For a decade, I assumed Google Analytics was the way to track website traffic. Not the best way. The only way.
So when Google "upgraded" to GA4, I just suffered through it.
The new interface is a labyrinth. Every time I wanted simple data — how many visitors, which pages, basic trends — I had to re-learn the dashboard. Set up custom reports. Google how to find what used to be obvious. Curse at the screen.
But I never questioned the premise. Google Analytics was free. Everyone used it. What else was there?
The Question I Never Asked
Last week, I was setting up analytics for this site. Instead of just installing GA4 again, I asked Claude Code to think creatively. What are my options? What are the tradeoffs? What's privacy-friendly and simple?
The answer: Umami.
I'd never heard of it.
I quickly learned that Umami is open-source analytics. Self-hosted, so you own your data. The dashboard is shockingly clean compared to GA4. Visitors, page views, referrers, trends.
Bonus: because it's self-hosted and lightweight, it's far less prone to ad blockers than Google Analytics. More accurate data.
And for more robust data extraction, it has an API that Claude Code — and my PAIA (Personal AI Assistant, which I access through Telegram) — can query directly.
The Hidden Cost of "Free"
Here's what I'm learning: "free" tools often aren't.
Google Analytics costs $0, but it cost me hours of setup time, ongoing confusion, and — let's be honest — my visitors' data going to Google. That's how free tools work: you're not paying with money, you're paying with data.
Umami required setting up hosting. I went with Hostinger's KVM 2 VPS (2 vCPU, 8GB RAM, 100GB storage for about $7/month). I already use it to host my PAIA, n8n workflows, and Supabase database, so adding Umami did not cost me anything more. Its installation, like everything I do in the world of AI and vibecoding, was simple with Claude's help.Thanks, Claude!
Sometimes paying a little gets you a lot.
What Else Am I Assuming?
This is the real takeaway. It's not about Umami vs GA4.
It's that I spent a decade frustrated with a tool, never once asking: "Is there another way?"
How many other defaults am I accepting without questioning? WordPress was one. Google Analytics was another.
If those two foundational tools were both outdated assumptions, what else am I missing? Next step: audit every service I use—free and paid. Which ones have open-source alternatives I can self-host? Which ones can I vibecode myself?
The aha moment wasn't finding Umami. It was learning to ask the question.