analytics

How to Migrate from Google Analytics to Plausible

Google Analytics Plausible
Difficulty: Easy Estimated time: 15 minutes

Step-by-step guide to switch from Google Analytics to Plausible, the lightweight privacy-first European analytics tool.

Prerequisites

  • Access to your website's HTML or CMS
  • A Plausible account (30-day free trial available)

Steps

  1. Create a Plausible account

    Sign up at plausible.io and add your website domain to start tracking.

  2. Add the Plausible tracking script

    Paste the lightweight Plausible script tag into your website's head section.

  3. Remove the Google Analytics script

    Delete the GA tracking code and any related gtag.js or analytics.js scripts.

  4. Import historical data (optional)

    Use Plausible's Google Analytics import tool to bring over your historical visitor data.

Why Migrate from Google Analytics to Plausible?

Google Analytics collects vast amounts of personal data, uses cookies that require consent banners under GDPR, and sends all visitor information to Google’s US servers. Plausible is a lightweight, EU-hosted analytics tool that collects no personal data, uses no cookies, and is fully GDPR-compliant without requiring consent banners. Your visitor data stays on EU servers and is never shared with third parties.

The Plausible script is also under 1 KB, compared to Google Analytics’ 45 KB+, making your website noticeably faster.

Detailed Migration Steps

Step 1: Create Your Plausible Account

Visit plausible.io and sign up for an account. Plausible offers a 30-day free trial with no credit card required. After signing in:

  1. Click Add a website
  2. Enter your domain name (e.g., yoursite.com)
  3. Select your preferred timezone for reporting

Plausible is hosted on EU servers by default. For additional control, you can also self-host the open-source version on your own infrastructure.

Step 2: Add the Plausible Tracking Script

Plausible gives you a single script tag to add to your site. Place it in the <head> section of your HTML:

<script defer data-domain="yoursite.com" src="https://plausible.io/js/script.js"></script>

For popular platforms:

  • WordPress: Use the official Plausible plugin
  • Next.js/Nuxt/Astro: Add to your layout or head component
  • Shopify: Add via theme editor under theme.liquid

Step 3: Remove the Google Analytics Script

Search your codebase for any GA-related scripts and remove them:

  • Delete gtag.js or analytics.js script tags
  • Remove any Google Tag Manager containers if GA was the only purpose
  • Remove cookie consent banners if they were only needed for GA cookies
  • Check for GA plugins in your CMS and deactivate them

Step 4: Import Historical Data (Optional)

Plausible can import your Google Analytics history:

  1. In Plausible, go to Site Settings > Import Data
  2. Click Import from Google Analytics
  3. Authenticate with your Google account
  4. Select the GA property to import
  5. The import runs in the background and preserves page views, sources, and top pages

Tips for a Smooth Migration

  • Run both scripts in parallel for a week to compare data accuracy
  • Plausible’s dashboard is intentionally simple; embrace the clarity over GA’s complexity
  • Set up email reports in Plausible to receive weekly traffic summaries
  • Use Plausible’s goal tracking for conversions instead of GA events
  • Share your Plausible dashboard publicly with clients or stakeholders using the public link feature

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