Top user-friendly GA4 alternatives in 2024

The switch from Universal Analytics to GA4 last year was supposed to bring many new features, but it ended up with users all over the internet being unsatisfied and looking for alternatives to GA4.

Most users are complaining that the new GA4 is less flexible, less customizable, and more difficult to use than the previous version, even for people with a lot of experience, let alone beginners.

They changed the metrics, made the event setup more complex and less customizable, and conversions and goals less flexible than before. GA4 also lacks standard and comprehensive reports, and it’s impossible to filter data.

However, the good news is that Google Analytics no longer has a monopoly over website analytics, and other free alternatives are available for testing. For the purpose of this article, I’ve tested five such tools to help you find the right GA4 alternative for you.

The best GA4 alternatives in 2024

Here’s a detailed comparison of Google Analytics alternatives, focusing on their UX, unique features, user reviews and value for money.

1. Microanalytics

Microanalytics is a user-friendly, cookie-free web analytics tool that can be an excellent free alternative to Google Analytics 4 (GA4), especially if you are used to some of its old features or have privacy concerns.

Recommended events and custom events involve using Google Tag Manager, but the process is more complicated to set up in GA4 than in Universal. In GA4, an internal link click needs to be a custom event, not automatically tracked, for example.

We made conversions and goals more flexible and with more types, without the complexity of custom events and Google tag manager. For example, “destination” is easy to track with our “goal tracking” feature.

User privacy and data protection were our priorities, and the software is compliant with EU privacy laws. With a free plan, real-time tracking and, 2K users, 3K websites, 10M+ pageviews so far Microanalytics is one of the top GA4 competitors.

Features

• Goal tracking: If you miss the old Google Analytics and its conversion goals that enabled you to see where your website conversions are coming from, you’ll love our goal tracking solution which is the most similar tool to old GA available today. Customize your goals by adding goal type and value, setting up goal conversion rate and more.
• Behavior, location, and technology breakdown: Track user behavior, location, and devices they use (mobile, tablet, web) to gain valuable insights that can improve user experience and increase conversion rates.
• Supreme privacy: Microanalytics doesn’t track your users’ IP addresses, cookies or fingerprints, making sure that nobody can be identified and that you’re compliant with GDPR, PECR and CCPA regulations. Also, you have full control over your data, as we won’t share it with anyone. For more details, check out this guide where I’ve explained the differences between online security and digital privacy.
• Data exportation: Export all your data into CSV format within seconds, enabling offline access and ensuring that your insights are readily available whenever you need them.
• Fast loading time: Unlike many other web analytics tools, Microanalytics won’t slow down your website performance and loading speed or affect your SEO. Its script is 50 times smaller compared to the Google Analytics tag. Have I already mentioned that there are no cookies that are so frustrating to most users?
• Integrations: This web analytics tool has many integrations, including WordPress, Squarespace, Ghost, Wix, Framer, Webflow and Weebly, allowing you to visualize multiple data sources in one place.

Analyze your website traffic and conversions in three simple steps:

1. Sign up for free by clicking here (no credit card required).

2. Add your website, then go to your website and paste one line of code to your header (you’ll find it on the screen above –  just scroll down).

3. Set your goals by adding a new event with our JavaScript.

There you have it! You can now analyze your traffic using our website analytics dashboards.

UI/UX

Microanalytics has a user-friendly and intuitive interface, making it suitable even for beginners who have never used a similar tool before. It also comes with very clear dashboards and reports that present data in a way everyone can understand. It’s easy to set up, navigate and export data.

Pros

• Privacy-first approach
• Cookies-free tracking
• Intuitive and easy-to-use interface

Pricing

• Free plan: one website, 1000 page views per month
• Starter plan: $9 per month (great for smaller businesses)
• Growth plan: $29 per month (great for medium-sized businesses)
• Pro plan: $39 per month (great for big companies and large enterprises)

*If you opt for annual billing, you’ll get a 17% discount.

User ratings

Many users said that Microanalytics is one of the most comprehensive GA4 alternatives. They liked the number of features in our analytics suite, user-friendliness, and absolute privacy.

• G2: 4.9 (12)

Try MicroAnalytics.io Now

2. Piwik Pro

Source: Capterra.com

Piwik Pro can be used for tracking user behavior across the web, apps and intranet platforms. The software can collect data from different sources, making it a good option for monitoring the whole customer journey and all the touchpoints.

