Plausible – A Friendly, Privacy-First, Google Analytics Alternative
Why Analytics Still Matter
Analytics help you understand who visits your site, what content works, and how to improve user experience. Google Analytics has been the go-to tool, but it comes with baggage: complex dashboards, heavy scripts, and privacy concerns.
This is where Plausible CE shines, lightweight, privacy-first, and human-friendly.
A Bit of History: What Is Plausible CE?
Plausible Analytics was founded in 2018 by Uku Täht and Marko Saric to create a transparent, simple, and ethical alternative to big-tech analytics. In February 2024, they introduced Community Edition (CE) a free, self-hosted version under AGPLv3, empowering anyone to run analytics independently.
Unlike Google Analytics, Plausible doesn’t monetize data. It is financed through SaaS subscriptions, making the project ad-free and sustainable.
Core Benefits: What Makes Plausible CE Unique?
- Privacy by Design: GDPR/CCPA compliant, no cookies, no personal IDs.
- Ultra-Lightweight Script: Under 1 KB, over 75× smaller than GA.
- Simple Dashboard: All key metrics (visits, sources, pages, conversions) on one page.
- Open-Source: Inspect, modify, and contribute via GitHub.
- Independent & Sustainable: Funded by paying customers, not ads.
Managed vs Self‑Hosted: CE vs Cloud
| Feature | Plausible Cloud (Managed) | Plausible CE (Self‑Hosted) |
| Ease of Setup | Instant with CDN, SSL, backups | Manual setup, updates, and server management required |
| Updates | Continuous | Long-term releases twice a year |
| Premium Features | Funnels, ecommerce, API access | Not included |
| Bot Filtering | Advanced, IP-range filtering | Basic UA and referrer-based |
| Data Location | EU-only servers | Anywhere, you choose |
| Support | Direct support from Plausible team | Community-driven |
| Cost | Subscription-based | Free software, pay only for infrastructure |
How It Works Under the Hood
- Tech Stack: Elixir/Phoenix for backend, PostgreSQL for app data, ClickHouse for fast analytics queries.
- Data Collection: Tracks visits, pages, sources—aggregated and anonymized, without cookies or IP logging.
- Deployment: Commonly via Docker Compose, with configs for scaling and integrations.
Real-World Use Cases & Community Feedback
- LangX, a language-learning platform, uses Plausible CE for privacy-first analytics that even non-tech staff can understand.
- On Hacker News and community forums, users often praise Plausible CE for its simplicity and privacy-focused approach, highlighting how it provides key insights—like visits, top pages, and referral sources—without the complexity of Google Analytics.
Hosting Tips & Cost Breakdown
You can run Plausible CE on an affordable VPS or cloud server. Even a small setup with 2 vCPU and 2 GB RAM can handle hundreds of thousands of daily visits if optimized correctly.
Benefits:
- Self-hosted scripts avoid ad-blocker issues
- Full control over your data and analytics
- Ability to track multiple sites without restrictions
Drawback:
- Requires basic server administration skills (installation, maintenance, updates, backups)
Pros & Cons
Pros:
- Quick setup (especially for cloud)
- Simple, intuitive dashboard
- GDPR/CCPA compliance
- Open-source and transparent
- Low long-term cost if self-hosted
Cons:
- Lacks cloud-only features (ecommerce, APIs, advanced bot filtering)
- Requires server knowledge for CE
- Community support only, no SLA
Final Thoughts: Why Plausible CE Stands Out
If Google Analytics feels overwhelming or invasive, Plausible CE offers clarity and control. It’s simple enough for non-technical users, transparent for developers, and respectful of your visitors’ privacy.
For individuals, startups, and businesses alike, Plausible CE is more than just an alternative; it’s a movement toward a more ethical and sustainable web.
Jilesh Patadiya, the visionary Founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) behind AccuWeb.Cloud. Founder & CTO at AccuWebHosting.com. He shares his web hosting insights on the AccuWeb.Cloud blog. He mostly writes on the latest web hosting trends, WordPress, storage technologies, and Windows and Linux hosting platforms.
