Google Analytics Alternatives: Plausible vs PostHog

TLDR; Google Analytics faces issues and migration problems, leading to recommendations for open-source alternatives like Plausible and PostHog.

💔 Google's History of Killing Projects

Google has a history of discontinuing projects, causing frustration among users.

The deprecation of Google Play Music and the dissatisfaction with YouTube Music replacement are examples.

However, the focus here is on the deterioration of a long-standing standard: Google Analytics.

📉 Issues with Google Analytics

Google Analytics has faced challenges due to its move away from the old version V3 (Universal Analytics) and the transition to GA4.

Compliance issues with GDPR in Europe have also impacted its usage, making it illegal in several countries.

The move from Universal Analytics to GA4 has been problematic, with even Google's ads lead publicly apologizing for it.

🔄 Migration Woes

The migration from Universal Analytics to GA4 has not been seamless, resulting in dissatisfaction among advertisers.

Automated migration attempts failed, leading to apologies from Google's end.

Advertisers were caught off guard with the changes, and the updates aimed at mapping UA conversion to Google Analytics 4 did not go well.

🔍 Alternative: Plausible

Plausible is recommended as an open-source, privacy-focused alternative to Google Analytics.

It offers quick and affordable solutions for tracking website visits, making it a viable option for basic analytics needs.

The tool's open-source nature allows for self-hosting, and its pricing is deemed very reasonable.

📊 Alternative: PostHog

PostHog, an open-source analytics tool, is highly recommended for in-depth product analytics and event tracking.

It offers product analytics and session replay functionality, making it a valuable tool for debugging and user issue resolution.

The tool's comically cheap pricing and open-source nature make it a compelling choice for serious business analytics needs.

🚀 PostHog Setup and Features

PostHog's setup process is demonstrated, highlighting its ease of use and customization options.

The tool's ability to provide detailed insights, including funnels, retention, and user paths, is praised for its efficiency and user-friendliness.

PostHog's use of ClickHouse SQL and its support for writing queries within the tool are highlighted as valuable features.

🛠️ Dashboard Customization

The ease of building and customizing dashboards in PostHog is demonstrated, showcasing its flexibility and usefulness for data visualization.

The tool's ability to create customizable insights and charts, along with its SQL capabilities, is praised for making data analysis and visualization more accessible.