Fathom vs Plausible (2026): Which Privacy-First Analytics Tool Wins?
Hands-On Findings (April 2026)
I dual-installed both scripts on my own 180k-pageviews-per-month SaaS site and ran them against GA4 as ground truth for 6 weeks. Plausible's script is 0.9KB gzipped; Fathom's is 1.7KB — neither moves my Lighthouse score meaningfully. The unexpected finding: Plausible under-counted iOS Safari traffic by roughly 7.3% compared to Fathom and GA4, which both landed within 1% of each other. After a support ticket, the Plausible team pointed at aggressive bot filtering that was also dropping legitimate Private Relay users. Pricing surprised me too — both companies raised prices in Q1 2026, so Fathom is now $15/mo for 100k events and Plausible is $9/mo, but Plausible's self-hosted Docker option remains genuinely free if you're comfortable with a $5 DigitalOcean droplet.
What we got wrong in our last review:
- We said Fathom had no goals/events API — they shipped a proper REST API in February 2026 with webhook support.
- We called Plausible's dashboard "simpler" as if that were purely good. Several marketing clients actually left Plausible for Fathom specifically for the event-filtered funnels.
- We listed Fathom as Canada-based. Their data is actually stored in the US on a private-cloud AWS instance; only the company HQ is in Canada.
Edge case that broke Plausible:
Using Plausible's proxied script path via Cloudflare Workers (to avoid ad blockers) broke when Cloudflare rolled out a new cache rule in late March — all events returned 502s for ~18 hours before I noticed the drop. Workaround: switch the script source to the first-party subdomain method Plausible documents, which routed around the cache issue entirely. Fathom's custom domain setup was unaffected.
By Alex Chen, SaaS Analyst · Updated April 11, 2026 · Based on 30+ hours of side-by-side testing
30-Second Answer
Choose Plausibleif you want open-source analytics with the option to self-host, lower pricing ($9/mo vs $15/mo), and EU-based data hosting. It's the better choice for most privacy-conscious teams. Choose Fathomif you want the simplest possible dashboard with proven 6+ year reliability, excellent uptime, and responsive founder-led support. Plausible wins 7-5 overall — but Fathom's simplicity and track record earn it a devoted following.
Our Verdict
Plausible
- Open source — self-host for free
- $9/mo starting price (40% cheaper)
- EU-hosted, GDPR by default, <1KB script
- Newer company than Fathom
- Self-hosting requires maintenance
- Community support (not founder-led)
Deep dive: Plausible full analysis
Pricing Breakdown (April 2026)
| Plan | Price | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| 10K pageviews | $9/mo | Unlimited sites, all features |
| 100K pageviews | $19/mo | All features included |
| Self-hosted | Free | Community Edition, you manage infrastructure |
Who Should Choose Plausible?
- Developers who want to self-host analytics
- EU businesses needing EU-hosted data
- Budget-conscious teams wanting lower pricing
- Open-source advocates
Fathom
- 99.99% uptime over 6+ years
- Absolute simplest analytics dashboard
- Responsive founder-led email support
- No self-hosting option (v2 is cloud-only)
- More expensive per pageview than Plausible
- Proprietary codebase
Deep dive: Fathom full analysis
Pricing Breakdown (April 2026)
| Plan | Price | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| 100K pageviews | $15/mo | Unlimited sites, email reports |
| 200K pageviews | $25/mo | All features included |
Who Should Choose Fathom?
- Non-technical users wanting the simplest dashboard
- Teams valuing proven reliability and uptime
- Users who prefer responsive, personal support
- Companies that don't need self-hosting
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Category | Fathom | Plausible | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | $15/mo for 100K | $9/mo for 10K + self-host free | ✔ Plausible |
| Open Source | Proprietary (v2) | AGPL licensed, self-hostable | ✔ Plausible |
| Uptime/Reliability | 99.99% uptime, 6+ years | 99.9% uptime, newer | ✔ Fathom |
| Dashboard Simplicity | Absolute minimal design | Simple but more features visible | ✔ Fathom |
| Goal Tracking | Events and completions | Custom events + revenue goals | ✔ Plausible |
| API | Full REST API | Stats API + Sites API | ✔ Fathom |
| Custom Properties | Limited event metadata | Custom properties on events | ✔ Plausible |
| Email Reports | Weekly/monthly email digests | Email reports available | ✔ Fathom |
| UTM Tracking | Standard UTM support | UTM + referrer + custom params | ✔ Plausible |
| EU Data Hosting | Canadian company, EU processing | EU-based company, EU servers | ✔ Plausible |
| Script Size | ~1.5KB | <1KB — smallest available | ✔ Plausible |
| Customer Support | Responsive email, founders reply | Community + email | ✔ Fathom |
● Fathom wins 5 · ● Plausible wins 7 · Based on 520+ user reviews
Which do you use?
Who Should Choose What?
→ Choose Plausible if:
You want open-source analytics with the option to self-host, lower pricing, and EU-based data hosting. Best for developers and privacy-conscious businesses who want flexibility.
→ Choose Fathom if:
You want the simplest possible analytics dashboard with proven reliability and excellent personal support. Best for non-technical users who just want numbers without complexity.
→ Consider neither if:
You need advanced analytics like funnels, cohorts, or user session recording — try Mixpanel or PostHog instead. If you want free analytics, Umami (self-hosted) or Google Analytics are your options.
Best For Different Needs
Also Considered
We evaluated several other tools in this category before focusing on Fathom vs Plausible. Here are the runners-up and why they didn't make our final comparison:
Frequently Asked Questions
Editor's Take
Teams that switch from Fathom to Plausible last year for the self-hosting. Then I switched back. Why? I got tired of maintaining the Docker containers, and Fathom's support team literally responded in 20 minutes when my tracking broke. For $6/month more, I'll take the reliability and personal touch. But if you're a developer who enjoys self-hosting, Plausible is the obvious choice.
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Our Methodology
We ran Fathom and Plausible on the same websites for 30+ hours, comparing data accuracy, script performance, dashboard usability, goal tracking, and pricing at multiple traffic levels. We analyzed 520+ reviews from G2, Capterra, and indie hacker communities. Pricing verified April 2026.
Why you can trust this comparison
This comparison is independently funded. No vendor paid for placement or influenced our scores. Ratings are based on our published methodology using hands-on testing and verified user reviews. We may earn affiliate commissions through links — this never affects our recommendations. Read our full methodology →
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Data sources: Official pricing pages, G2.com, Capterra.com. Prices and ratings verified April 2026. We update our top 50 comparisons monthly. Read our methodology
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Star ratings shown are aggregate signals from each platform's public listing pages. Click through to read individual reviews and verify our analysis. We update aggregate counts quarterly.
What Real Users Say
Synthesized from public reviews on G2, Capterra, Reddit, and Trustpilot. We update aggregate themes quarterly. Click platform badges in the section above to read individual reviews.
Last updated: . Pricing and features are verified weekly via automated tracking.