GoatCounter vs Litlyx
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted web analytics options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
GoatCounter
Easy and privacy-friendly web analytics
VS
Litlyx
AI-powered, privacy-first analytics in a single script
| Feature | GoatCounter | Litlyx |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 85 · Excellent | 53 · Fair |
| Category | Web Analytics | Web Analytics |
| License | EUPL-1.2 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, docker | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,997 | ★ 1,744 |
| First released | 2019 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Google Analytics | Google Analytics |
What are GoatCounter and Litlyx?
GoatCounter
GoatCounter is an open-source web analytics platform that is easy to use and privacy-friendly, collecting no personal data. It targets small site owners and hobbyists. It is deployed as a single binary or via Docker.
- No personal data collected
- Single-binary deployment
- Works without JavaScript
- Lightweight and fast
Litlyx
Litlyx is an open-source, privacy-first analytics platform that integrates with a single line of code. It offers an AI assistant for querying your data and tracks visits, events, and conversions.
- One-line integration
- AI data assistant
- Event and conversion tracking
- Privacy-first by default
GoatCounter vs Litlyx: key differences
GoatCounter is written in Go, while Litlyx is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — EUPL-1.2 for GoatCounter versus AGPL-3.0 for Litlyx. GoatCounter is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Litlyx. GoatCounter is the more established project (first released 2019), while Litlyx arrived in 2024. GoatCounter has the considerably larger community, at 5,997 GitHub stars versus 1,744.
Why pick each one
Choose GoatCounter if…
- Extremely easy to run
- Very lightweight
- Privacy-friendly
Watch out for
- Basic reporting depth
- Small project
Choose Litlyx if…
- Simple setup
- Natural-language data queries
Watch out for
- Young project
- Requires MongoDB
Frequently asked questions
Is GoatCounter or Litlyx better?
GoatCounter is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Litlyx if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are GoatCounter and Litlyx free and open-source?
Yes. GoatCounter is licensed under EUPL-1.2 and Litlyx under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run GoatCounter and Litlyx with Docker?
GoatCounter: yes. Litlyx: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, GoatCounter or Litlyx?
GoatCounter has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Litlyx. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.