Softwr

Business Intelligence · head to head

Mode vs Umami

Mode logo

Mode

Business Intelligence

Collaborative analytics for data teams

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Umami logo

Umami

Marketing

Open source, cookie-free web analytics you can self-host for the cost of a database

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Mode free tier limited to 4GB RAM and 1 CPU for SQL notebooks, insufficient for large datasets; Umami there is no cohort analysis, retention curve, session replay or multi-touch attribution, so a marketing team that needs to justify channel spend will still buy a second tool and Umami becomes a supplementary dashboard.
  • They diverge on capability: Mode covers SQL Editor, Umami covers Cookie-free tracking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mode and Umami actually diverge.

Attributes where Mode and Umami differ
AttributeModeUmami
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer month by event count
PlatformsWebWeb, Linux
CategoryBusiness IntelligenceMarketing
Founded2013Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Mode

  • SQL Editor
  • Python/R Notebooks
  • Interactive Reports
  • Version Control
  • Scheduling
  • Snowflake
  • Redshift
  • BigQuery

Only in Umami

  • Cookie-free tracking
  • Self-hosting
  • Small tracking script
  • Custom events
  • Funnels and goals
  • Multi-site and teams
  • Public dashboards
  • API access

What people use each for

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

Mode

  • Self-service analyticsnot Umami
  • Data explorationnot Umami
  • Ad-hoc reportingnot Umami
  • Collaborative analysisnot Umami
  • Embedded analyticsnot Umami

Umami

  • A developer who wants traffic numbers on a personal or client site without adding a consent bannernot Mode
  • An organisation whose legal or procurement team has ruled out sending visitor data to a US advertising companynot Mode
  • A high-traffic site where hosted analytics priced by pageview band has become expensive and self-hosting removes the ceiling entirelynot Mode
  • A team that wants analytics data in a database they already control so they can query and join it themselvesnot Mode

Where each one falls short

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

Mode

  • Free tier limited to 4GB RAM and 1 CPU for SQL notebooks, insufficient for large datasets
  • Requires SQL knowledge for most analysis tasks, creating dependency on technical resources
  • Paid plan pricing not publicly listed; requires sales consultation
  • Recently acquired by ThoughtSpot in 2026, creating product direction uncertainty
  • Limited customization options for visual aspects and embedded analytics

Umami

  • There is no cohort analysis, retention curve, session replay or multi-touch attribution, so a marketing team that needs to justify channel spend will still buy a second tool and Umami becomes a supplementary dashboard.
  • Self-hosting is only free in licence terms; you own the database, the upgrades, the backups and the query performance at scale, and a busy site's events table grows quickly enough to need real attention.
  • Because it stores no persistent identifier, it cannot follow a user across devices or sessions in any meaningful way, which makes returning-visitor and lifetime-value questions unanswerable by design rather than by omission.
  • Cloud overage is billed per event beyond the plan allowance, so a traffic spike or a badly instrumented custom event can produce a bill materially above the $20 or $200 headline before anyone notices.
  • It is maintained by a small team, so the pace of new capability is modest and enterprise expectations such as SSO, granular role permissions and formal support agreements are limited compared with commercial analytics vendors.

Pricing, plan by plan

Mode

Free
  • FreeFree
    • SQL Editor
    • Python/R Notebooks
    • Basic Charts
  • Business$65/month
    • Advanced Visualizations
    • Collaboration
    • Integrations

Umami

Free
  • Self-hostedFree
    • MIT licensed, no licence fee
    • No event limit imposed by the software
    • Unlimited websites and users
  • Cloud HobbyFree
    • Up to 100,000 events per month
    • 3 websites
    • 6 months data retention
  • Cloud Pro$20/month
    • Up to 1,000,000 events per month
    • Unlimited websites
    • Unlimited team members
  • Cloud Business$200/month
    • Up to 10,000,000 events per month
    • All Pro features
    • Higher volume overage rate

Which should you pick?

Choose Mode if

  • You need sql editor.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want python/r notebooks.
Mode review

Choose Umami if

  • You need cookie-free tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux.
  • You also want self-hosting.
Umami review

Questions people ask

Is Mode or Umami better?
Neither clearly leads. Mode starts at Free and Umami at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mode or Umami?
Mode starts at Free and Umami at Free.
Does Mode or Umami run on more platforms?
Mode runs on Web. Umami runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use Mode for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Mode best used for?
Mode is most often used for self-service analytics, data exploration, ad-hoc reporting, collaborative analysis. Of those, self-service analytics and data exploration are not what Umami is typically brought in for.
What can Mode do that Umami cannot?
Mode covers SQL Editor, Python/R Notebooks, Interactive Reports, Version Control. Umami covers Cookie-free tracking, Self-hosting, Small tracking script, Custom events.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Mode: What languages does Mode support for analysis?

Mode notebooks support SQL, Python (3.11 with pandas, NumPy, scikit-learn, matplotlib), and R (4.2.0 with ggplot2, dplyr, tidyr). Both Python and R allow additional library installation at runtime.

Source
Umami: Is Umami really free?

Self-hosted, yes; it is MIT licensed with no event cap. You pay for the server and database. Umami Cloud has a free tier at 100,000 events a month and paid tiers from $20.

Mode: Can I integrate Mode notebook results into reports?

Yes. Mode allows adding notebook cell results directly to reports, with synchronized scheduling so reports re-run to keep data current.

Source
Umami: Do I need a cookie consent banner?

For Umami analytics specifically, generally no, because it sets no cookies and stores no personal data. Other tags on your site may still require one.

Mode: Does Mode support collaborative analysis?

Yes. Mode notebooks provide moveable code blocks and markdown cells enabling exploratory analysis and team collaboration on data queries and visualizations.

Source
Umami: Can it replace Google Analytics?

For traffic, referrers and event counts, yes. For attribution modelling, audiences and advertising integration, no.

Umami: What does it need to run?

A container and a PostgreSQL or MySQL database. Most people deploy it on infrastructure they already pay for.

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