Clean, intentional analytics without auto-capture noise

Heap's auto-capture approach sounds appealing in theory — track everything automatically. In practice, users report that it creates a flood of event noise that makes finding relevant data difficult and time-consuming. Umami takes the opposite approach: you track what matters with a clean, intentional setup. One script tag gives you pageviews, referrers, devices, and locations immediately, and custom events are simple to add when you need them.

Heap's pricing jumps dramatically past its limited free tier, with no affordable mid-tier option between free and enterprise. Umami offers transparent pricing starting with a free tier, paid plans from $20/month, and self-hosting that's always free. You shouldn't need an enterprise budget to understand your website.

Since its acquisition by Contentsquare, Heap users have reported declining support quality and uncertainty about the product's direction. Umami is an independent, open-source project under the MIT license. You can self-host for complete control, inspect every line of code, and rely on an active community. No acquisitions, no surprises, no vendor lock-in.

Heap tracks individual users and builds detailed behavioral profiles, which creates GDPR compliance challenges that require careful configuration. Umami collects no personal data, uses no cookies, and is GDPR and CCPA compliant out of the box. You get the website insights you need while fully respecting visitor privacy — no consent banners, no compliance headaches.