Matomo vs Microsoft Clarity
Matomo and Microsoft Clarity are both analytics tools. Matomo is aimed at enterprise and agencies, while Microsoft Clarity is aimed at small businesses and E-commerce. Both have a free plan.
Full-featured, self-hostable analytics
Free heatmaps, session recordings and AI insights from Microsoft
| Pricing | Open source | Free |
| Starting price | Not published | Not published |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Built for | Enterprise, Agencies | Small businesses, E-commerce, Developers, Agencies, Enterprise |
| Platforms | web | web, ios, android |
| Country | NZ · 2007 | US · 2020 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Matomo if
Organizations that need GA-level depth with full data control and compliance.
- Deepest feature set among privacy-first tools
- 100% data ownership and self-hosting
- Trusted by public sector organizations
Look elsewhere if: Teams wanting a simple dashboard (Plausible, Fathom, Umami).
Choose Microsoft Clarity if
Websites and apps of any size that want free heatmaps and session recordings with AI summaries.
- Completely free with no traffic or session caps
- Quick setup through a tag, plugin or Google Tag Manager
- AI summaries save hours of watching recordings
Look elsewhere if: Teams that need surveys, in-depth product analytics or long data retention (Hotjar, PostHog, Mixpanel).
Matomo vs Microsoft Clarity pricing
Matomo
- On-Premise$0GPL, self-hosted; premium plugin bundles extra
- Cloud Business29/mo50k hits/mo, 30 websites, 30 users; excl. tax
- Cloud EnterpriseCustomCustom limits, CSM, SAML/LDAP
Microsoft Clarity
- Free$0No traffic limits; recordings kept 30 days, heatmaps 13 months
Matomo · Key features
- Full web analytics with custom dimensions and reports
- Heatmaps, session recordings and form analytics (premium)
- Funnels, A/B testing and ecommerce tracking
- Built-in tag manager
- Cookieless and consent-aware configurations
- On-premise or cloud; GDPR, HIPAA, CCPA tooling
Cons
- Dated interface
- Premium plugins add cost on-premise
- Performance tuning needed at scale
Microsoft Clarity · Key features
- Session recordings with AI highlights of key moments
- Click, scroll and area heatmaps with page version comparison
- Automatic rage click, dead click and quick back detection
- Copilot summaries and chat over your recordings and heatmaps
- Bot Activity and Citations reports on AI crawlers and AI answers
- Mobile app SDK for Android, iOS, Flutter and React Native
Cons
- Recordings are deleted after 30 days unless favorited or labeled
- No built-in surveys, feedback widgets or user interviews
- Funnel and product analytics are basic next to PostHog or Mixpanel
Matomo vs Microsoft Clarity: FAQ
Do Matomo and Microsoft Clarity have a free plan?
Yes, both Matomo and Microsoft Clarity have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.
Which is better for small businesses, Matomo or Microsoft Clarity?
Microsoft Clarity lists small businesses as a core audience, while Matomo is aimed more at enterprise and agencies.