Features

• Data anonymization: Access to valuable data regarding attribution, page performance and user behavior, without violating users’ privacy.
• User flow: Analyze overall user behavior tracking from either their initial or final interaction or observe their pathway through specific pages.
• Data export: Export data in different formats including JSON, CSV and XML or retrieve it through their API.
• Customizable reports: Customize each dashboard, choose the metrics you want to see and create custom reports based on your needs.
• Integrations: Google Sheets, Google Big Query, Google Ads, Power BI and Looker.

UI/UX

Piwik Pro has a similar user interface to Google Analytics 4, which means it could be a smooth transition if you’re already used to GA4.

Source: Capterra.com

Pros

• Multiple data export options
• Customizable reports
• Customer flow through different touchpoints

Pricing

• Core plan: free plan consisting of three modules – Analytics, Tag Manager and Consent Manager
• Enterprise plan: starting at $10,995 per year, the price depends on the number of monthly actions you need, and you can ask for a custom quote on their website; everything in Core + Customer data platform

User ratings

Users find Piwik Pro very similar to Google Analytics, but they report that some features are missing, such as different attribution model options and some tags and triggers that GA4 has.

• Capterra: 4.8 (20)
• G2: 4.6 (35)

3. Matomo

Source: Capterra.com

Matomo is a web analytics solution available both in an on-premise version which is hosted on your own servers and a cloud version hosted on Matomo’s servers in Europe. A good option for those who want to choose where their data is stored knowing that server outages are the most common reason why your website analytics is down.

Features

Here are its main features:

• Data protection: This tool’s cloud version is hosted in Europe, making it fully compliant with GDPR. It also offers options like cookie-less analytics, disabling all cookies, asking for consent, and others.
• Data export: Export data in multiple formats such as Excel, XML, JSON and more. Additionally, you can retrieve all data through their API.
• Customizable dashboard: Generate fresh dashboards tailored to your requirements with customizable widget configurations.
• Add-ons: Marketing teams will like their wide range of add-ons, such as SEO keyword reporting, custom funnel reports or A/B testing.
• Integrations: Matomo integrates with Google Ads, Microsoft Bing Ads, different CMS, web frameworks and e-commerce shops.

UI/UX

Some people may appreciate seeing everything on one screen, but I found its interface a bit overwhelming and difficult to navigate. Not all features are straightforward and easy to find.

Source: Capterra.com

Pros

• The ability to host your data on your own servers
• Wide range of additional features and add-ons
• Multiple ways to export data

Pricing

• On-premise plan: with some basic features included, this plan is free, however, if you want some additional features, like A/B testing or crash analytics, you need to pay extra
• Cloud plan: the price depends on your monthly traffic, starting at €22 per month for up to 50,000 hits and going up to a whopping €14850 per month for 100 million hits

User ratings

Users are generally satisfied with Matomo analytics features, but many complained that the setup process is long and painful and requires technical expertise.

• Capterra: 4.8 (58)
• G2: 4.2 (90)

4. Clicky

Source: Capterra.com

Clicky is a simple privacy-friendly analytics tool that can be used for monitoring both webpage traffic and marketing campaigns. It offers five different packages for businesses of different sizes and needs.

Features

Here are its main features:

• Highly customizable tracking: Clicky’s tracking capabilities can be extensively customized using JavaScript, with certain properties also adjustable to your site preferences. Additionally, you have the option to manually log data, either via JavaScript events or internal scripts (such as PHP).
• Data protection: By default, Clicky’s setup ensures that no “Personal Data” is logged and it automatically applies its visitor privacy feature to all website visitors. Those features include anonymized IP addresses, the absence of tracking cookies and a service-wide opt-out system.
• Data export: Reports can be exported in different formats including CSV, XML, JSON, serialized PHP and PDF.
• Premium features: I found some interesting features in their premium analytics package such as creating user segments, path analysis, split tests and real-time alerts.
• Integrations: Different content management systems and e-commerce platforms such as WordPress, Shopify, Weebly, Joomla and others.

UI/UX

Clicky’s interface is not difficult to navigate, but I find it a bit outdated and monotonous. Also, if you want to access some of its advanced features, you must have coding skills.

Source: Capterra.com

Pros

• Real-time data
• Tracking ad-block visitors
• Security and anti-fraud

Pricing

• Free plan: limited to one website and 3,000 page views per day
• Pro plan: $9.99 per month or $79.99 per year
• Pro Plus plan: $14.99 per month or $119.99 per year
• Pro Platinum plan: $19.99 per month or $159.99 per year
• Custom plan: custom price available upon request

*All new accounts get an automatic free 21-day trial of their premium service and can try out all the features and track up to three websites.

User ratings

Users were satisfied with most of the features, especially privacy and security wise.

