Fathom Analytics
Semrush
| Feature | Fathom Analytics | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | From $14/mo | Free / from $139.95/mo |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.6 / 5 | 4.6 / 5 |
| Best For | privacy-conscious-businesses, bloggers, saas-companies, agencies | digital-marketers, agencies, enterprise, ppc-managers |
| Founded | 2018 | 2008 |
| Privacy First Analytics | ✓ | ✗ |
| Event Tracking | ✓ | ✗ |
| Email Reports | ✓ | ✗ |
| Custom Domains | ✓ | ✗ |
| Api | ✓ | ✗ |
| Uptime Monitoring | ✓ | ✗ |
| Keyword Research | ✗ | ✓ |
| Site Audit | ✗ | ✓ |
| Rank Tracking | ✗ | ✓ |
| Competitor Analysis | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ppc Tools | ✗ | ✓ |
| Content Marketing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Social Media | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Fathom Analytics Pros
- No cookie banners needed
- Beautiful simple dashboard
- Fast loading (single script)
- EU-isolation for European data
✗ Fathom Analytics Cons
- No free plan
- Limited segmentation compared to GA4
- No e-commerce tracking
✓ Semrush Pros
- Most comprehensive marketing toolkit
- Excellent PPC and advertising tools
- Content marketing platform included
- Social media management built-in
✗ Semrush Cons
- Very expensive for small businesses
- Interface can feel overwhelming
- Some data less accurate for non-US markets
The Verdict
Fathom Analytics is built for privacy conscious businesses and bloggers, with a focus on privacy-first-analytics and event-tracking. Semrush targets digital marketers and agencies and leads with keyword-research and site-audit.
On pricing, Fathom Analytics is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $14/mo compared to $139.95/mo for Semrush. That $125.94999999999999/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Semrush has a free plan, which gives it a meaningful edge for individuals and small teams exploring their options. Fathom Analytics requires a paid subscription from day one.
Feature-wise, Semrush offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Fathom Analytics takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Both tools are a solid fit for agencies — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
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.