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Business Intelligence · head to head

Snowplow vs Whatagraph

Snowplow logo

Snowplow

Business Intelligence

Behavioural data pipeline you run in your own cloud, relicensed away from Apache 2.0 in 2024

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Whatagraph logo

Whatagraph

Marketing

Automated marketing reporting and analytics

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Whatagraph has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Snowplow the core pipeline was relicensed from Apache 2.0 on 8 January 2024 to the Snowplow Limited Use Licence Agreement and a Confluent-derived community licence, so organisations that adopted it as permissively licensed software must now review their entitlement, buy a licence, or migrate.; Whatagraph the entry Max plan starts at 699 EUR per month and is billed annually, with no monthly billing option shown
  • They diverge on capability: Snowplow covers Own-cloud deployment, Whatagraph covers Automated reporting.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Snowplow and Whatagraph actually diverge.

Attributes where Snowplow and Whatagraph differ
AttributeSnowplowWhatagraph
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquotesubscription
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsLinux, Web, DockerWeb, Mobile, Api
CategoryBusiness IntelligenceMarketing
FoundedUnknown2016

Identical on both: 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 Snowplow

  • Own-cloud deployment
  • Schema enforcement
  • Warehouse loading
  • Enrichment
  • Trackers
  • Streaming output
  • Data models
  • Snowplow BDP

Only in Whatagraph

  • Automated reporting
  • Multi-channel integration
  • Custom dashboards
  • Data visualization
  • PDF reports
  • Real-time updates
  • Historical tracking
  • Anomaly detection

What people use each for

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

Snowplow

  • A data team that needs full-fidelity event data in its own warehouse to build attribution or machine learning features rather than to populate dashboardsnot Whatagraph
  • A regulated business that cannot send behavioural data to a third-party analytics vendor and must keep collection inside its own cloud accountnot Whatagraph
  • A product organisation tired of silently malformed events, which wants a schema contract enforced at collection timenot Whatagraph
  • A company modelling customer behaviour across web, mobile and server events that needs them in one consistent structurenot Whatagraph

Whatagraph

  • Automated client marketing reports for agenciesnot Snowplow
  • Blending data from multiple ad platforms into one dashboardnot Snowplow
  • White-labelled reporting under an agency's own brandingnot Snowplow

Where each one falls short

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

Snowplow

  • The core pipeline was relicensed from Apache 2.0 on 8 January 2024 to the Snowplow Limited Use Licence Agreement and a Confluent-derived community licence, so organisations that adopted it as permissively licensed software must now review their entitlement, buy a licence, or migrate.
  • You run the pipeline in your own cloud, which means the infrastructure bill, the on-call rota and the upgrade work are yours, and at high event volume that operational cost frequently exceeds what a hosted product would have charged.
  • Schema enforcement is the main benefit and the main friction, because every new event requires a schema to be authored and versioned, and teams without discipline around that end up blocked on their own governance process.
  • There is no analysis layer: Snowplow delivers data to your warehouse and nothing else, so you still need modelling, a BI tool and the people to run them before anyone sees a number.
  • The licence change fractured the community, spawning an Apache 2.0 fork, which means community contributions and third-party tooling are now split across two codebases with uncertain long-term maintenance.

Whatagraph

  • The entry Max plan starts at 699 EUR per month and is billed annually, with no monthly billing option shown
  • Only two plans exist and the Prime plan is custom priced with no published rate
  • Public API access, transfer to BigQuery and Looker, a custom report domain and premium integrations all require the Prime plan
  • Data sources are metered as credits at 1 credit per connected data account, so each additional ad account consumes quota
  • Extra credits can be bought only up to the next plan threshold, after which an upgrade is required
  • Moving to either the Max or Prime plan requires booking a call with sales rather than self-serve upgrade
  • The free trial is 14 days

Pricing, plan by plan

Snowplow

On request
  • Snowplow BDP$undefined/year
    • Commercial pricing quoted by event volume and deployment
    • Core pipeline components under the Snowplow Limited Use Licence Agreement, not Apache 2.0
    • Trackers, analytics SDKs and Iglu SDKs remain Apache 2.0

Whatagraph

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 3 data sources
    • Basic dashboards
    • Daily updates
  • Starter$99/month
    • Up to 10 data sources
    • Advanced dashboards
    • Hourly updates
  • Professional$299/month
    • Unlimited data sources
    • Real-time updates
    • White-label

Which should you pick?

Choose Snowplow if

  • You need own-cloud deployment.
  • You work on Linux, Web, Docker.
  • You also want schema enforcement.
Snowplow review

Choose Whatagraph if

  • You need automated reporting.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Mobile, Api.
  • You also want multi-channel integration.
Whatagraph review

Questions people ask

Is Snowplow or Whatagraph better?
Neither clearly leads. Snowplow starts at On request and Whatagraph at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Snowplow or Whatagraph?
Whatagraph has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Snowplow and Free for Whatagraph.
Does Snowplow or Whatagraph run on more platforms?
Snowplow runs on Linux, Web, Docker. Whatagraph runs on Web, Mobile, Api.
Can I use Whatagraph for free?
Yes. Whatagraph has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Snowplow starts at On request.
What is Snowplow best used for?
Snowplow is most often used for a data team that needs full-fidelity event data in its own warehouse to build attribution or machine learning features rather than to populate dashboards, a regulated business that cannot send behavioural data to a third-party analytics vendor and must keep collection inside its own cloud account, a product organisation tired of silently malformed events, which wants a schema contract enforced at collection time, a company modelling customer behaviour across web, mobile and server events that needs them in one consistent structure. Of those, a data team that needs full-fidelity event data in its own warehouse to build attribution or machine learning features rather than to populate dashboards and a regulated business that cannot send behavioural data to a third-party analytics vendor and must keep collection inside its own cloud account are not what Whatagraph is typically brought in for.
What can Snowplow do that Whatagraph cannot?
Snowplow covers Own-cloud deployment, Schema enforcement, Warehouse loading, Enrichment. Whatagraph covers Automated reporting, Multi-channel integration, Custom dashboards, Data visualization.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Snowplow: Is Snowplow still open source?

Not in the permissive sense. On 8 January 2024 the core pipeline moved from Apache 2.0 to the Snowplow Limited Use Licence Agreement, with version 1.1 following in December 2024, alongside a community licence based on the Confluent Community Licence. Trackers and analytics SDKs remain Apache 2.0.

Whatagraph: What is the starting price for Whatagraph's Max plan?

The Max plan starts at 699 euros per month when billed annually.

Source
Snowplow: Can we still run it for free in production?

Free use of the relicensed core components is materially constrained and commercial use generally requires an agreement. Read the current licence text against your intended use rather than relying on older documentation.

Whatagraph: Do Whatagraph plans limit the number of users or reports?

No, both the Max and Prime plans include unlimited users and unlimited reports.

Source
Snowplow: Is there an Apache 2.0 alternative?

Yes, a fork called OpenSnowcat was created in response to the relicensing and continues under Apache 2.0.

Whatagraph: What is a 'source credit' in Whatagraph pricing?

One source credit equals one connected data account. The Max plan starts with 50 source credits, and the Prime plan includes a custom amount based on needs.

Source
Snowplow: What does Snowplow BDP cost?

Not published. It is quoted by event volume and deployment, and your own cloud infrastructure costs are separate and additional.

Whatagraph: What's included in both Whatagraph plans?

Both Max and Prime plans include Whatagraph IQ with automated report creation, live chat support, EU data center access, and version history.

Source
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