Mixpanel vs OpenPanel

OpenPanel is based on the same principles as Mixpanel, but with a few key differences. We'll go through some of the features and see how they compare.

Web analytics

Mixpanel is a great product analytics tool but in our minds its lacking in this area. Web analytics should always be easy to get going and we think Mixpanel has to much focus on product analytics.

In OpenPanel you do not need to do anything to get your web analytics up and running. Just add the tracking snippet to your website or app and you're up and running.

OpenPanel web analytics dashboard showing pageviews, sessions and other key metrics — OpenPanel's web analytics dashboard provides key metrics at a glance

Product analytics

Mixpanel's strength is in product analytics and it's hard to beat (to be honest). Nevertheless we aim to have the same great features in OpenPanel.

Probably the most used feature in Mixpanel is their report tool, where you can create all kinds of charts and see how different things are doing. We have tried to make a similar experiance where you can pick and choose different metrics and dimensions to create your own custom reports.

Some of the features we have added are:

Funnels
Retention
Line charts
Bar charts
Histogram charts
Area charts
Pie charts
Map charts
Events
Profiles

OpenPanel report tool showing a funnel — OpenPanel's report tool provides a wide range of charts and metrics

Cookies vs Cookieless

Mixpanel is a cookie-based tool, which means that it relies on cookies to track users. This provides advantages like:

More accurate user identification across sessions
Better cross-domain tracking
Easier integration with existing cookie-based systems

However, it also comes with challenges:

Requires cookie consent banners in many jurisdictions
Can be blocked by ad blockers and privacy-focused browsers
May not work with upcoming cookie restrictions

OpenPanel uses a cookieless approach, relying instead on privacy-preserving techniques like fingerprinting and session-based tracking. This offers benefits such as:

No cookie consent banners required
Works even when cookies are blocked
Future-proof against upcoming cookie restrictions

Its up to you to decide what's best for your users and your business.

Realtime

Both Mixpanel and OpenPanel have real-time analytics. Its just a matter of seconds before you can see what's happening in your product or website.

But we have added a new feature in OpenPanel which we call Realtime. It's similar to Google Analytics' real-time view since we love looking at big screens with live data.

OpenPanel real-time analytics dashboard showing active users and other key metrics — See where all your users are at the moment in OpenPanel's realtime view

Notifications

In OpenPanel you can create notifications for different events. This is a great way to stay on top of things and get notified when something is happening.

You can define advanced conditions when and what to notify you about. We have several integrations with other tools so you can easily connect your notifications to other tools you use.

As of now, we don't believe Mixpanel has this feature.

Similarities

Profiles

Both Mixpanel and OpenPanel allow you to see profiles of your users. This is a great way to understand your users and see how they are doing.

Events

You get new events in realtime in both Mixpanel and OpenPanel, you can search and filter on any property. Mixpanel might be a bit faster but it's not a big difference.

Conclusion