Plausible Analytics Data Policy

Implications

• Plausible Analytics is lightweight, adding less than 1KB to page weight, which is beneficial for website performance.
• The service is privacy-focused, meaning it does not collect personal data or use cookies, which is good for user privacy.
• Compliance with GDPR, CCPA, and PECR means reduced legal risks for website owners using Plausible Analytics.
• Being open source allows for transparency and the ability for anyone to review the code.
• Data is hosted in the EU on renewable energy-powered servers, which is good for data protection and sustainability.
• Plausible Analytics does not share data with third parties, ensuring visitor data privacy.
• Users retain full ownership and control over their website data when using Plausible Analytics.
• Unique users are counted using a daily changing identifier, which may affect certain analytics like retention analysis.
• No need for GDPR/CCPA consent banners when using Plausible Analytics, improving user experience.
• Offers a 30-day free trial, allowing users to test the service before committing.

Data Collection

• Page URL (excluding certain query parameters)
• HTTP Referer (source of the visitor's traffic)
• Browser type and version
• Operating system and version
• Device type (desktop, mobile, or tablet)
• Country, region, and city (based on IP address, which is then discarded)

Things to watch out for

• While Plausible Analytics is privacy-focused, it's important to ensure that its data collection practices align with your website's specific privacy needs.
• Unique visitor tracking is less granular, which may not suit all analytical needs, especially for detailed user behavior analysis.

FAQs

Does Plausible Analytics use cookies for tracking?

No, Plausible Analytics does not use cookies, ensuring a more privacy-friendly approach to tracking website usage.

How does Plausible Analytics comply with GDPR, CCPA, and PECR?

Plausible Analytics complies with these regulations by not collecting personal data or using cookies, thus not requiring consent banners or complex privacy policies.

Can I see who my individual website visitors are with Plausible Analytics?

No, Plausible Analytics tracks overall trends rather than individual visitors and does not collect or store personal or identifiable data.