What is Plausible Community Edition?
Plausible Community Edition (CE) is the free and open-source version of Plausible Analytics that you can self-host on your own infrastructure. It provides privacy-focused web analytics without relying on cloud services.Plausible CE is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License Version 3 (AGPLv3). The JavaScript tracker is released under the MIT license.
Cloud vs Community Edition
Before deciding to self-host, consider the differences between Plausible Cloud and Community Edition:| Feature | Plausible Cloud | Community Edition |
|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure Management | Fully managed with worldwide CDN, backups, security, and maintenance | Self-managed - you handle installation, upgrades, backups, and security |
| Release Schedule | Continuous deployment with new features multiple times per week | Long-term releases published twice per year |
| Premium Features | All features including funnels, ecommerce revenue, SSO, and Sites API | Premium features not available |
| Bot Filtering | Advanced filtering with ~32K data center IP ranges excluded | Basic User-Agent and referrer spam filtering |
| Server Location | EU-owned infrastructure (Germany) | Deploy anywhere you choose |
| Data Access | Dashboard, CSV export, Stats API, Looker Studio connector | Direct ClickHouse database access available |
| Support | Premium support from creators | Community-supported only |
| Costs | Subscription fee based on traffic | Server and infrastructure costs |
Technology Stack
Plausible Analytics is built with:- Backend: Elixir/Phoenix application
- Databases:
- PostgreSQL for general application data
- ClickHouse for analytics data and stats
- Frontend: React with TailwindCSS
- Container: Alpine Linux-based Docker image
System Requirements
Minimum Requirements
PostgreSQL
Version 12 or higher for application data storage
ClickHouse
Version 21 or higher for analytics data storage
Memory
At least 2GB RAM for small deployments
Storage
Varies based on traffic volume (plan for growth)
Recommended Infrastructure
For production deployments:- CPU: 2+ cores
- RAM: 4GB+ (more for high-traffic sites)
- Storage: SSD with regular backups
- Network: Reliable internet connection with static IP (if using HTTPS)
Key Features
Privacy-Focused Analytics
Privacy-Focused Analytics
- No cookies or persistent identifiers
- No personal data or IP address storage
- GDPR, CCPA, and PECR compliant by default
- No data shared with third parties
Lightweight Tracking
Lightweight Tracking
- Small JavaScript tracker (< 1KB)
- Fast page load times
- Optional Events API for server-side tracking
- Support for single-page applications
Comprehensive Metrics
Comprehensive Metrics
- Real-time visitor tracking
- Page views and unique visitors
- Traffic sources and referrers
- Geographic data (countries, regions, cities)
- Device, browser, and OS statistics
- Custom event tracking
- Goal conversions
Team Collaboration
Team Collaboration
- Multiple user roles (admin, viewer, editor)
- Shared dashboards
- Public stats links
- Email and traffic reports
Support and Community
Get help with self-hosting:- GitHub Discussions: Self-hosted support forum
- Documentation: Community Edition Wiki
- Issue Tracker: Report bugs on GitHub
- Community Forum: Connect with other self-hosters
Funding Open Source
Plausible’s only source of funding is the premium managed cloud service. When you self-host:- You pay for your own infrastructure costs
- You get full control over your data and deployment
- You never pay licensing fees to Plausible
- Consider supporting the project if you find value in CE
Next Steps
Installation
Set up Plausible CE with Docker
Configuration
Configure environment variables
Upgrade Guide
Upgrade to newer versions
Maintenance
Operations and troubleshooting
License Information
Plausible Community Edition is open source under AGPLv3:- Source code must be made available if you modify and distribute
- Network use (SaaS) counts as distribution
- JavaScript tracker is MIT licensed (no virality)
- Plausible name and logo are trademarked