Have you recently noticed that the time, money, and effort you're investing in establishing your website and attracting qualified leads isn't paying off?
It happens if you rely on guesswork without the right insights when running campaigns and creating content. This is not just unreliable but a downright risky approach for your business.
To truly optimize your marketing spend, make informed decisions, and prove the real ROI of every client interaction, you need a powerful website analytics tool.
That brings us to the two big names: Google Analytics and HubSpot Analytics.
But for your tech business, which one is suitable? Let's find out.
Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is one of the top website analytics tools and quite popular among MSPs. It’s a free service from Google that tracks how users interact with your website or app.
If you're monitoring traffic, checking bounce rates, or analyzing time spent on site, GA gives you the raw numbers.
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Did You Know? Google Analytics 4 seamlessly links up with Google Ads and Google Search Console. This means you can instantly see how your ad budget influences website visitor behavior and how people are finding you through organic search. |
See where your website traffic comes from. Is it organic search, social media, paid ads, or someone typing your URL directly?
Track which pages visitors explore and how much time they spend on each. This helps you gauge content interest
Set up "event tracking" to monitor everything from clicks on a button to how far someone scrolls down a page, even form submissions
Analyze user journeys through your site, understanding the funnel performance and common page paths visitors take
Measure conversion goals, like when someone submits a demo request or fills out a contact form
It’s free (big win if you’re a small team)
You get loads of detail on user behavior
There are tons of tutorials, help docs, and community support
It’s anonymous, so you don’t know who visited; just how many
Doesn’t always integrate with your CRM or email tools, only with Google Ads
If you get a lot of traffic, the free version may show estimates, not the exact numbers
HubSpot isn’t just an analytics tool; it’s a full CRM platform that ties your marketing, sales, and service together. And the analytics part? Way more than just traffic stats.
It helps you connect every click, visit, or form submission to real people in your system. That means you get context, not just numbers.
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Fun Fact: HubSpot's reach is truly global! According to Backlinko, they serve over 247,939 customers spread across more than 135 countries worldwide. That's a lot of businesses growing with HubSpot! |
See the entire customer journey, from their first visit to the closed deal
Know exactly who’s opening your emails, clicking your links, or filling out forms
Access real-time reports to spot what’s working (and fix what’s not)
Improve conversions by analyzing which landing pages and CTAs drive action
Keep everything connected, CRM, email, sales tools, in one platform
You can see who’s engaging and tailor your follow-up
Setting automation trigger is easy when leads visit certain service/product pages
There’s one dashboard for all your marketing, sales, and service data
It’s not free. