Best Analytics for Wordpress: Reviewing the 9 Top Plugins for Privacy

Any website owner will want to install the best analytics for Wordpress.

Website analytics is probably your most important plugin. It enables you to assess performance, and you can then use the insights it provides to guide all digital growth activities.

Simply put, it will make your digital marketing much easier.

But what’s the best Wordpress analytics plugin for your needs? And why are privacy-first options better than the rest?

This article answers these questions.

TWIPLA has long been the number one analytics tool on Wix, so we know a thing or two about what makes analytics tick. We’re now turning our attention to Wordpress, having noticed the real shortage of high performing privacy-perfect tools available to its users.

In fact, there’s only nine, and we’ve already written elsewhere about how we’ve identified these privacy-first Wordpress analytics plugins.

This article explains why privacy matters and what features characterize the best Wordpress analytics tools. It will then review the nine integrations that best meet this criteria.

Let’s jump in!

• Wordpress community rating: 4.5 (15 reviews)
• G2: 4.5/5 (30 reviews)
• Capterra: 4.7/5 (383 votes)
• Getapp: 4.7/5 (386 votes)

TWIPLA is a great Wordpress integration for anyone looking for an advanced, privacy-perfect option.

In fact, it’s the only option in the Wordpress directory that offers visitor behavior analytics and visitor communication tools alongside complete website statistics. This gives TWIPLA a real edge over competitors as an all-in-one website intelligence solution in 2023.

TWIPLA has long been the number 1 website analytics integration on Wix, the world’s most used website builder so we know a thing or two about what businesses need to grow their digital presence. We currently have over 2.5 million active installations around the world, and are highly recommended across all respected online customer review sites.

Crucially, TWIPLA has been developed from the beginning with privacy in mind. It uses advanced cookieless tracking technology and is equipped with a privacy center that can be automatically calibrated to the local privacy laws of individual website visitors.

This enables businesses to maximize data collection within the boundaries of GDPR and other data privacy laws, and the solution consequently provides the most accurate insights on the market.

TWIPLA offers a free forever plan. This is perfect for smaller websites that are just starting out, and gives subscribers access to all but the visitor communication tools. The priced plans also start at just $10.39 a month, and users can jump up through the four tiers as their website traffic grows.

Pricing: Freemium starter plan, with the most popular plan costing $31.99 each month.

• Wordpress community: 4.9/5 (90 reviews)
• G2: -
• Capterra: -
• Getapp: -

Burst Statistics offers an efficient approach to WordPress dashboard analytics. Despite lacking behavior analytics or communication features, it's an excellent choice for those who prefer to concentrate on the fundamental metrics that affect site performance.

These include pageviews, sessions, time spent on pages, and also referral sources. This makes it an effective diagnostic lens through which to scrutinize website performance and identify areas needing improvement.

On the privacy front, Burst Statistics again makes no compromises. By locally hosting all data, it eliminates the concern of external servers accessing information. Furthermore, Burst Statistics has partnered with Complianz to ensure data remains anonymous, and the privacy settings are stringent and secure.

Burst Statistics also has a lightweight construction. Users can rest assured knowing it will not exert undue pressure on site's resources or speed. Its dedication to optimization makes it an advantageous choice, irrespective of website size.

The tool also scores high on flexibility. It allows you to customize your metrics, thus providing a degree of adaptability that's rare in competing plugins.

Crucially, Burst Statistics is committed to open-source principles. By involving the community in development, Burst Statistics fosters an inclusive approach that can potentially propel it to the forefront of the WordPress analytics plugin market.

Furthermore, Burst Statistics provides robust community support. There is an abundance of documentation available, along with an active forum of helpful users. However, they do request that you utilize existing resources before initiating a new thread, which seems a reasonable expectation.

All in all, Burst Statistics offers an innovative, streamlined solution for Wordpress users. It prioritizes essential metrics, upholds strong privacy standards, and encourages collaboration. If you seek uncomplicated, straightforward analytics, Burst Statistics is a viable contender.

Pricing: Starting from $0 per month.

