plausible vs fathom-analytics
Plausible vs Fathom Analytics — features, pricing, and which to choose for your SEO workflow in 2026.
Quick Verdict
Both Plausible and Fathom Analytics emerged as privacy-first alternatives to Google Analytics, but they've evolved in distinctly different directions. Plausible positions itself as the lightweight, minimalist option that loads in under 1KB, while Fathom focuses on providing deeper insights without sacrificing privacy.
The choice typically comes down to whether you prioritize absolute simplicity and site speed (Plausible) or want more comprehensive analytics features while maintaining privacy compliance (Fathom). Both are GDPR-compliant and don't require cookie banners, but their feature sets and pricing models cater to different user priorities.
Feature Comparison
Plausible delivers exactly what it promises: essential metrics in a clean, single-page dashboard. You get pageviews, unique visitors, bounce rate, visit duration, and top pages/sources. The script is remarkably lightweight at <1KB, making it ideal for performance-focused sites. Plausible also includes goal tracking, custom events, and basic UTM parameter tracking, but stops there intentionally. Fathom Analytics offers a more comprehensive feature set while maintaining privacy standards. Beyond basic metrics, you get detailed referrer analysis, device/browser breakdowns, real-time visitor tracking, and more sophisticated goal tracking with revenue attribution. Fathom's dashboard provides multiple views and filtering options that Plausible deliberately avoids. Their "uptime monitoring" feature and email reports add operational value that Plausible doesn't match. Both tools offer Google Analytics import capabilities, but Fathom's transition tools are more solid, including automated report generation and team collaboration features that make it easier for agencies and larger teams to adopt.
Pricing Comparison
Plausible starts at $9/month for up to 10K monthly pageviews, scaling to $69/month for 1M pageviews. Their pricing is straightforward and predictable, with annual discounts available. The value proposition is clear: pay less for essential metrics without bloat. Fathom Analytics begins at $14/month for 100K pageviews, jumping to $74/month for 1M pageviews. While more expensive per pageview at lower tiers, Fathom includes features like uptime monitoring, email reports, and team access that would require additional tools with other solutions. For higher-traffic sites, the pricing gap narrows significantly.
Best For
Plausible is the better choice for performance-obsessed developers, small businesses, and anyone who genuinely wants just the essential metrics. If you value a sub-1KB script size, minimalist design, and don't need advanced filtering or team features, Plausible delivers exactly what you need at the lowest cost. It's particularly appealing for personal projects and small business websites where simplicity trumps comprehensive analytics. Fathom Analytics works better for growing businesses, agencies, and teams that need more than basic metrics. If you want detailed referrer analysis, team collaboration, uptime monitoring, or are migrating a larger organization away from Google Analytics, Fathom's additional features justify the higher price. The real-time data and advanced filtering make it suitable for sites that need to react quickly to traffic patterns.
The Verdict
Choose Plausible if you prioritize site performance and truly only need basic traffic metrics. Its minimal footprint and clean interface make it perfect for developers and small site owners who want privacy-compliant analytics without complexity. However, most businesses will find Fathom Analytics worth the extra cost for its comprehensive feature set, better team functionality, and more detailed insights that actually inform SEO and marketing decisions.