Outgrowing Umami?
Umami is solid open-source web analytics, but it's web-analytics-first, needs Postgres beside it, and its product analytics (funnels, retention, journeys) are newer and shallower. smolanalytics is one binary with funnels, retention, paths, and cohorts built in, a verdict every morning, and a direct importer for your Umami history.
smolanalytics vs Umami in one paragraph
smolanalytics and Umami are both open-source, privacy-friendly, self-hostable alternatives to Google Analytics. Umami is web-analytics-first: a clean dashboard for pageviews, referrers, and events, with a free cloud tier (1M events, 3 sites, 6-month retention) and a Pro tier around $20 per million events as of mid-2026; product analytics is newer and web-first (funnels, retention and journeys arrived after its web-analytics core), and since v3 dropped MySQL, self-hosting means running Postgres alongside the app. smolanalytics is one MIT-licensed Go binary with no external database, and it does web and product analytics together (funnels, retention, paths, and cohorts) plus a daily verdict that tells you what to fix, Google Search Console built in, and ask-in-editor via MCP answered by your own model. It imports Umami CSV exports directly, so history comes with you. Our cloud is a 14-day full trial with no card, then Pro at $19/month for 2M events or Scale at $49/month for 5M, unlimited sites on every plan; the free-forever option is the binary. Pick Umami for free cloud web analytics; pick smolanalytics for everything after that.
where Umami stops (as of mid-2026)
The free cloud tier caps at 1M events, 3 websites, and 6 months of history; Pro runs about $20 per million events.
umami.is pricing, as of mid-2026
v3 dropped MySQL support: self-hosters had to migrate to Postgres, and the app always needs a database running beside it.
Umami v3 release notes, as of mid-2026
Product analytics is web-analytics-first: funnels, retention (cohort-based) and journeys/paths exist but arrived after its web-analytics core, and there's no first-party editor-native asking.
Umami feature set, as of mid-2026
Umami vs smolanalytics
| Umami | smolanalytics | |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | web-analytics-first | web + product analytics |
| Funnels / retention / paths | funnels, retention, journeys (newer) | funnels, retention, paths, cohorts |
| Free cloud | 1M events · 3 sites · 6-mo history | 1M events · unlimited sites · 14-day history |
| Self-host | app + Postgres (v3 dropped MySQL) | one Go binary, no database |
| Ask in your editor | no first-party option (community MCP exists) | MCP, CI-tested to match the dashboard |
| Tells you what to fix | dashboards you read | a verdict, every morning |
| Bring your history | no importer | imports Umami CSV directly |
when to pick Umami instead
- You want free cloud web analytics. Umami's free tier (1M events, 3 sites, as of mid-2026) is genuinely free forever; our cloud is a 14-day full trial, then $19/month.
- You already run Postgres and only need web analytics: pageviews and referrers, nothing deeper. Self-hosted Umami is a solid, proven setup for that.
Bring your history with you
# 1) export your data from Umami (CSV), then import it. history comes along
smolanalytics import --format=umami --host=https://YOUR-INSTANCE --key=YOUR_WRITE_KEY umami-export.csv
<!-- 2) swap the script tag -->
<script src="https://YOUR-INSTANCE/sdk.js"></script>
<script>smolanalytics.init("YOUR_WRITE_KEY", { host: "https://YOUR-INSTANCE" });</script>One importer run, one snippet swap. Your Umami history lands intact, and Postgres stays out of your life.
questions
Is smolanalytics a good Umami alternative?
Yes, if you like open-source, privacy-friendly analytics but want product analytics too. smolanalytics is one MIT-licensed Go binary, no Postgres to run, with funnels, retention, paths, cohorts, a daily verdict, and ask-in-editor via MCP. Cloud is free for 14 days, then $19/month (Pro, 2M events) or $49/month (Scale, 5M), unlimited sites on every plan, after a 14-day full trial.
Can I import my Umami data into smolanalytics?
Yes. smolanalytics ships an Umami importer: export your data from Umami as CSV, then run `smolanalytics import --format=umami` against your instance. Your historical traffic lands in the same dashboard as new events, so you don't start from zero.
When is Umami the better choice?
When you want free cloud web analytics and already have Postgres. Umami's free tier (1M events, 3 sites, as of mid-2026) is genuinely free, and if pageviews and referrers are all you need, it does the job well.
Get the verdict, not another dashboard.
Drop one snippet, ask in your editor, own your data. 14-day full trial, no credit card.