• Wordpress community: 4.6/5 (10 reviews)
• G2: 4.4/5 (19 reviews)
• Capterra: -
• Getapp: -

If you're in pursuit of a privacy-focused, efficient solution for web analytics, Fathom Analytics may fit the bill. Positioning itself as a notable alternative to Google Analytics, Fathom underscores user privacy while equally delivering a plethora of insightful data.

The cornerstone of Fathom's value proposition is its unwavering commitment to privacy. It sets itself apart from the competition by eschewing the use of cookies and the storage of personal data. To further strengthen its offering, Fathom aligns with data privacy regulations such as GDPR, CCPA, and PECR, creating a safe choice for those attentive to both legal and ethical concerns.

Exploring its features, Fathom excels with an intuitive, polished analytics dashboard. It provides detailed insights into website traffic and user behavior in an easily comprehensible format. However, it should be noted that Fathom consciously omits visitor analytics tools and communication functionalities, concentrating purely on website statistics.

A distinguishing attribute of Fathom is its ability to circumvent ad-blockers. This ensures that you receive a comprehensive view of your site traffic. Pair this with a lightweight script, and you have a fast, seamless user experience that could potentially enhance SEO considerably.

Thus, if you are seeking a minimalistic, privacy-prioritizing web analytics tool, Fathom Analytics merits serious consideration. Regardless of your organization's scale, Fathom's commitment to delivering superior, privacy-respecting analytics distinguishes it in a densely populated field.

Pricing: Starting from $14 per month, the highest paid plan is $44 per month. 30-day free trial.

• Wordpress community rating: 5/5 (99 reviews)
• G2: -
• Capterra: -
• Getapp: -

Koko Analytics is one of the best Wordpress analytics tools that also sets a benchmark for privacy, even if it doesn't show up on many of the review sites we use.

The plugin operates with an unambiguous 'no external services' policy, ensuring visitor data remains confined within your domain - a stark contrast to solutions like Google Analytics where data storage is external. As a self-hosted tool, Koko Analytics refrains from gathering visitor-specific data and also respects 'Do Not Track' browser preferences. It adheres to strict GDPR regulations, making it a sound choice for safeguarding users.

Koko Analytics adopts a minimalist approach to features, focusing on fundamental website statistics. Post-installation, users are greeted with an uncluttered dashboard widget that furnishes a two-week analytics overview. This includes data on visitor numbers, page views, and also referral sources. Despite its simplicity, the absence of session duration tracking and insights into user browser types, operating systems, and geographical locations may leave a gap for those seeking a comprehensive understanding of user behavior.

In terms of functionality and WordPress integration, Koko Analytics prioritizes performance and simplicity. It doesn't encumber your site like some heavier options, preserving an optimum user experience. Its easily digestible graphs and statistics require minimal effort to interpret and do not noticeably impact site performance. Some minor inconsistencies, such as the inclusion of non-user activities as page views and sporadic statistical spikes, have been reported. However, these drawbacks appear inconsequential when compared to the tool’s overall ease of use.

Koko Analytics delivers a refreshing perspective for WordPress users. It may not cater to the needs of users seeking in-depth session tracking or comprehensive visitor behavior analysis, but for those who place a premium on privacy, intuitive navigation, and unaffected site performance, Koko Analytics could be the ideal choice.

Pricing: Starting from $0 per month.

• Wordpress community: 4.9/5 (36 reviews)
• G2: -
• Capterra: -
• Getapp: -

Navigating the digital landscape requires a fine balance between comprehensive data insights and user privacy. In this arena, Independent Analytics, a WordPress plugin, delivers by prioritizing both.

Positioning itself as a viable alternative to Google Analytics, Independent Analytics integrates an intuitive dashboard into your WordPress admin area. It offers simple navigation and customizable views, saving users from complex analytics decoding.

Distinctive in its deep WordPress data integration, it recognizes page titles, authors, and categories, delivering specific insights that URL-centric analytics tools might overlook. Additionally, its Geographic Data feature provides robust visitor demographics, aiding informed decisions about language offerings, currency, and partnerships.

Ease of installation sets Independent Analytics apart—no complex configurations or coding. Once activated, it grants instant access to critical WordPress-specific data, allowing for the monitoring of individual posts, author performance, and popular search terms.

