Plausible Analytics vs RudderStack
Self-host pick — both replace Amplitude (Product analytics / event tracking / funnels).
Both Plausible Analytics and RudderStack self-host as a replacement for Amplitude (Product analytics / event tracking / funnels). Pick Plausible Analytics if you want the lighter footprint — 10min docker-compose (Elixir app + ClickHouse + Postgres), $10 vps; clickhouse is the heaviest piece but tiny at startup volumes. Pick RudderStack if you need teams that want a CDP shape — events fan out to many tools — and are happy doing analysis in a separate BI layer — 30min docker-compose (rudder-server + Postgres + transformer + control plane) and $15 vps for the server; storage is wherever you route events (bigquery / snowflake / your own postgres).
| Plausible Analyticsopen-source | RudderStackopen-source | |
|---|---|---|
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Setup time | 10min docker-compose (Elixir app + ClickHouse + Postgres) | 30min docker-compose (rudder-server + Postgres + transformer + control plane) |
| Monthly cost | $10 VPS; ClickHouse is the heaviest piece but tiny at startup volumes. | $15 VPS for the server; storage is wherever you route events (BigQuery / Snowflake / your own Postgres). |
| GitHub | plausible/analytics | rudderlabs/rudder-server |
| Replaces | Amplitude + 3 other | Amplitude |
Good fit for
Plausible Analytics
Lightweight product/web analytics with great UX and a privacy-first stance; a step down in depth from Amplitude/PostHog.
Weak at:No funnels-as-first-class, no retention cohorts the way Amplitude or PostHog do them.
RudderStack
Teams that want a CDP shape — events fan out to many tools — and are happy doing analysis in a separate BI layer.
Weak at:Not an analytics tool by itself; you still need Metabase / Superset / a warehouse to do funnels. Higher overall stack count.
In a terminal? npx -y github:SolvoHQ/os-alt-cli amplitude prints Amplitude's self-host options including both —
how the CLI works →
FAQ
Which is easier to self-host, Plausible Analytics or RudderStack?
Plausible Analytics: 10min docker-compose (Elixir app + ClickHouse + Postgres). RudderStack: 30min docker-compose (rudder-server + Postgres + transformer + control plane).
What does each cost to run?
Plausible Analytics: $10 VPS; ClickHouse is the heaviest piece but tiny at startup volumes.. RudderStack: $15 VPS for the server; storage is wherever you route events (BigQuery / Snowflake / your own Postgres).. Both projects are free and open source.
Do Plausible Analytics and RudderStack replace the same SaaS?
Yes — both are open-source alternatives to Amplitude.