Stack
Mixpanel
A product analytics tool focused on funnels, retention, and cohort analysis, with a usage-based free tier and a first-year-free startup program.
What it actually does
Mixpanel is built around behavioral questions: funnels, retention curves, and cohort analysis that show why users convert or churn rather than how many visited. It also includes session replay and saved reports.
The free plan covers 1M events per month with unlimited seats, and the Growth plan is pay-as-you-go at a per-1,000-event rate above that allowance, with no annual lock-in. An eligible startup program grants a full first year free with a large annual event allowance.
The main cost consideration is that event-heavy instrumentation, such as autotracked clicks and pageviews sent as events, multiplies the bill quickly once you pass the free allowance, so overage costs rise faster than usage-priced rivals at the same volume.
Mixpanel vs its main rivals
The tools people actually weigh against Mixpanel: Amplitude, PostHog, Heap. Same criteria for every column, including where Mixpanel loses.
| Mixpanel | AAmplitude |  PostHog | HHeap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Pricing & access | ||||
| Free tier | Yes1M events, 10k replays | Yes50k MTUs | Yes1M events + 5k replays | YesLimited |
| Starting price | $0, then $0.28/1k | $49/mo (Plus) | $0 usage-based | Custom quote |
| Startup free-year program | YesYes | YesYes | YesCredits | YesYes |
Analytics depth | ||||
| Funnels / retention / cohorts | YesBest-in-class | YesBest-in-class | YesGood | YesYes |
| Session replay | YesYes | YesYes | YesYes | YesYes |
| Feature flags / experiments | NoNo | YesYes | YesYes | NoNo |
Platform | ||||
| Self-host | NoNo | NoNo | YesYes | NoNo |
| Warehouse export | YesYes | YesYes | YesYes | YesYes |
Developer & API | ||||
| Query / export API | Free | Free | Free | Paid |
Scaling & limits | ||||
| Cost at ~5M events/mo | ~$1,120 | MTU-based | ~$200 | Quote |
| Saved reports on free | 5/seat | Unlimited | Unlimited | Limited |
| Data retention (paid) | 5 yr | Varies | 7 yr | Varies |
- 1M free events per month covers most early-stage products at $0
- Strong funnel, retention, and cohort analysis for real product questions
- Startup program gives eligible companies (under 5 years, under $8M raised) a first year free
- At $0.28 per 1k events, moderate volume costs roughly an order of magnitude more than PostHog at the same scale
- Free plan caps you at 5 saved reports per seat, which real use hits quickly
- No built-in feature flags or experiments, so you still need a separate tool for those
Pay less for it
5 ways foundEligible companies (under 5 years, under $8M raised) get the full first year free
1M events/mo with unlimited seats at $0, no credit card
Avoid sending autotracked clicks and pageviews as events to keep overage down
Growth is metered with no annual lock-in, so you only pay for what you use
PostHog — Roughly one-fifth the cost at moderate event volume for similar product analytics, plus bundled replay and flags
StackTracker tracks what you actually pay for Mixpanel and every other tool, flags overpayment, and shows the dollars you would save by switching.
Is it the right tool for you
- You qualify for the free startup year
- You need serious funnel, retention, and cohort analysis
- You are a product-led founder asking why users churn
- You have high event volume without a startup deal → use PostHog
- You only need traffic counts → use Plausible
- You want analytics, replay, and feature flags bundled → use PostHog
Track what Mixpanel and the rest of your stack cost
StackTracker adds up every subscription, plus your hours, so you see the real number.
Prices and limits last verified 2026-07-20.