In terms of privacy, it aligns with GDPR standards, refrains from using cookies, and doesn't track identifiable data. All data is securely housed on your server, eliminating third-party interference.

Furthermore, Independent Analytics shines in generating custom reports. These have easy-to-use filters, facilitating swift creation of reports based on author metrics, visitor numbers, and page views.

It also has a negligible impact on website performance. This is possible thanks to its lightweight tracking script, enabling it to run alongside other tools without affecting load times.

In conclusion, Independent Analytics offers an effective blend of privacy, user-friendliness, and insightful features. Its promising roadmap, including Independent Analytics Pro with Campaign URL tracking, make it a worthy contender for those seeking a privacy-respecting, WordPress-integrated analytics tool.

Pricing: Starting from $0 per year, $99 per year for pro plan.

• Wordpress community: 4.6 (131 reviews)
• G2: 4.0/5 (89 reviews)
• Capterra: 4.8/5 (53 votes)
• Getapp: 4.8/5 (53 votes)

Matomo has made a name for itself as a comprehensive, open-source analytics platform. It’s trusted by over 1.4 million websites across 190 countries, and is available in over 50 languages. 

Matomo's selling point is its unwavering commitment to privacy, guaranteeing 100% data ownership and zero data sampling.

Matomo is also flexible when it comes to hosting. For those who value ease of use, the cloud option eliminates the need for installation. If customization is your priority, the on-premise version provides self-hosted PHP/MySQL software to install on your server.

Matomo's premium analytics and conversion optimization tool boast a plethora of features, such as heatmaps, session recordings, and conversion funnels. Note, however, that visitor behavioral features require a premium package, and there are no surveys or polls.

Installation is hassle-free, with a one-click app option for swift setup. A detailed guide and a WordPress plugin simplify the process further. As a 'Super User', you maintain complete administrative control, managing user permissions at your discretion. Matomo's dashboard, highly customizable, allows for multiple dashboard creation based on different use cases.

Despite its robust features, Matomo lacks in areas such as custom reports, which are only available as a paid plugin. Nonetheless, Matomo's paid extensions add significant functionality, and are powerful tools for revenue-generating sites.

In summary, Matomo is an analytics powerhouse, excelling in traffic counts, sources, and also goal/ecommerce tracking. While the user interface might lack finesse, Matomo's commitment to privacy and data ownership make it a potent alternative to mainstream platforms. If you're seeking a new analytics solution, Matomo is well worth considering.

Pricing: Starting from $0 per month, $20 per month on cloud storage.

• Wordpress community rating: 5/5 (22 reviews)
• G2: 5/5 (1 review)
• Capterra: 5/5 (6 votes)
• Getapp: -

All in all, Plausible Analytics is one of the best analytics for Wordpress. Its focus on privacy and precise, user-friendly analytics make it a standout, especially for privacy-conscious small-scale websites.

Plausible's commitment to cookie-free analytics tracking is refreshing in today's cookie-inundated digital world. Small websites can enjoy a more seamless experience without sacrificing data insights. Unlike the code-hidden approach of Google Analytics, Plausible champions transparency with its open-source policy, providing users with the ability to verify its privacy and user tracking claims.

A high note is Plausible's default adherence to GDPR. This hands-off approach towards compliance benefits busy or less tech-savvy website owners.

The dashboard's simplicity and ease of navigation are pluses. The installation on a WordPress site is hassle-free, with no complex coding required. Valuable data points like visitor counts, trends, identifiers, and locations are presented in a user-friendly format, all while prioritizing privacy. Its privacy policy clearly articulates its commitment against the use of cookies or personal data collection.

However, Plausible isn't flawless. It comes at a cost, potentially discouraging owners of budding websites or those with tight budgets. Additionally, data access for individual posts or pages within the WordPress dashboard could be more intuitive.

In summary, Plausible Analytics, with its easy setup, efficient statistics, strong privacy commitment, clean interface, and fair pricing, definitely offers value. The cons are its non-free model and room for improvement in WordPress integration. Nonetheless, if you seek an analytics tool that balances privacy with insightful data, Plausible is a worthy contender.

Pricing: Starting from $5 per month. Free trial available.

