Question 3: Plausible vs Fathom vs Simple Analytics - which one should I choose for a small blog?

For a small blog, I'd choose Plausible unless your absolute priority is having the simplest possible dashboard or getting the most generous free plan.

All three are good alternatives to Google Analytics. They're lightweight, privacy-focused, and designed to give you useful traffic insights without drowning you in reports.

Here's how I'd think about the choice.

1. Side-by-side comparison

Feature

Plausible

Fathom

Simple Analytics

Ease of use

Excellent

Excellent

Excellent

Privacy-focused

Yes

Yes

Yes

Cookie-free tracking

Yes

Yes

Yes

Traffic sources

Yes

Yes

Yes

Top-performing pages

Yes

Yes

Yes

Campaign tracking

Yes

Yes

Yes

Custom events

Yes

Yes

Yes

SEO insights

Search Console integration

More limited

More limited

Self-hosting

Yes

No (hosted product)

No

Free plan

No

No

Yes, limited

The main distinction isn't basic analytics. All three handle that well. It's how much insight you want beyond pageviews and visitors.

2. Where each one wins

1. Plausible — Best overall for a blog

My recommendation

Excellent overview of which articles attract visitors.

Google Search Console integration for search queries.

Scroll-depth tracking to understand reader engagement.

Custom goals for newsletter subscriptions and affiliate clicks.

Open-source and self-hostable.

Its biggest advantage is the combination of simplicity and useful content insights.

Plausible website

2. Fathom — Best for effortless analytics

Beautiful, uncluttered dashboard.

All features included in every plan.

50 websites included in the $15/month entry plan.

Full analytics history while subscribed.

Email reports and campaign tracking.

Its biggest advantage is simplicity and generous multi-site pricing.

Fathom Analytics

Fathom website

3. Simple Analytics — Best for minimalism

Extremely straightforward reporting.

EU-hosted infrastructure.

No cookies or personal data collection.

Free hobby plan with unlimited pageviews, five websites and one month of history.

Paid plans for longer history and more functionality.

Its biggest advantage is that you can start free and keep things simple.

Simple Analytics

Simple Analytics website

3. What about pricing?

Approximate entry-level pricing based on currently published plans:

Product

Entry-level price

Plausible

$9/month

Fathom

$15/month

Simple Analytics

Free hobby plan

A couple of important details:

Plausible's entry plan is limited to a relatively small traffic allowance.

Fathom starts at 100,000 monthly pageviews, shared across your sites.

Simple Analytics' free plan only retains 30 days of history.

4. My recommendation based on the type of blog

Your priority

My pick

Growing organic search traffic

Plausible

Understanding which articles perform

Plausible

Tracking affiliate link clicks

Plausible

Tracking newsletter signups

Plausible

Managing multiple blogs

Fathom

Simplest possible analytics

Simple Analytics

Spending absolutely nothing

Simple Analytics

5. One question that might change my recommendation

What kind of small blog are you running?

1. What type of blog?

Personal blog

Niche content / SEO blog

Affiliate marketing blog

Business blog

Technical / developer blog

2. Approximate monthly traffic?

Under 10,000

10,000–50,000

50,000–100,000

Over 100,000

Just starting out

3. What matters most?

Know which articles get traffic

SEO and Google search traffic

Affiliate clicks and conversions

Simplicity and privacy

Lowest possible cost

Get my recommendation

I can then give you a much more definitive recommendation rather than simply picking the tool with the longest feature list.