GA4 vs Matomo: Which Analytics Should You Use?
GA4 is free and connects to Google Ads and Search Console. Matomo is open-source analytics you can host yourself, so your visitor data stays yours. The choice is reach into Google's tools against control of your data.
- GA4
- Choose GA4 if you advertise on Google and want free analytics that feed your campaigns.
- Matomo
- Choose Matomo if data ownership and privacy rules matter most, or you want raw data without sampling limits.
Prices checked September 2026, from the vendors' own pages.
GA4 or Matomo: Which Fits You?
Do you run Google Ads?
How strict are your privacy or data residency rules?
Is a monthly analytics bill acceptable?
GA4 vs Matomo at a Glance
| Compared | GA4 | Matomo |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free; Analytics 360 through Google sales | Cloud from $29 a month; On-Premise Community edition free |
| Where data lives | Google's servers | Matomo's cloud or your own servers |
| Google Ads link | Yes, native | No |
| Best for | Sites that advertise on Google | Privacy-first and data-owning organizations |
GA4 vs Matomo Pricing
GA4 is free. Matomo is free if you host it yourself, or priced by monthly traffic in its cloud.
GA4
- Google Analytics 4The standard product for most sites$0
- Google Analytics 360Enterprise version, sold through Google sales and partnersQuote only
Matomo
- Matomo CloudUp to 50,000 hits a month, excluding taxFrom $29 a month
- Matomo On-PremiseCommunity edition on your own server, unlimited users and hits$0
Analytics cost for one year
GA4: GA4: $0.
Matomo: Matomo Cloud at 50,000 hits a month: $29 x 12 = $348. On-Premise: $0, plus your server.
Checked September 2026: Google Analytics, Matomo pricing. Prices change; check the vendor before you buy.
GA4 vs Matomo Features
What each offers as standard.
| Feature | GA4 | Matomo |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Yes | Yes, self-hosted |
| Link to Google Ads and Search Console | Yes | No |
| Host the data yourself | No | Yes |
| Raw data access | Partial, through BigQuery export | Yes, in your own database |
| Cookieless tracking option | Partial, with consent mode modeling | Yes |
| Ecommerce tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Heatmaps and session recordings | No | Yes, as paid features |
The Differences That Matter
Cost
GA4 costs nothing for almost every business. Matomo is free on your own server, or $348 a year in its cloud at 50,000 hits a month.
Google Ads
If you buy Google Ads, GA4 is hard to replace: it shares audiences and conversions with your campaigns, which helps bidding. Matomo has no such link.
Ownership and privacy
Matomo can keep every visit on your own servers and run without cookies, which suits strict privacy rules. GA4 stores data with Google and relies on consent settings.
Which Should You Choose?
Choose GA4 if
- You run Google Ads
- You want free analytics
- You use Search Console and BigQuery
Choose Matomo if
- Privacy or data residency rules are strict
- You want to own the raw data
- You want heatmaps and recordings in one tool
What we use
Our client reports are built from GA4 and Google Ads data, because most of our clients advertise on Google. For organizations with strict privacy rules, Matomo alongside or instead of GA4 is a sound choice.
SEO audit services: The Revenue Leak Audit checks your tracking along with every technical issue on your site: $999 at the launch price.
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Not Sure Which Fits?
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