📊 Web analytics Open source Privacy ★★★★

Matomo

The closest OSS equivalent to GA4

Overview

Matomo (formerly Piwik) since 2007 offers GA4-like breadth—heatmaps, session recording, tag manager, A/B tests, funnels.

Self-host for 100% data ownership or use matomo.cloud; GA Universal import tool eases migration.

IP anonymization and opt-out built in—more complex than Plausible but feature-rich.

Scores

Privacy 4/5
Ease of use 3/5
Features 5/5
Value 4/5

Google Analytics — comparison

Closest functional substitute without Google ads integration—you configure consent; data stays yours when self-hosted.

Pros

  • Nearest feature parity to GA4 among OSS
  • Full ownership when self-hosted
  • Large plugin ecosystem
  • GA4 data import available

Cons & caveats

  • Heavier setup and ops than Plausible
  • Premium plugins cost on-prem
  • Higher server requirements
  • UI less polished in places

Best for

  • GA4 feature preservation
  • Large sites and ecommerce
  • Strict compliance needs

Not ideal for

  • Tiny blogs wanting one-line install
  • Avoiding all server admin

Specs

Pricing
Free + paid — Core GPL free. Cloud from ~€19/month. Premium plugins extra on-prem.
Difficulty
Moderate
Data location
Self-host or Matomo Cloud (EU/US/Asia selectable).
Platforms
Self-hosted · Cloud
Highlights
GA4 importerヒートマップタグマネージャーA/Bテスト

Migration from Google Analytics

  1. 1 Install Matomo or register matomo.cloud
  2. 2 Install tracking via Tag Manager or direct script
  3. 3 Optional: GA4 Importer plugin for historical data
  4. 4 Remove GA4 and rebuild goals/events in Matomo

Setup steps

  1. 1 Download Matomo or sign up for cloud
  2. 2 Install on PHP + MySQL/MariaDB stack
  3. 3 Run setup wizard for tracking snippet
  4. 4 Configure goals and custom dimensions