Marketing
Hotjar
User behavior tracking.
What it is
Hotjar is an analytics tool that visualizes user behavior, showing you how people truly experience your site. While Google Analytics tells you 'what' happened (number of visits), Hotjar explains 'why' (why they didn't click the button). Through heatmaps, you can see where users click most, and session recordings allow you to watch their journey like a video. It provides invaluable insights for product managers and UX designers aiming to increase conversion rates and improve user experience.
Key features
Heatmaps
Visual maps showing exactly where users click, move, and scroll on any page.
Session Recordings
Watch real videos of how visitors navigate your site from start to finish.
Feedback Widget
Allow users to rate their satisfaction with your site in real-time.
Conversion Funnels
Visualize exactly where visitors are dropping off in your checkout or sign-up path.
Strengths and trade-offs
What works well
- Visual Analysis: Interpret data through visual videos and maps rather than complex tables.
- Rapid Setup: Start collecting data in minutes with a single code snippet.
- Customer Feedback: Get instant responses from users via embedded on-site surveys.
- Bug Detection: Instantly see where users are getting stuck or 'rage clicking' on your UI.
Where it falls short
- Site Slowdown: Can slightly impact page load speed if not configured correctly.
- Privacy Compliance: Requires careful masking settings to comply with GDPR and local laws.
- Free Tier Limits: The number of sessions recorded per day is quite low on the free plan.
Who it is for
UX Designers, E-commerce Owners, and Product Managers.
Pick it or skip it
Pick Hotjar if
- Seeing where visitors click and where they give up, without a paid analytics contract
- Small sites that fit the free session allowance
- Teams that want recordings and heatmaps rather than a full analytics platform
Skip it if
- You have real traffic — the free Hotjar Basic plan captures 35 sessions a DAY
- You are planning long term: Hotjar is being folded into Contentsquare and the Plus, Business and Scale plans are being merged
- You want funnel and revenue analytics; this is behavioural recording
Our verdict
A magnifying glass for your site: heatmaps and session recordings show what analytics numbers cannot.
Closest alternatives we track
Same category, ordered by verified starting price.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Hotjar have a free plan?
- Yes. Hotjar offers a free tier with limits; paid plans unlock higher usage or team features.
- Who is Hotjar best for?
- UX Designers, E-commerce Owners, and Product Managers.
- What are the closest alternatives to Hotjar?
- In the same category we track Microsoft Clarity, Crazy Egg and Fathom Analytics. Each has its own review page with verified pricing, and the comparison links above show them side by side.
- What are the main drawbacks of Hotjar?
- The trade-offs we noted: Site Slowdown: Can slightly impact page load speed if not configured correctly.; Privacy Compliance: Requires careful masking settings to comply with GDPR and local laws.; Free Tier Limits: The number of sessions recorded per day is quite low on the free plan..
- When should you not use Hotjar?
- Skip Hotjar if: You have real traffic — the free Hotjar Basic plan captures 35 sessions a DAY; You are planning long term: Hotjar is being folded into Contentsquare and the Plus, Business and Scale plans are being merged; You want funnel and revenue analytics; this is behavioural recording.
What we checked
- Public APIOffers a documented API you can build against.Yes
- Mobile appHas a native app for iOS or Android, not just a mobile website.No
- Open source / self-hostableSource is open and the tool can be run on your own infrastructure.No
- SSO (SAML)Supports SAML single sign-on on at least one plan.Yes
“Not checked” means exactly that — we have not verified it, and we do not guess.
Evidence and freshness
Status: Vendor pricing page verifiedReviewed: 2026-09-07
- Hotjar — Plans ↗
Checked 2026-09-07 · Supports: Hotjar Basic free plan captures 35 daily sessions, Plus $39/month, Business $99/month, Hotjar is migrating to the Contentsquare platform; Plus, Business and Scale merge into the Contentsquare Growth plan, the Contentsquare free plan offers 5,000 monthly sessions
Limit: hotjar.com/pricing now redirects to Contentsquare and does not show Hotjar's own figures; these come from Hotjar's documentation.
Compare Hotjar with alternatives
More Marketing tools: see the full Marketing category