You also want real-time reports.
Choose Kissmetrics if
- You need customer analytics.
- You also want behavioral tracking.
Questions people ask
- Is Matomo or Kissmetrics better?
- Neither clearly leads. Matomo starts at Free and Kissmetrics at $500/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Matomo or Kissmetrics?
- Matomo has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Matomo and $500/month for Kissmetrics.
- Does Matomo or Kissmetrics run on more platforms?
- Matomo runs on Web, On-premise. Kissmetrics runs on Web.
- Can I use Matomo for free?
- Yes. Matomo has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Kissmetrics starts at $500/month.
- What is Matomo best used for?
- Matomo is most often used for privacy focused web analytics as an alternative to google analytics, self hosting analytics so visitor data stays on owned infrastructure. Of those, privacy focused web analytics as an alternative to google analytics and self hosting analytics so visitor data stays on owned infrastructure are not what Kissmetrics is typically brought in for.
- What can Matomo do that Kissmetrics cannot?
- Matomo covers Web analytics, Real-time reports, Custom dimensions, Goal tracking. Kissmetrics covers Customer analytics, Behavioral tracking, Cohort analysis, Funnel analysis. Both handle Cloud deployment, Web support.
Related pages
More on Kissmetrics
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