Plausible vs Swetrix
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted web analytics options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Plausible
Lightweight, privacy-friendly website analytics
VS
Swetrix
Privacy-focused, cookieless web analytics service
| Feature | Plausible | Swetrix |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 96 · Excellent | 83 · Excellent |
| Category | Web Analytics | Web Analytics |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Elixir | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 29,197 | ★ 1,202 |
| First released | 2019 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Google Analytics | Google Analytics |
What are Plausible and Swetrix?
Plausible
Plausible is a lightweight, open-source, privacy-friendly web analytics tool that needs no cookies and is GDPR compliant. It targets site owners who want simple, ethical analytics. It is deployed via Docker.
- Cookie-free and GDPR compliant
- Tiny tracking script
- Clean single-page dashboard
- Goal and funnel tracking
Swetrix
Swetrix is an open-source, privacy-focused web analytics platform that is fully cookieless and GDPR compliant. It tracks page views, user flows, and custom events without identifying visitors.
- Cookieless tracking
- User flow analysis
- Custom events
- Performance metrics
Plausible vs Swetrix: key differences
Plausible is written in Elixir, while Swetrix is built with TypeScript. Swetrix is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Plausible. Plausible is the more established project (first released 2019), while Swetrix arrived in 2021. Plausible has the considerably larger community, at 29,197 GitHub stars versus 1,202.
Why pick each one
Choose Plausible if…
- Privacy-friendly by design
- Simple and fast
- Lightweight script
Watch out for
- Self-host needs Postgres and ClickHouse
- Fewer deep reports than Matomo
Choose Swetrix if…
- No cookie banner needed
- Detailed flow reports
Watch out for
- Needs ClickHouse and Redis
- Setup is multi-component
Frequently asked questions
Is Plausible or Swetrix better?
Neither is universally better. Plausible has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Plausible and Swetrix free and open-source?
Yes. Plausible is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Swetrix under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Plausible and Swetrix with Docker?
Plausible: yes. Swetrix: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Plausible or Swetrix?
Swetrix has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Plausible. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.