PostHog Alternative
Get powerful product analytics without the complexity. OpenPanel delivers essential insights with a lighter footprint, true cookie-free tracking, and transparent pricing - no enterprise sales calls required.
- Open-source
- Cookie-free
- Lightweight SDK
- Simple Pricing
OpenPanel vs PostHog: Which is right for you?
Both are open-source analytics platforms. PostHog is an all-in-one platform with many products. OpenPanel focuses on analytics with simplicity.
Choose OpenPanel if...
Teams wanting focused analytics without feature flags, session replay, or surveys
Privacy-conscious products needing cookie-free tracking by default
Performance-conscious applications (2.3KB SDK vs 52KB+)
Choose PostHog if...
Teams needing all-in-one platform (analytics, feature flags, session replay, surveys)
Developers wanting SQL access (HogQL) for custom queries
Y Combinator companies leveraging PostHog's ecosystem
Key differences at a glance
Here's how OpenPanel and PostHog compare on key factors.
| Feature | OpenPanel | PostHog |
|---|---|---|
| SDK Size | 2.3 KB | 52+ KB |
| Cookie-Free by Default | Requires Configuration | |
| Pricing Complexity | Simple Event-Based | Multi-Product Metering |
| Self-Hosting Complexity | Simple Docker Setup | ClickHouse + Kafka + Redis + PostgreSQL |
| Focus | Analytics-First | All-in-One Platform |
| Page Views & Visitors | ||
| Traffic Sources | ||
| Geographic Data | ||
| Device & Browser | ||
| UTM Campaign Tracking | ||
| Real-Time Dashboard | ||
| Custom Event Tracking | ||
| Funnel Analysis | ||
| Retention Analysis | ||
| User Profiles | ||
| Cohort Analysis | ||
| User Path Analysis | ||
| A/B Testing | ||
| Feature Flags | PostHog includes feature flags; OpenPanel focuses on analytics | |
| Session Replay | PostHog includes session replay for web, Android (beta), iOS (alpha) | |
| Surveys | PostHog includes in-app surveys; OpenPanel integrates with survey tools | |
| Custom Dashboards | ||
| SQL Query Access | PostHog offers HogQL, their SQL variant | |
| Cookie-Free by Default | PostHog uses cookies by default, cookieless requires configuration | |
| No Consent Banner Required | PostHog's default tracking requires consent banners under GDPR | |
| GDPR Compliant | ||
| EU Data Hosting Option | PostHog offers EU Cloud hosted in Frankfurt | |
| Self-Hosting Option | ||
| IP Anonymization | ||
| REST API | ||
| Data Export | ||
| Webhook Support | ||
| Data Warehouse Sync | PostHog has extensive CDP capabilities with 60+ connectors |
Feature comparison
PostHog is an all-in-one platform. OpenPanel focuses purely on analytics.
Page Views & Visitors
Traffic Sources
Geographic Data
Device & Browser
UTM Campaign Tracking
Real-Time Dashboard
Custom Event Tracking
Funnel Analysis
Technical comparison
For developers evaluating analytics tools, here's the technical breakdown.
| Feature | OpenPanel | PostHog |
|---|---|---|
| SDK Size | 2.3 KB (gzipped) | 52+ KB core library (gzipped), lazy-loads additional features |
| Platforms |
|
|
| Open Source | Yes - MIT License | Yes - MIT LicenseBoth are open source. PostHog is MIT licensed. |
| Self Hosting | Docker (simple single-container setup) | Docker with multiple services (ClickHouse, Kafka, Redis, PostgreSQL) or Kubernetes |
| Database | ClickHouse | ClickHouse |
| Data Retention | Unlimited (self-hosted), configurable (cloud) | 7 years (paid plans), 1 year (free plan), 3 months for recordings |
Pricing comparison
PostHog has generous free tiers but complex multi-product pricing. OpenPanel offers simpler event-based pricing.
OpenPanel
Event-based, transparent
Simple pricing with 10,000 free events per month.
All features included at every tier.
PostHog
Multi-product usage-based
1 million events/month (product analytics), 5,000 recordings/month, 1 million feature flag requests/month, 1,500 survey responses/month free. $0.00005/event (anonymous), $0.000248/event (identified), $0.005/recording, $0.0001/flag request.
Add-ons like HIPAA ($250/mo) available. 90%+ of customers use free tier.
Migrating from PostHog to OpenPanel
Both use event-based tracking, making migration straightforward for analytics.
Install OpenPanel SDK
Add the lightweight OpenPanel SDK to your application. At 2.3KB, it's significantly smaller than PostHog's library.
Map Your Events
Both platforms use event-based tracking. Map your PostHog event names to OpenPanel - most can remain the same.
Configure User Identification
Replace PostHog's identify() calls with OpenPanel's identification methods. The API is similar.
Set Up Dashboards
Recreate your key dashboards in OpenPanel. Import historical data if needed using our migration tools.
Verify & Go Live
Run both platforms in parallel briefly to verify data accuracy, then disable PostHog tracking.
SDK Compatibility
Both use event-based tracking with similar APIs.
Historical Data Import
Most teams start fresh with OpenPanel and run both tools in parallel briefly.
Where OpenPanel is a better fit than PostHog
Choose OpenPanel when you want analytics without the complexity of an all-in-one platform.
Teams Who Want Analytics Without Feature Bloat
If you need product analytics but don't use PostHog's feature flags, session replay, surveys, or experiments, OpenPanel gives you exactly what you need without the overhead.
Privacy-First Products
OpenPanel is cookie-free by default with no configuration needed. PostHog requires explicit setup for cookieless tracking and loses some functionality in that mode.
Performance-Conscious Applications
OpenPanel's 2.3KB SDK vs PostHog's 52KB+ library means faster page loads and better Core Web Vitals - critical for SEO and user experience.
Simple Self-Hosting Needs
OpenPanel runs in a single Docker container. PostHog requires ClickHouse, Kafka, Redis, and PostgreSQL - significantly more infrastructure to manage.
Predictable Budgeting
OpenPanel's simple event-based pricing is easy to predict. PostHog's multi-product metering across events, recordings, flags, and surveys can lead to unexpected costs.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about switching from PostHog to OpenPanel.
Related resources
Explore more comparisons and guides to help you choose the right analytics tool
Ready to make the switch?
Test OpenPanel free for 30 days, you'll not be charged anything unless you upgrade to a paid plan.
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