Google Analytics vs Mixpanel — A Detailed Comparison
By: Eric Vardon
Tags: Marketing Technology, Roi, Mixpanel, Google Analytics, Digital Market

Feel like you’re drowning in an ocean of big data? Don’t which tool to choose?

You’re in the right place.

We’re no longer in a time where you’d visit a website and see a user counter ticking away.

Marketers need a comprehensive analytics tool that grows their business, offers valuable insights and improves workflow. However, it isn’t always that easy.

Despite 89% of executives agreeing that big data is revolutionizing their operations, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of analytics tools to pick from.

Some are different. Some are very similar. And, you’re already strapped for time.

You can’t go one-by-one and try each software. That’d take years!

That’s why I’m doing you a favour (no need to thank me) by comparing Google Analytics vs Mixpanel today.

Morphio employs both of these tools, so it’s a combination we have first-hand experience with and know best.

Let’s get into it!

A quick refresher on the two tools

Before we dive into the nitty-gritty, let’s talk about what these tools are.

Firstly, Google Analytics is-as you could guess, an analytics tool that gives webmasters insight into how their assets like company websites are performing.

It offers metrics, user data, goal tracking, conversion tracking, and segmenting. Marketers receive all of the foundational tools and data they need to grow.

Mixpanel, on the other hand, is a platform that focuses on behavioural analytics, conducting tests, and improving customer experiences.

Some find themselves on the edge of their seat deciding between the two because they’re both so effective.

I’m going to be covering the unique features and pricing models of each tool ahead so you can finally choose one.

Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a fantastic choice for bootstrapping agencies and startups. Here’s what you need to know:

Features and integrations

The main feature of Google Analytics is the reports it generates based on assets like your website, Google Search Console, Google Ads, and more.

These reports are found directly on the dashboard through the left sidebar. Reports and dashboards are also customizable to include/exclude any information. The data is also easy to navigate and understand.

Audience reports offer insights into who a company’s audience is in terms of location, demographics, device, and interests. This data is used to improve campaign targeting and user experience.

Acquisition reports display all of the traffic sources that are generating visitors to web properties. This is crucial for understanding what traffic sources to invest in and which are not worth pursuing.

Similarly, the behaviour reporting shows how users are engaging with the various parts of websites, including bounce rate, average time on page, sessions, and popular content. There is also reporting for user-flow, real-time data, and conversion/goal tracking.

Overall, you get all of the essentials you need to make better business decisions. Simply connect it through an authorization code and you’re set.

However, recently Google added two new features that need to be talked about: anomaly detection and predictive analytics. Seeing as Morphio’s marketing security software is built on these two technologies, we can’t skip these.

Anomaly detection finds outliers of data that stand out from the norm. Think traffic spikes, dips in click-throughs, etc. You get my point.

This helps you identify trends, patterns, and risks much faster than you can manually.

Predictive analytics, on the other hand, uses historic and live data to predict which actions, channels, and users will generate the highest return. This is accessible through Google’s Smart Lists and Smart Goals features.

They’re simple and basic forms of the two technologies. However, Morphio kicks it up a notch by unveiling customers, SEO, web, data, and financial anomalies. Every part of your business will be analyzed to find lucrative opportunities or errors to fix.

Additionally, we offer real-time data and predictive analytics so you can take action sooner and forecast changes to marketing and advertising ROI. Learn more here.

Pricing

Here’s the best part about Google Analytics: it’s free!

If you’re trying to keep lean and bootstrapped, look no further. There’s no expensive integrations or add-ons, either. What you see is what you get.

While it offers all of the essentials, larger companies will want to consider investing in Google Analytics 360 which is its big brother.

It is the enterprise version that contains many more features, requests, integrations, and power if you’re handling massive amounts of data.

Nonetheless, most organizations will find that the standard version of GA suits their needs.

Google Analytics alternatives

Hey, maybe Google Analytics isn’t for you. That’s okay. Here are some alternatives to Google Analytics so you know what else is available:

Next, I’m going to be talking about how Mixpanel sizes up to all of the information I covered on Google Analytics.

