Matomo vs Tianji
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted web analytics options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Matomo
Powerful, privacy-respecting web analytics platform
VS
Tianji
Insight hub combining analytics, uptime, and server status
| Feature | Matomo | Tianji |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 96 · Excellent | 87 · Excellent |
| Category | Web Analytics | Web Analytics |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 21,893 | ★ 3,100 |
| First released | 2007 | 2023 |
| Replaces | Google Analytics | Google Analytics |
What are Matomo and Tianji?
Matomo
Matomo is a powerful, open-source web analytics platform that gives full ownership of data as a privacy-friendly alternative to Google Analytics. It targets organizations that need detailed analytics with data control. It is deployed via Docker or a PHP stack.
- Full-featured analytics suite
- 100% data ownership
- Heatmaps and funnels via plugins
- GDPR-friendly configuration
Tianji
Tianji is an all-in-one insight hub that combines website analytics, uptime monitoring, and server status into a single application. It offers a unified dashboard for observing your sites and infrastructure.
- Website analytics
- Uptime monitoring
- Server status reporting
- Unified insight dashboard
Matomo vs Tianji: key differences
Matomo is written in PHP, while Tianji is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Matomo versus Apache-2.0 for Tianji. Tianji is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Matomo. Matomo is the more established project (first released 2007), while Tianji arrived in 2023. Matomo has the considerably larger community, at 21,893 GitHub stars versus 3,100.
Why pick each one
Choose Matomo if…
- Comprehensive analytics
- Privacy-respecting
- Mature and extensible
Watch out for
- Heavier to self-host
- Some features in paid plugins
Choose Tianji if…
- Multiple tools in one
- Clean interface
Watch out for
- Jack-of-all-trades scope
- Younger project
Frequently asked questions
Is Matomo or Tianji better?
Neither is universally better. Matomo has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Matomo and Tianji free and open-source?
Yes. Matomo is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Tianji under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Matomo and Tianji with Docker?
Matomo: yes. Tianji: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Matomo or Tianji?
Tianji has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Matomo. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.