What is the difference between Heap and Pirsch?

Heap is best for Teams wanting auto-captured analytics without tagging, while Pirsch is best for Privacy-focused teams wanting simple web analytics. Heap starts at Free and Pirsch starts at $4/mo.

Is Heap or Pirsch cheaper?

Heap starts at Free with a free tier. Pirsch starts at $4/mo with a free tier.

Is there a free alternative to Pirsch?

Both Heap and Pirsch offer free tiers.

Heap vs Pirsch

Heap is digital analytics platform that auto-captures every user interaction without manual event tracking, while Pirsch is privacy-friendly web analytics with no cookies, made and hosted in Germany. The biggest difference up front: Heap is free, while Pirsch starts at $4/mo. Heap is built for teams wanting auto-captured analytics without tagging, whereas Pirsch targets privacy-focused teams wanting simple web analytics.

At a glance

	Heap	Pirsch
Best for	Teams wanting auto-captured analytics without tagging	Privacy-focused teams wanting simple web analytics
Starting price	Free	$4/mo
Free tier	✓	✓
Open source	—	—
Free tier available	✓	✓
Open source	—	—
Auto-Capture	✓	—
Cookie-Free	—	✓
Events	—	✓
Funnels	✓	—
GDPR-Ready	—	✓
Segments	✓	—
Server-Side	—	✓
Session Replay	✓	—

Heap

Strengths

Includes Auto-Capture as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows
Includes Session Replay as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows
Free up to 10K sessions/mo — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
Established product with 13+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Data accuracy depends on tracking setup — misconfigured events give misleading results
Mobile experience lags behind the desktop version in features and polish

Try Heap → Full review

Pirsch

Strengths

Includes Cookie-Free as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows
Includes GDPR-Ready as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows
Free for 2.5K pageviews — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
Includes server-side alongside the core feature set — fewer separate tools needed

Weaknesses

Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Data accuracy depends on tracking setup — misconfigured events give misleading results
Limited team/admin features if your organization eventually scales up

Try Pirsch → Full review

The bottom line

Pricing: Heap is completely free (Free up to 10K sessions/mo), which makes it the obvious pick if budget is the top concern. Pirsch starts at $4/mo, but Free for 2.5K pageviews. That cost buys you a more polished or feature-rich experience, so it comes down to whether the extras justify the spend.

Feature gaps: Heap offers Auto-Capture, Funnels and Segments that Pirsch lacks. Pirsch brings Cookie-Free, Events and GDPR-Ready that Heap does not have.

Team fit: Heap is geared toward mid-size teams teams, while Pirsch is aimed at small teams teams. Pick the one that matches where your team is today and where it is headed — migrating tools later is always painful.

Where each tool shines: Heap's biggest strengths are: includes auto-capture as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows. includes session replay as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows. Pirsch's biggest strengths are: includes cookie-free as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows. includes gdpr-ready as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows.

Watch out for: With Heap, users commonly note that free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade. With Pirsch, the main complaint is that free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade.

Choose Heap if...

Your profile matches its sweet spot: teams wanting auto-captured analytics without tagging
Budget is a hard constraint — Heap is free, Pirsch is not
You specifically need Auto-Capture and Funnels
You care about includes session replay as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows
Your team size fits the mid-size teams profile Heap is designed for

Choose Pirsch if...

You need a tool built for privacy-focused teams wanting simple web analytics
You specifically need Cookie-Free and Events
You care about includes gdpr-ready as a core feature, purpose-built for analytics workflows
Your team size fits the small teams profile Pirsch is designed for
The free tier works for you: free for 2.5k pageviews