Mixpanel

You might be eager to pull the trigger on Google Analytics, but let’s slow down and see what Mixpanel has to offer.

Features and integrations

Similar to Google Analytics, one of the top-level features of Mixpanel is data reporting. It helps marketers deeply analyze user behaviour and monitor KPIs to offer better experiences to customers and increase revenue.

However, the data it records is a bit different.

Rather than only foundational metrics like visits, time on page, bounce rate, etc., it has purchases, video watch time, app sign-ups, and others, too. You would have to manually set these as goals in GA.

You’ll find that both tools do share a lot of the same data reporting features like cohort analysis, user flows, and retention rates despite this.

But, there are some parts of Mixpanel that jump from the page. One of which is funnels.

This uncovers where users drop off in a funnel and for what reason. A couple of tweaks later and you could be significantly boosting conversions and revenue. How many times have you manually digested a funnel to do the same thing?

Mixpanel also offers unique metrics like account health, lifetime value of business assets, and adoption. It doesn’t just look at what your users are doing, but what you are, too!

Outside of reporting, Mixpanel has other gadgets that will enhance business performance. One of which is messaging and testing.

This helps organizations send personalized campaigns to offer tailored experiences to users.

You can reach customers through push notifications, email, SMS, and in-app messages directly through Mixpanel. Google Analytics has nothing like this.

This means it’s not just an analytics platform, it’s a marketing solution, too.

Furthermore, users of Mixpanel can create experiments and A/B split tests directly through the web app. These can be rolled out to test features, animations, and designs to find winning combinations.

So, if you have a mobile app or you’re a developer, this is a massively beneficial feature you can only get with Mixpanel.

Last but not least, let’s talk about their data governance. Mixpanel offers accurate reports that are easy to understand and manage. Have you ever felt your hair turn grey as soon as you looked at a dashboard? None of that here.

A cool widget is that you can label and define metrics so everyone in your business is on the same page.

All of the dashboards, reports, and data visualization are clean, simple, and easy on the eyes.

The Mixpanel team uses a quality assurance system to ensure that the data coming is as useful and accurate as possible while removing duplicates, as well.

Pricing

Mixpanel is awesome. But, how much does it cost?

They have three plans you can choose from.

The first, named “Starter”, is free up to 1,000 monthly tracked users. It includes analytics, flows, cohorts, and more. You can also add an unlimited amount of team members with up to 90-day data history. Not too shabby.

The “Growth” package is $89/month and adds up to 25,00 monthly tracked users and annual data history.

Lastly, “Enterprise” is priced custom to each client and it offers customizable data history (depending on how far back you need), single sign-on, and group/B2B analytics.

So, I’d recommend you begin with the free version to test-drive the platform. You wouldn’t buy a brand new car without trying it on the road, right?

While both tools are free, you get more with Google Analytics at that level.

Mixpanel alternatives

If you’re interested in testing, experiments, and personalized marketing, there are other options to consider. These include:

Mixpanel vs Google Analytics verdict

So, which tool is better?

Firstly, both excel in specific areas. Google Analytics, for instance, does one thing and does it best: data reporting.

It doesn’t have all of the fancy bells and whistles that Mixpanel has like personalized marketing messages, funnel analysis and account health.

But, that’s exactly where Mixpanel shines-testing, experimenting, analyzing funnels, and finding dropoffs. It’s particularly good for app developers, too.

Google Analytics is completely free unless you opt for the enterprise version. Mixpanel does offer a free version and two paid plans, but GA takes the cake for the free package.

GA is easier to use. You simply connect it to your website and start collecting data. On the flip side, you will need familiarity with A/B testing, conducting experiments, understanding cohorts, and other data complexities with Mixpanel.

Overall, Google Analytics is ideal for any bootstrapping company that needs fundamental data on its assets and users.

Mixpanel is a great investment for those who require A/B split testing, live experiments, and customized marketing campaigns.

At Morphio, we utilize both Analytics and Mixpanel to get the most out of our data. No matter which tool you decide on, you also need to try Morphio today for free. Our platform automatically finds marketing failures and opportunities while you focus on your company’s analytics.