Web Analytics for Small Business Sites: Free, Paid and Self-Hosted
Google Analytics is free. Six alternatives charge by traffic or run on your own server. What each costs at 10,000 and 100,000 monthly pageviews.
Quick answer
Google Analytics is free, with event data kept for up to 14 months on standard properties. On 27 October 2026, Plausible cost $9 a month at up to 10,000 pageviews, Fathom $15 at up to 100,000, and Simple Analytics $20 at 100,000. Umami's hosted Hobby plan was free up to 100,000 events. Umami, Plausible and Matomo can also be self-hosted.
Most small businesses start with Google Analytics because it is free. The alternatives exist for three reasons: a simpler dashboard, a lighter approach to visitor data, or the wish to keep data on your own server. Here is what each costs. Figures were read from vendor pages and Google's help centre on 27 October 2026.
Price at two traffic levels
Monthly, as printed (most of these vendors offer two months free on yearly billing).
| Tool | ~10,000 pageviews | ~100,000 pageviews | Free option | Self-host |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Analytics | $0 | $0 | Yes | No |
| Plausible | $9 (Starter) | Not visible | 30-day trial | Yes (CE) |
| Fathom | $15 | $15 | No; 7-day trial | No |
| Simple Analytics | $0 hobby* / $20 | $20 | Hobby, badge required | No |
| Umami (hosted) | $0 (Hobby) | $0 (up to 100k events) | Hobby | Yes (MIT) |
| Matomo | $0 self-hosted | $0 self-hosted | Community | Yes (GPL-3.0) |
*Simple Analytics' hobby plan includes 1 user, 5 websites and 1 month of history, and requires a badge. Umami counts events, not pageviews. Profiles: Google Analytics, Plausible, Matomo.
Google Analytics
Free of charge. Google publishes the standard property's limits, such as up to 100,000 events per user per day and 25 parameters per event, and they are rarely an issue for small sites. The difference that matters is retention: up to 14 months on standard properties against up to 50 months on Analytics 360, which requires a contract.
Plausible
At up to 10,000 pageviews: Starter $9 a month (one site), Growth $14 (3 sites, 3 team members), Business $19 (10 sites, 10 members). Enterprise is custom and adds SSO. There is a 30-day trial with no card. The Community Edition is AGPLv3 and excludes SSO and the sites API.
Fathom
Fathom's monthly prices step by pageviews: $15 up to 100,000, $25 up to 200,000, $45 up to 500,000 and $60 up to 1 million. Every plan includes 50 sites. There is no free plan ("Nope"), and the 7-day trial requires a card. Yearly billing gives 2 months free.
Simple Analytics
Self-serve starts at $20 a month for 100,000 pageviews, including one user, with $20 a month per extra user. A free plan for hobby sites allows 1 user, 5 websites and 1 month of history, and requires a badge on your site. There is a 14-day trial.
Umami
Umami is MIT-licensed and can be self-hosted for free. Its hosted Hobby plan is $0 for up to 100,000 events a month, 1 website and 6 months of retention. Pro costs $20 a month for 1 million events, 20 websites, 10 team members and 2 years of retention. Business costs $200 for 10 million events. SAML SSO is Enterprise-only.
When is self-hosting worth it?
Matomo On-Premise Community is free under the GPL-3.0, with unlimited users and hits, and it is the most complete self-hosted option here. Umami and Plausible CE are lighter alternatives. Self-hosting suits teams that already run a server, from our server comparison, and want visitor data kept in-house. For everyone else, a hosted plan under $20 a month avoids the work.
Quick picks
- Free and complete: Google Analytics.
- Small site, simple dashboard: Plausible Starter or Umami Hobby.
- Many small sites at modest traffic: Fathom, with 50 sites included.
- Data on your own server: Matomo Community or self-hosted Umami.
PostHog is not included because its pricing page did not render readable prices in our tools.
Analytics pairs with search data: see SEO tools for small teams and, if you are choosing a platform too, website builders.
Key points
- Google Analytics is free; standard properties keep event data for up to 14 months, against up to 50 months on the contract-priced 360 edition.
- Plausible started at $9 a month for up to 10,000 pageviews and one site.
- At 100,000 pageviews, Fathom cost $15 a month and Simple Analytics $20 a month, with extra Simple Analytics users at $20 each.
- Umami's hosted Hobby plan was free up to 100,000 events a month for one site, with 6 months of retention.
- Matomo On-Premise Community (GPL-3.0), Umami (MIT) and Plausible CE (AGPL-3.0) can all be self-hosted.
Questions
Is Google Analytics free for a small business?
Yes. Google describes its analytics tools as free of charge. Standard GA4 properties keep event data for up to 14 months, and Google publishes collection limits that small sites rarely reach. The paid Analytics 360 edition, with up to 50 months of retention, requires a contract and has no published price.
What is the cheapest paid alternative to Google Analytics?
On our read date, Plausible's Starter plan cost $9 a month for up to 10,000 pageviews and one site. For larger sites, Fathom cost $15 a month for up to 100,000 pageviews across 50 sites. Umami's hosted Hobby plan was free up to 100,000 events for one site.
Can I host my own web analytics?
Yes. Matomo's On-Premise Community edition is free under the GPL-3.0 with unlimited users and hits. Umami is MIT-licensed and free to self-host. Plausible's Community Edition is AGPL-3.0 but leaves out SSO and the sites API. All need a server and maintenance.
Do these tools charge per user?
Mostly no. They charge by traffic: pageviews or events. Simple Analytics is the exception here, including one user and charging $20 a month per extra user. Plausible's plans cap team members at 3 on Growth and 10 on Business, and Umami Pro allows up to 10 team members.
Why does data retention matter?
Retention decides how far back you can compare. Standard Google Analytics keeps event data for up to 14 months. Umami's free Hobby plan keeps 6 months and Pro 2 years. If year-on-year comparisons matter to you, check retention before choosing on price.
Who wrote this
Stackfeature Research Desk
The Research Desk is a shared byline, not a person. Work published under it is compiled from vendor pricing pages, documentation and licence files, each linked and dated in the piece. Nothing under this byline claims hands-on testing unless the piece says so and links the evidence.
Citing a figure from this page? Carry its date with it. Prices here were read on the date shown above, and corrections are logged.
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