Hotjar
Heatmaps, session recordings and surveys to see what users actually do.
Best for
Product and marketing teams running CRO experiments on landing pages
Pricing
Free · paid from $32/mo
About Hotjar
Hotjar is an analytics platform that UX, product and marketing teams rely on day-to-day. Two things keep it on shortlists: session recordings reveal UX issues no funnel can, plus heatmaps are fast to set up and immediately useful. The core workflow runs on Heatmaps and Session recordings, with the rest of the suite plugging into those two. There's a free plan to explore before paying, with paid upgrades when you need them. Hotjar is a must-have alongside your analytics platform.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Session recordings surface issues GA cannot
- Heatmaps are easy to share with non-analysts
- Surveys and feedback widgets in the same tool
- Integrates cleanly with GA4 and Mixpanel
Cons
- Can add noticeable weight to a page
- Higher plans get pricey for high-traffic sites
- Some overlap with newer tools like Microsoft Clarity
Bottom line
Should you use Hotjar?
Still the gold standard for session replay and heatmaps. If budget matters, Microsoft Clarity is a credible free alternative.