• Wordpress community rating: 5/5 (2 reviews)
• G2: 4.5/5 (16 reviews)
• Capterra: 4.9/5 (27 votes)
• Getapp: 4.9/5 (28 votes)

Simple Analytics is a streamlined, privacy-focused website analytics platform that delivers essential insights without encroaching on user data. From tracking page views to top referrals, this robust tool offers granular insights without utilizing cookies or collecting personal data. 

Foregoing the typical 'free-service-data-sales' approach, Simple Analytics adopts a paid model, ensuring your data remains yours and yours alone. It's clear that the emphasis here is simplicity, with a user interface meticulously crafted for user-friendly interactions and quick access to vital website performance data.

Tailoring to user needs, Simple Analytics offers customizable email report frequencies and unique solutions for tackling issues such as traffic generation from Tweets. Concerns about ad blockers can be laid to rest with the option to link a custom subdomain directly to Simple Analytics, with SSL certificates and other complexities handled in-house.

User reviews paint an overwhelmingly positive picture, lauding the platform's seamless, speedy interface and the depth of insights it provides. While some users noted a slightly longer setup time for custom domains, the consensus recognises Simple Analytics as a valuable tool for bolstering privacy.

A significant advantage of Simple Analytics is its commitment to privacy regulations. It boasts a lightweight, simplistic design that doesn’t compromise user privacy, ensuring all data is encrypted and no personal visitor data is stored.

Key features include data import/export, event tracking, automated reports, dark mode, and also a mobile dashboard.

In conclusion, Simple Analytics' exceptional blend of a privacy-first ethos, user-friendly interface, robust features, and flexible pricing plans make it an outstanding choice for businesses prioritizing user privacy and meaningful analytics.

Pricing: Starting from $9 per month, $99 per month for enterprise plans.

• Wordpress community rating: 4.1/5 (629 reviews)
• G2: -
• Capterra: -
• Getapp: -

WP Statistics is the final plugin we recognize as one of the best for Wordpress. It's gained popularity through its simplicity and user-oriented design. Catering to beginners, this free plugin provides a self-sufficient solution for website monitoring. If a more detailed, flexible analysis is what you seek, however, you can customize it with paid add-ons.

WP Statistics excels in simplicity while also offering granular details through comprehensive reports and overviews. It captures critical information, such as site hits, browser usage, and search queries, alongside geographic data, catering to your every need for website analysis.

In the WordPress landscape, WP Statistics shines, offering deep insights into your metrics. It uncovers visitors’ browsing habits, their preferred search engine, and also the popularity of articles based on authors, categories, and tags, thereby equipping you with a thorough understanding of user engagement.

This user-friendly plugin offers a straightforward interface within the WordPress admin panel, making the graphical data view an uncomplicated process.

For those starting off or running relatively simple websites, WP Statistics is ideal. It delivers clear and concise overviews of visitor data, page views, and hits. For larger-scale entities that require a more robust and sophisticated analytics tool, WP Statistics might not be the best fit.

In summary, WP Statistics is a fantastic choice for those requiring a simple approach to website analytics, especially when privacy is prioritized. Although it might lack the more advanced website intelligence tools that website owners need, it’s a very tidy package for the raw statistics that website optimization is built on.

Pricing: Free, with option for paid add-ons.

And that’s it, that’s the reviews for the nine best analytics for Wordpress website owners! It’s a short list, and this emphasizes the real dearth of privacy-first analytics integrations that are currently available from the Wordpress plugin directory.

But as you can see from the reviews, there’s still options available for Wordpress users regardless of the size or function of their website, and their wider digital marketing objectives.

And given the importance of data privacy to businesses, these are the only Wordpress analytics plugins worth considering. New laws and regulations continue to arrive each year, and prioritizing privacy in all your plugin choices will make things much easier in the future!

TWIPLA makes for a particularly good choice in this regard. It boasts more features than the rest, and offers the most advanced cookieless tracking technology on the market.

Taken together, this ensures that you can best analyze site functionality from every angle imaginable, collect the most accurate insights, and build your website around the preferences and behavior of your users.

So sign up today and unlock your Wordpress’ website’s full potential!