In the era of digital independence, software creators—from indie hackers to small development teams—are gravitating toward owning their data. Instead of relying completely on third-party analytics platforms that might limit flexibility or raise data privacy concerns, open-source event-analytics stacks allow developers full control to track, store, and visualize user behavior in custom ways.
TL;DR: Open-source event-analytics stacks provide indie developers with hands-on control of their data, enabling custom event tracking without third-party lock-in. These stacks can be more secure, cost-efficient, and flexible compared to traditional services like Google Analytics or Mixpanel. Tools like PostHog, Plausible, RudderStack, and Matomo are increasingly popular among indie devs. They give you the option to self-host, define events freely, and build personalized dashboards that actually answer the questions you care about.
Why Open-Source Event Analytics?
When it comes to analyzing how people use an app, product, or website, event analytics helps track interactions like page views, button clicks, signups, and more. While platforms like Google Analytics and Amplitude are powerful, they often come with limitations:
- They may collect more data than you’re comfortable sharing.
- Main features are paywalled or too expensive for solo developers.
- Customization is limited or complicated.
- You have little control over where and how your data is stored.
For indie developers with a privacy mindset and DIY enthusiasm, open-source tools provide an appealing alternative. They’re highly customizable, budget-friendly, and they align with the increasingly important values of digital sovereignty.
1. PostHog: The Full-Stack Product Analytics Toolkit
PostHog emerged as a top contender in the open-source analytics scene by offering not just event tracking, but a whole suite of tools for product teams: feature flags, A/B testing, heatmaps, and session recording—all under one roof.
Key features:
- Self-hostable or cloud options for complete data control.
- No-code visual analytics dashboards.
- Unlimited custom events with automatic instrumentation.
- Support for JavaScript, React, Python, Go, and more.
PostHog is perfect for indie devs who want a full view of how users interact with their app—from first touch to conversion—without juggling multiple tools.
Best use-case: Web and mobile applications where fine-grain event tracking and UI-level session replays are valuable.
2. Plausible: Lightweight & Privacy-Friendly Web Analytics
If simplicity and privacy are your top priorities, Plausible excels. It’s a lightweight, open-source web analytics tool focused on minimal performance overhead while delivering key insights.
Key features:
- Easy-to-read dashboard with core traffic metrics.
- No cookies, compliant with GDPR, CCPA, and PECR.
- Tracks page views and events using a simple API.
- Self-hostable or managed hosting options.
Plausible cuts out the bloat—you don’t get session replays or heatmaps, but for many devs, that’s a plus. It lets you stay fast and private, while still knowing what’s working on your site.
Best use-case: Simple websites, blogs, and web products where performance and privacy are a priority over granular event tracking.
3. RudderStack: The Open-Source Segment Alternative
Not all analytics networks are complete black-boxes—you can build your own! RudderStack acts as an open-source customer data pipeline that lets you collect, transform, and route user data into multiple destinations like your database, warehouse, or analytics tool.
Key features:
- Event collection across web, mobile, and servers.
- Warehouse-native approach: PostgreSQL, BigQuery, Snowflake, etc.
- Replay events for backfilling and testing.
- Flexible integration with tools like Amplitude, Redshift, Looker, etc.
RudderStack gives you a powerful backend for handling event data. It doesn’t come with dashboards out of the box, but it plays well with others—making it ideal for teams building their own analytics stack from scratch or feeding dashboards like Metabase or Superset.
Best use-case: Developers wanting to manage user events at scale while preserving data flexibility and vendor neutrality.
4. Matomo: The Powerhouse GA Alternative
Matomo (formerly Piwik) has long been the go-to open-source alternative to Google Analytics. It’s a comprehensive platform capable of doing just about everything GA can—only with your data staying firmly under your control.
Key features:
- Detailed visitor profiles and funnels.
- Integrated tag manager and goal tracking.
- Ecommerce and campaign analytics support.
- Self-hosted and license-compliant with various privacy laws.
Matomo is built for users who want the same depth as Google Analytics without relying on Google’s infrastructure. Although it can be a bit heavy for simpler use-cases, its depth and extensibility are unmatched among open-source platforms.
Best use-case: Web apps and organizations needing granular analytics and compliance without sacrificing data control.
Building Custom Dashboards
While these stacks are impressive on their own, one major advantage of fully owning your analytics is being able to build exactly the dashboard you want. Most tools support exporting data to external visualization engines or integrate directly with open-source BI platforms like:
- Metabase – Simple, friendly dashboards powered by SQL or drag-and-drop tools.
- Apache Superset – Enterprise-grade dashboarding for power users and analysts.
- Grafana – Originally for time-series data, now great for any kind of metrics.
By combining a solid analytics stack (e.g., PostHog or RudderStack) with the visualization tool of your choice, you can tailor your analytics to match your product goals, from UX decisions to growth strategies.
Choosing the Right Stack
So, which stack is right for you? That depends on your needs, budget, and preferred hosting model. Here’s a quick cheat sheet to summarize:
| Tool | Best For | Hosting | Strength |
|---|---|---|---|
| PostHog | Full product analytics with session replay | Self-hosted or Cloud | Feature-rich and extensible |
| Plausible | Lightweight web analytics | Self-hosted or Cloud | Privacy-first simplicity |
| RudderStack | Event pipeline for data warehouses | Self-hosted or Cloud | Integration and data routing |
| Matomo | Google Analytics alternative | Self-hosted or Cloud | Comprehensive, compliance-friendly |
Conclusion: Take Control and Build Smarter
Owning your analytics isn’t just about saving money—it’s about independence, privacy, and precision. With open-source stacks like PostHog, Plausible, RudderStack, and Matomo, indie developers can go beyond plug-and-play analytics and truly carve out insights that matter for their users and products.
Whether you’re launching your first side project or scaling a bootstrapped SaaS, there’s a flexible, powerful analytics stack waiting to power your decisions—without handing your data to a tech giant.