Software · head to head
Matomo vs Simple Analytics
Simple Analytics
Software
Privacy-friendly analytics without cookies
- From
- $20/month
- Rated
- -
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; Simple Analytics the free plan requires a Simple Analytics badge on your site and is limited to 1 user, 5 websites and 30 days of history
- They diverge on capability: Matomo covers Web analytics, Simple Analytics covers Page view tracking.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Matomo and Simple Analytics actually diverge.
| Attribute | Matomo | Simple Analytics |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $20/month |
| Pricing model | freemium | subscription |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Web, On-premise | Web |
| Founded | 2007 | 2016 |
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
- E-commerce tracking
- Google Search Console
- On-premise deployment
- On-premise support
- 50+ languages language support
Only in Simple Analytics
- Page view tracking
- Real-time analytics
- GDPR compliant
- English language support
Both cover
- Goal tracking
- Privacy-focused
- 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 Simple Analytics
- Self hosting analytics so visitor data stays on owned infrastructurenot Simple Analytics
Simple Analytics
- Cookie-free website analytics that avoids a consent bannernot Matomo
- Keeping visitor data hosted in the EU for GDPR purposesnot Matomo
- Replacing or running alongside Google Analytics with a single-page dashboardnot 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
Simple Analytics
- The free plan requires a Simple Analytics badge on your site and is limited to 1 user, 5 websites and 30 days of history
- Data older than 30 days is automatically deleted on the free plan
- The paid plan starts at $20 per month for 100,000 pageviews and includes only 1 user, with each extra user costing another $20 per month
- Single Sign-On, role-based access, SOC 2 documentation, an SLA and raw data export are Enterprise features quoted only by demo request
- On yearly plans, exceeding your estimated limit gives you one week to raise it before Simple Analytics raises it for you
- Paying by Bitcoin adds 10% and is only offered on yearly billing
- Bank transfer is only available for bills from $500 and adds 10% in banking and service fees
- Unlimited pageviews on the free plan are subject to a fair use policy rather than a stated number
Pricing, plan by plan
Matomo
Free- Self-hostedFree
- Open-source
- Full analytics
- Privacy-focused
Simple Analytics
$20/month- Standard$20/month
- Up to 100k page views
- Real-time analytics
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 Simple Analytics if
- You need page view tracking.
- You also want real-time analytics.
Questions people ask
- Is Matomo or Simple Analytics better?
- Neither clearly leads. Matomo starts at Free and Simple Analytics at $20/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Matomo or Simple Analytics?
- Matomo has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Matomo and $20/month for Simple Analytics.
- Does Matomo or Simple Analytics run on more platforms?
- Matomo runs on Web, On-premise. Simple Analytics runs on Web.
- Can I use Matomo for free?
- Yes. Matomo has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Simple Analytics starts at $20/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 Simple Analytics is typically brought in for.
- What can Matomo do that Simple Analytics cannot?
- Matomo covers Web analytics, Real-time reports, Custom dimensions, E-commerce tracking. Simple Analytics covers Page view tracking, Real-time analytics, GDPR compliant, English language support. Both handle Goal tracking, Privacy-focused, Cloud deployment, Web support.