Open Web Analytics vs Tianji
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted web analytics options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Tianji
Insight hub combining analytics, uptime, and server status
| Feature | Open Web Analytics | Tianji |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 87 · Excellent | 87 · Excellent |
| Category | Web Analytics | Web Analytics |
| License | GPL-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,690 | ★ 3,100 |
| First released | 2008 | 2023 |
| Replaces | Google Analytics | Google Analytics |
What are Open Web Analytics and Tianji?
Open Web Analytics
Open Web Analytics (OWA) is a long-standing self-hosted web analytics framework that tracks visitors, click streams, and heatmaps. It can be embedded in WordPress and MediaWiki.
- Click stream tracking
- Heatmaps
- WordPress integration
- Visitor profiles
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
Open Web Analytics vs Tianji: key differences
Open Web Analytics is written in PHP, while Tianji is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for Open Web Analytics versus Apache-2.0 for Tianji. Open Web Analytics is the more established project (first released 2008), while Tianji arrived in 2023.
Why pick each one
Choose Open Web Analytics if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.7k GitHub stars)
- Written in PHP
Choose Tianji if…
- Multiple tools in one
- Clean interface
Watch out for
- Jack-of-all-trades scope
- Younger project
Frequently asked questions
Is Open Web Analytics or Tianji better?
Neither is universally better. Tianji has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Open Web Analytics and Tianji free and open-source?
Yes. Open Web Analytics is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Tianji under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Open Web Analytics and Tianji with Docker?
Open Web Analytics: yes. Tianji: yes.