---
title: "Sealmetrics vs Simple Analytics: the closest architecture, different depth"
description: "Both skip cookies, IPs and consent banners and derive country from the timezone. Simple Analytics keeps it minimal; Sealmetrics adds attribution, e-commerce and AI."
canonical_url: "https://docs.sealmetrics.com/compare/simple-analytics"
lang: "en"
date_generated: "2026-09-04T11:01:07.053Z"
source_hash: "e6779efc2d7724c842b923fb2aae4d6b356ec99e6b8caea14e8893ff0c1445e7"
content_type: "documentation"
owner: "docs"
llm_priority: "useful"
source_file: "compare/simple-analytics.mdx"
publisher: "Sealmetrics"
---

# Sealmetrics vs Simple Analytics: the closest architecture, different depth

Canonical page: https://docs.sealmetrics.com/compare/simple-analytics

Sealmetrics and Simple Analytics are the two tools in this section with the most similar privacy architecture: neither sets cookies, neither collects IP addresses, and both derive the visitor's country from the browser timezone rather than from the IP. The main difference is scope — Simple Analytics is a deliberately minimal dashboard hosted in the Netherlands, while Sealmetrics is built around conversion attribution, e-commerce data and an AI layer, hosted in Dublin.

## Side-by-side

Simple Analytics facts checked 2026-09-04 on simpleanalytics.com and docs.simpleanalytics.com; each row links to the page it was read on.

| Criterion | Sealmetrics | Simple Analytics |
|---|---|---|
| Company / HQ | Sealmetrics, EU company | Headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands ([source](https://www.simpleanalytics.com/about)) |
| Hosting model | Managed cloud only | Managed cloud; servers in the Netherlands ([source](https://docs.simpleanalytics.com/what-we-collect)) |
| Licence | Proprietary | Not published |
| Identifier between pageviews | In-memory session marker, ~2 h, not derived from IP ([details](/security-privacy/what-we-track)) | None; a visit is counted unique when the Referer hostname differs from the current domain ([source](https://docs.simpleanalytics.com/what-we-collect)) |
| Visitor IP address | Never stored; country from browser timezone ([details](/security-privacy/country-detection)) | "We do NOT collect or store IP addresses"; country from the visitor's timezone ([source](https://docs.simpleanalytics.com/what-we-collect)) |
| Data residency | Dublin, Ireland only ([details](/security-privacy/data-location)) | The Netherlands ([source](https://docs.simpleanalytics.com/compliance)) |
| Vendor's position on consent | No banner needed for measurement | No consent needed, citing ICO guidance on techniques that do not store or access information on the device ([source](https://docs.simpleanalytics.com/compliance)) |
| Cookies | None | "We do NOT set any cookies (or use similar technologies)" ([source](https://docs.simpleanalytics.com/what-we-collect)) |
| Script size (gzipped) | 1.1 KB ([measured](/guides/tracker-performance-report)) | 3.7 KB standard, 1.9 KB light version ([source](https://docs.simpleanalytics.com/light)) |
| Free tier | 14-day free trial; no self-service free plan ([billing](/billing)) | Free plan with 30-day history plus a 14-day trial of paid plans — see [pricing](https://www.simpleanalytics.com/pricing) |

## How each one measures visitors

Simple Analytics collects timestamps, a truncated user agent, timezone-derived country, language, URL without query string, partial referrer, UTM parameters, viewport size, time on page and scroll depth. It has no visitor identifier: a pageview is counted as a new unique visit when the browser's Referer hostname is not the site's own domain, and as a follow-on pageview when it is. That heuristic gives a unique-visit count without any hash, cookie or IP.

Sealmetrics collects timestamp, user agent, URL and referrer per hit, and groups hits within a visit using a session marker that exists in memory for around two hours and is never written to the browser. Like Simple Analytics, it does not store the IP and reads country from the timezone. Unlike Simple Analytics, it reports entrances rather than unique visits, and it keeps conversions with revenue and item-level properties so that channel and campaign attribution is a first-class report rather than an event count.

## When Simple Analytics is the better choice

- You want a free plan for a small site and a dashboard you can read in ten seconds.
- You want time on page and scroll depth reported on every page out of the box.
- Hosting in the Netherlands specifically fits your review better than hosting in Ireland.

## When Sealmetrics is the better choice

- You need revenue attribution by channel, campaign and landing page, with item-level e-commerce data and micro-conversions.
- You want an API and BigQuery export on every plan, and an AI assistant ([LENS](/lens)) that is included and free to run on your own LLM key.
- You are replacing GA4 on an e-commerce site and need funnel and ROAS reporting rather than a traffic overview.

## Frequently asked questions

### Do both tools really avoid IP addresses?

Yes, per each vendor's documentation. Simple Analytics states it does not collect or store IP addresses and reads country from the timezone; Sealmetrics never persists the IP, uses it only in memory for anti-abuse checks, and also reads country from the timezone. This is the closest match in the comparison section.

### How does Simple Analytics count unique visitors without an identifier?

By the Referer header: if the previous page was on another domain, the pageview starts a new unique visit. Sealmetrics uses a different signal for the same purpose — a short-lived in-memory session marker — and reports the result as entrances.

### Which one needs a cookie banner?

Neither, according to each vendor. Both cite the absence of any storage on the device. As with every page in this section, these are vendor positions; no authority certifies analytics tools, and Sealmetrics' reasoning is documented as [self-assessments](/compliance).

### What does Sealmetrics not report that Simple Analytics does?

Time on page, and a per-page unique-visit count. Sealmetrics reports bounce rate, engagement rate and pages per session in aggregate, and treats scroll depth as a custom event — see the [Metrics Reference](/reports/definitions).

**Note:**
- Both set no cookies, store no IP, derive country from the timezone and say no banner is needed.
- Simple Analytics infers unique visits from the Referer; Sealmetrics groups a visit with a short-lived in-memory marker and reports entrances.
- Simple Analytics is minimal with a free plan; Sealmetrics adds attribution, e-commerce depth, API on every plan and AI.

## Related documentation

- [How Sealmetrics determines the country without IP addresses](/security-privacy/country-detection)
- [What We Track vs What We Don't](/security-privacy/what-we-track)
- [Metrics Reference](/reports/definitions)
- [Tracker overview](/implementation/tracker)