Google Analytics vs PostHog
Is it time to switch? We break down the differences so you can stop bleeding money.
Choose PostHog.
If you want to own your data, save money, and avoid vendor lock-in, PostHog is open source and community-driven.
What Actually Matters
No fluff — just the differences that affect your decision
PostHog is open source (Other). Google Analytics is closed. If vendor lock-in keeps you up at night, this is the deciding factor.
PostHog supports self-hosting via Docker. Google Analytics is SaaS-only — convenient, but you're renting, not owning.
PostHog has the bigger crowd: 40.3k stars vs 0. More contributors, more integrations, more momentum.
PostHog is built in Python — you can read the source, contribute, or fork it. Google Analytics is closed-source, so you're trusting their engineering.
Need GDPR compliance? Self-host. Need plug-and-play funnels? Go managed. Both work — it's a tradeoff, not a contest.
Google Analytics
Web analytics service.
Why Choose Google Analytics
- ✓Industry-standard reporting with Google Ads and Search Console integration
- ✓Advanced audience segmentation and cohort analysis
- ✓Free tier handles up to 10M hits per month
Drawbacks
- ×Privacy concerns — data goes to Google
- ×GA4 migration frustrated many users
PostHog
🦔 PostHog is an all-in-one developer platform for building successful products. We offer product analytics, web analytics, session replay, error tracking, feature flags, experimentation, surveys, data warehouse, a CDP, and an AI product assistant to help debug your code, ship features faster, and keep all your usage and customer data in one stack.
Why Choose PostHog
- ✓Session recording with heatmaps and click tracking
- ✓Built-in feature flags, A/B testing, and surveys
- ✓Warehouse-native — query your data with SQL
Drawbacks
- ×Complex to self-host
Related Comparisons
Explore alternatives for other tools in Analytics