Hotjar

Contentsquare (acquired Hotjar)

7.1

Overall Score / 10

vsPostHog for most users

PostHog

PostHog Inc.

8.3

Overall Score / 10

Our Verdict

PostHog for most users

Choose Hotjar if:

—You only need heatmaps, session recordings, and user feedback
—You want the easiest setup for non-technical teams
—You prefer a visual, UX-focused analytics tool

Choose PostHog if:

—You want event analytics + session replay + feature flags in one tool
—You prefer open source with self-hosting options
—You need a more generous free tier (1M events + 5K replays)

The biggest difference: PostHog is an all-in-one analytics platform (events + replay + flags + surveys); Hotjar is focused specifically on visual behavior analytics (heatmaps + recordings + feedback)

Side-by-Side Comparison

Criteria	Hotjar	PostHog
Cheapest Paid Plan	$49/mo (Growth)Source: Contentsquare (acquired Hotjar) pricing page →	$2000/mo (Enterprise)Source: PostHog Inc. pricing page →
Free Tier	Yes 20K monthly sessions, unlimited heatmaps, session recordings, 1-month data retention	Yes 1M analytics events, 5K session replays, 1M feature flag requests, 100K error logs, 1,500 surveys per month
Value for Money	7	9
Ease of Use	9	6
Feature Power	6	9
Setup Ease	9	7
Migration Ease	7	6
Transparency	6	10
Deployment	cloud	hybrid
API Available	Yes	Yes
Platforms	Web	Web, iOS, Android, Self-hosted (Docker)
Compliance	GDPR, SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001	SOC 2 Type II (Enterprise), GDPR, HIPAA (Enterprise)

Data independently verifiedLast verified: March 2026Scoring methodology →Source policy →

Feature Comparison

Feature Comparison Matrix

19 features compared · 17 differences

Hide identical

Feature	Hotjar	PostHog
Core
Data warehouse	None	Full
Error tracking	None	Full
Feature flags	None	Full
Feedback widgets	Full	None
Form analysis	Full	None
Funnels	Full	None
Heatmaps	None	Full
Heatmaps (click, scroll, move)	Full	None
Highlights and tags	Full	None
Open source	None	Full
Session recordings	Full	None
Session replay	None	Full
Surveys	Full	Full
User interviews recruitment	Full	None
Advanced
A/B testing	None	Full
LLM analytics	None	Full
Product analytics	None	Full
Integrations
API Access	Full	Full
Contentsquare integration	Full	None

Pricing Comparison

Hotjar Pricing

FreeFree

20K monthly sessions, unlimited heatmaps, session replay, 1-month data retention

GrowthPopular$49/mo

Higher session limits, extended data retention, no branding, unlimited seats

ProCustom

Advanced analytics, higher traffic volumes, extended retention

EnterpriseCustom

Maximum data retention, priority support, custom integrations

PostHog Pricing

FreeFree

1M analytics events, 5K session replays, 1M feature flag requests, unlimited team members

Pay-as-you-goPopularFree

Same free tier + pay for overages (~$0.00005/event), billing limits available

Enterprise$2000/mo

SOC 2, HIPAA, 7-year retention, dedicated support, SSO

Who Should Choose Which?

Who should choose Hotjar

Best for

UX teams wanting visual insights into user behavior
Marketing teams optimizing conversion rates
Non-technical teams wanting easy-to-understand analytics

Avoid if

You need event-based product analytics (Mixpanel/PostHog is better)
You want an all-in-one analytics platform
You are concerned about the Contentsquare transition

Who should choose PostHog

Best for

Developers wanting an all-in-one open-source analytics platform
Teams wanting transparent usage-based pricing with generous free tier
Privacy-conscious companies who may want to self-host

Avoid if

You need the most polished enterprise analytics UX
You want dedicated phone support on lower tiers
You need advanced experimentation features (Amplitude may be better)

Switching Guidance

Switching from Hotjar

Common triggers to leave:

•Contentsquare transition uncertainty
•Need event-based analytics
•Need self-hosted option

Potential blockers:

•Historical heatmap and recording data
•Survey templates
•Team familiarity

Switching from PostHog