Softwr

Marketing · head to head

Optimizely vs Umami

Optimizely logo

Optimizely

Marketing

Digital experience optimization

From
$10000/year
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

  • Only Umami has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Optimizely no pricing is published and no minimum is stated; 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: Optimizely covers A/B testing, Umami covers Cookie-free tracking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Optimizely and Umami actually diverge.

Attributes where Optimizely and Umami differ
AttributeOptimizelyUmami
Starting price$10000/yearFree
Pricing modelquotePer month by event count
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, MobileWeb, Linux
Founded2010Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Marketing).

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 Optimizely

  • A/B testing
  • Multivariate testing
  • Personalization
  • Feature management
  • Analytics
  • Google Analytics
  • Adobe Analytics
  • SOC2

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.

Optimizely

  • A/B testing and experimentation across web and product experiencesnot Umami
  • Feature flagging and personalisation for digital productsnot Umami

Umami

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

Where each one falls short

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

Optimizely

  • No pricing is published and no minimum is stated
  • Every plan is individually packaged, so no two quotes are necessarily comparable
  • Reaching a figure requires a demo or sales conversation

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

Optimizely

$10000/year
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • A/B testing
    • Personalization
    • Feature management

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 Optimizely if

  • You need a/b testing.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want multivariate testing.
Optimizely 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 Optimizely or Umami better?
Neither clearly leads. Optimizely starts at $10000/year and Umami at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Optimizely or Umami?
Umami has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $10000/year for Optimizely and Free for Umami.
Does Optimizely or Umami run on more platforms?
Optimizely runs on Web, Mobile. Umami runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use Umami for free?
Yes. Umami has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Optimizely starts at $10000/year.
What is Optimizely best used for?
Optimizely is most often used for a/b testing and experimentation across web and product experiences, feature flagging and personalisation for digital products. Of those, a/b testing and experimentation across web and product experiences and feature flagging and personalisation for digital products are not what Umami is typically brought in for.
What can Optimizely do that Umami cannot?
Optimizely covers A/B testing, Multivariate testing, Personalization, Feature management. Umami covers Cookie-free tracking, Self-hosting, Small tracking script, Custom events.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Optimizely: How much does Optimizely cost?

Optimizely does not publish pricing rates. The company states that every plan is individually packaged based on specific customer needs. Interested customers must request a demo or contact the sales team to receive customized pricing.

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.

Optimizely: What is the pricing model for Optimizely?

Optimizely uses a custom enterprise pricing model rather than published rate cards. Pricing is determined through direct consultation with the sales team based on the customer's digital needs and feature requirements.

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.

Optimizely: Is there a free trial of Optimizely?

Optimizely does not specify free trial availability on its website. Customers interested in exploring the platform are directed to request a demo through the company's website to discuss trial options.

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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