Rick Hellewell

<p>Google Analytics (GA) allows you to see what your visitors are doing on your site. The common installation is to run some JavaScript code in the client’s browser that reports back to GA. The problem with that is many ad-blockers will block that client-side (browser) action, resulting in incomplete GA data.</p>
<p>The Server Side Analytics plugin does all the work on your server. So GA is used on all site visits – even visitors using ad blocking. That gives you more accurate GA data.</p>
<p>Your site visitor’s IP address is anonymized (the last ‘octet’ is removed), so only the visitor’s city is known. The plugin only uses the client-side WordPress session ID, so complies with basic GDPR privacy, as long as your site has an acknowledged cookie policy. There is nothing additionally stored on the client side, so visitor privacy for this plugin and the generated analytics is assured.</p>
<p>All you need is a GA account – start here: https://www.google.com/analytics/ . Note that you will need to set up a “UA” type account. Help starts here: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/9306384?hl=en   Make sure you set up a “Universal Analytics” account – which will result in a UA-xxxxxxx-1 value to use in the plugin.</p>
<p>If you use Google Analytics, then you should be aware of their privacy policy, which could apply to your use of GA; see it here https://www.google.com/analytics/terms/us.html . You may also need a cookie policy and acknowledgement displayed on your site.</p>
<p>We suggest that you consult with your legal advisor for specific methods and messages needed for GDPR compliance on your site. We provide no warranty or guarantee of GDPR compliance. We are not providing any legal advice. We are not responsible in any way for your use of our suggested GDPR solution. Your mileage may vary. Objects in mirror are closer than you expect. All aspirin is alike. Professional driver on a closed course.  Your mileage may vary.</p>
<h3>Privacy</h3>
<p>This plugin does not save any personal information on your server. It will store cookies on your visitor’s browsers. If you have enabled Google Analytics, it will also store a randomly-generated ID value as a cookie; there is no personal information associated with that cookie. The plugin does not share information with others.</p>


CellarWeb Server Side Analytics

Allows using Google Analytics via server-side request. Many ad blockers block client-side Google Analytics, resulting in incomplete values.

WireBoard

<p>Tired of waiting hours for Google Analytics (GA4) to update? Frustrated by dashboards you need a tutorial just to navigate?</p>
<p>WireBoard shows you who’s on your site right now, live, inside your WordPress admin. Your full analytics dashboard lives where you already work.</p>
<p>One-click setup. Start tracking for free in under a minute.</p>
<p><span class="embed-youtube" style="text-align:center; display: block;"><iframe loading="lazy" class="youtube-player" width="750" height="422" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/c1Xl9_c8bI8?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent" allowfullscreen="true" style="border:0;" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox"></iframe></span></p>
<h4>Why WireBoard?</h4>
<p>GA4 has a real-time view, but it’s limited to a handful of metrics and updates with delays. The rest of your data takes hours to appear. Other alternatives lure you in with a free trial and then hit you with a paywall.</p>
<p>WireBoard has a real free plan. No trial, no credit card, no surprise. Your dashboard updates as visitors land on your site. You get both live data and historical reports in one place. And you can customize your dashboards to show exactly what matters to you.</p>
<h4>Your dashboard, inside WordPress</h4>
<p>Install the plugin, click one button, and your dashboard is ready. No code to edit, no JavaScript snippets to paste, no external setup.</p>
<p>Your full live dashboard is embedded directly in your WordPress admin. Not a summary, not a redirect to an external site. The actual dashboard.</p>
<h4>Built for privacy</h4>
<p>WireBoard is made in Switzerland by SwissOps Ltd. A single toggle enables cookie-less mode, which disables all cookies and local storage so your visitors are never tracked with persistent identifiers. Your data is never sold and only aggregated metrics are retained.</p>
<h4>You decide what gets tracked</h4>
<p>Exclude specific roles, IP addresses, URL patterns, or individual pages from tracking. Administrators are excluded by default.</p>
<h4>Works with WooCommerce</h4>
<p>Track the full customer journey: product views, add-to-cart, remove-from-cart, checkout, and purchase events. Toggle each event individually and optionally include revenue values to see the monetary impact of your traffic.</p>
<h4>Custom event tracking</h4>
<p>Track clicks, views, and other interactions without writing code. The Gutenberg block editor integration lets you add event tracking to Button, Image, and Group blocks directly from the sidebar. You can also use HTML data attributes for custom setups.</p>
<h4>At a glance</h4>
<ul>
<li>Free to use with a real free plan</li>
<li>Real-time analytics, not data from hours ago</li>
<li>Full dashboard embedded in your WordPress admin</li>
<li>One-click setup in under a minute</li>
<li>Made in Switzerland, GDPR-friendly</li>
<li>Optional cookie-less tracking mode</li>
<li>WooCommerce tracking with per-event toggles and revenue values</li>
<li>Custom event tracking from the Gutenberg block editor</li>
<li>Customizable dashboards: real-time, historical, and marketing views</li>
<li>Lightweight async script that won’t slow down your site</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>External Service</strong></p>
<p>This plugin connects to <a href="https://wireboard.io" rel="nofollow ugc">WireBoard</a> to collect and display analytics data. During setup, a WireBoard account is created automatically if you don’t already have one. The tracking script is loaded from WireBoard servers, and your analytics data is processed and stored by WireBoard. No analytics data is stored in your WordPress database.</p>
<p>By using this plugin you agree to the WireBoard <a href="https://wireboard.io/terms" rel="nofollow ugc">Terms of Service</a> and <a href="https://wireboard.io/privacy" rel="nofollow ugc">Privacy Policy</a>.</p>
<p>For documentation, visit <a href="https://wireboard.io/docs/wordpress" rel="nofollow ugc">wireboard.io/docs/wordpress</a>.</p>


WireBoard Analytics

Free real-time Google Analytics alternative. See your visitors live, right inside WordPress.

CellarWeb Server Side Analytics vs WireBoard Analytics