Comparison

Small Business Analytics vs Plausible

Last updated: May 19, 2026

Short version: Plausible is the right pick if you're a developer or technically-comfortable founder who values open source and self-hosting. Small Business Analytics is the right pick if you're a non-technical small business owner who wants plain-English explanations on every metric, automatic Instagram/TikTok/Facebook post tracking, and an AI assistant (Alfred) inside the dashboard. Both are privacy-friendly. Both start at $9/month. The differences are in who they're for.

For non-technical owners AI assistant included Social post tracking
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Side-by-side comparison

AttributeSmall Business AnalyticsPlausible
Product categoryAnalytics tool + AI assistant (Alfred)Analytics dashboard only — you read the charts yourself
Built forNon-technical small business ownersDevelopers & privacy-conscious founders
AI assistant built in Alfred reads your data, diagnoses drops, writes you a plan None
Diagnoses traffic drops with a recovery plan
Plain-English explanations on every metric Tooltip on every stat Standard analytics labels
Connects Instagram/TikTok/FB posts to traffic automatically Daily scan, no tracking codes needed You'd have to add tracking codes to every post link
Weekly email summary Plain-English Monday recapEmail reports exist (manual setup)
Best Time to Post heatmap Built in
Open source / self-hostable SaaS only AGPL-licensed, self-host option
Cookies / GDPR bannerNone requiredNone required
Entry price$9/mo · 10k pageviews · 1 site$9/mo · 10k pageviews · unlimited sites
Mid tier$19/mo · 50k · 3 sites · Alfred AI · social tracking$19/mo · 100k pageviews
Pricing scales byFeatures (Starter → Pro → Business)Pageview volume
Custom event tracking sba('track', 'event_name') plausible('Custom Event')
Team members5 on Pro, unlimited on BusinessUnlimited on all paid plans

Where Plausible is honestly better

Where Small Business Analytics is better

The honest summary: Plausible chose privacy + open source as their wedge. SBA chose plain-English + AI + small-business-owner usability as ours. Both are valid. Pick based on which you actually need.

Who should pick Small Business Analytics

Who should pick Plausible


FAQ

Common questions

Is Plausible cheaper than Small Business Analytics?
At entry level both start at $9/month for 10,000 pageviews. Higher up the ladder, Plausible scales by pageview volume while SBA scales by features. If you have one big site, Plausible may be cheaper. If you want Alfred AI + social tracking, SBA is the better value.
Does Plausible have an AI assistant?
No. Plausible is a traditional dashboard-only analytics tool. SBA's Alfred is the main differentiator — ask questions, get plain-English answers.
Can Plausible track which Instagram or TikTok post drove visitors?
Only if you manually add a tracking code to every social post link (something like ?utm_source=instagram&utm_campaign=spring-menu at the end of each URL). SBA scans your social accounts every morning and connects each post to the traffic spike automatically — no tracking codes to mess with.
Is Plausible open source?
Yes — AGPL-licensed and self-hostable. SBA is closed-source SaaS. If self-hosting matters, Plausible wins.
Can I run both side-by-side?
Yes. They don't interfere. A lot of customers run both during a trial to compare numbers.

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