Amplitude
Looker Studio
| Feature | Amplitude | Looker Studio |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $49/mo | Free / from $9/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.4 / 5 | 4.2 / 5 |
| Best For | product-teams, growth-teams, data-analysts, saas-companies | marketers, analysts, google-ads-users, small-businesses |
| Founded | 2012 | 2016 |
| Event Analytics | ✓ | ✗ |
| Cohort Analysis | ✓ | ✗ |
| Funnels | ✓ | ✗ |
| Retention | ✓ | ✗ |
| Experimentation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Session Replay | ✓ | ✗ |
| Cdp | ✓ | ✗ |
| Dashboards | ✗ | ✓ |
| Data Connectors | ✗ | ✓ |
| Visualizations | ✗ | ✓ |
| Sharing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Templates | ✗ | ✓ |
| Calculated Fields | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Amplitude Pros
- Powerful behavioral cohort analysis
- Free tier generous (50K monthly tracked users)
- Built-in experimentation (A/B testing)
- Excellent for product-led growth metrics
✗ Amplitude Cons
- Complex event taxonomy required upfront
- Expensive at scale beyond free tier
- Steep learning curve for non-analysts
✓ Looker Studio Pros
- Free
- Google data integration
- Shareable dashboards
- Many connectors
✗ Looker Studio Cons
- Can be slow
- Limited data blending
- Basic compared to paid tools
The Verdict
Amplitude is built for product teams and growth teams, with a focus on event-analytics and cohort-analysis. Looker Studio targets marketers and analysts and leads with dashboards and data-connectors.
On pricing, Looker Studio is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $9/mo compared to $49/mo for Amplitude. That $40/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Feature-wise, Amplitude offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Looker Studio takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.