• Capterra: 4.3 (4)
• G2: 4.5 (31)

5. Woopra

Source: Capterra.com

Woopra is software for the customer journey and product analytics, monitoring every action they take during the whole customer route, from their first marketing interactions to how they use the product. It stands out for its detailed analytics for mobile apps.

Features

Here are its main features:

• Cohort reports: Woopra’s cohort analysis enables you to examine growth trends across monthly or quarterly cohorts, allowing you to spot patterns throughout the customer lifecycle.
• Mobile apps analytics: You can track how users interact with mobile apps in iStore and Google Play such as installs, engagement, number of active users, in-app purchases and others to better understand your users’ behavior, habits and preferences.
• Data protection: Woopra is a GDPR-compliant software offering a high level of transparency and data security. The app also developed a Data Subject Rights procedure offering immediate assistance for user inquiries and privacy concerns.
• Data export: This software has API access for exporting raw daily visit data and the data can be exported into CSV.
• Integrations: Woopra integrates with over 30 apps, such as Google Ads, Azure, Dropbox, Facebook, Google Drive and many more.

UI/UX

I appreciate their black interface and their attempt to color-code different analytics data. However, I find it a bit confusing and I think that this analytics platform can have a very steep learning curve, particularly for those who don’t have a lot of experience in web analytics. Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. There’s a hack for that: here’s how you can interpret analytics data with ChatGPT.

Source: Capterra.com

Pros

• Showing statistics for specific site visitors
• Detailed analytics regarding mobile apps
• Automated user engagement triggers

Pricing

• Core plan: free (for those that are just starting out, only 90 days of historical data)
• Pro plan: $999 per month (comes with a 14-day free trial)
• Enterprise plan: custom price available upon request

User ratings

The user groups that benefited the most from using Woopra were mobile app founders and product owners. 

• Capterra: 4.4 (12)
• G2: 4.4 (186)

How to choose the best GA4 alternative?

There are five things to pay attention to when choosing the most suitable Google Analytics alternative for your business:

• Customization options: You should be able to customize different features according to your needs, especially in terms of creating custom events and personalized reports.
• Security: Data privacy concerns and online security should always be the top priority when choosing an analytics app. Make sure to choose an app that’s compliant with GDPR and any other laws and regulations relevant to your region or industry.
• User-friendliness: Make sure that the tool is intuitive and easy to use. This can depend on your technical skills and previous experience with Google Analytics and other similar tools.
• Easy setup: Check whether you can install the tool on your own or might need technical support. You should be especially cautious when it comes to on-premise tools as their setup is usually more complex compared to cloud-based tools.
• Integrations: Choose a solution that integrates with the tools you’re already using whether that’s your CMS, Google Search Console or other analytics apps.

Comparison Table

	User-friendly	Data protection	Data exporting	Price starting at	Best for
Microanalytics	Excellent	Supreme	CSV format, with one click	Free plan Paid plans from $9	Beginners and experts looking for a user-friendly tool
Piwik Pro	Not great	Good	Multiple options	Free plan Paid plans from $10,995 per year	Those who want to integrate with Google tools
Matomo	Good	Depending on the option you choose	Multiple options	Free plan Paid plans from€22 per month	Those who want marketing add-ons
Clicky	Good	Good	Multiple options	Free plan Paid plans from$9.99 per month	Those who want to integrate with e-commerce platforms
Woopra	Not great	Excellent	Multiple options	Free plan Paid plans from$999	Mobile app product owners

Conclusion

I hope that this article gives you an in-depth analysis necessary for choosing the right analytics tool that meets all your needs in terms of features and security.

If you’re looking for an alternative to Google Analytics that has kept its best features, such as goal and conversion tracking, and paired them with supreme data protection and fast load time, Microanalytics has everything you need.

And the best thing is that you can use it for free. Sign up today and immediately get insights that will help you optimize your website’s performance.

FAQs

Is there an alternative to GA4?

Yes, there are many different GA4 alternatives but Microanalytics is as close as it gets to in terms of features and accuracy, while at the same time being more user-friendly and not slowing down your loading speed.

Will GA4 replace Google Analytics?

Yes, as of July 2023, GA4 replaced the previous version of Google Analytics, also known as Universal Analytics and introduced many changes in the way the new tool works.

What is GA4 vs GSC?

They’re two different but complementary tools. While Google Search Console focuses more on search-related metrics, keyword rankings and specific queries that bring traffic to your website, Google Analytics 4 is a broader platform offering a more holistic view of user journey and engagement across multiple channels.

Is there a better tool than Google Analytics?

Yes, Microanalytics is better than Google Analytics as it doesn’t use cookies and doesn’t slow down your website because its script is 50 times smaller than the Google Analytics tag which means it doesn’t affect your loading speed and SEO.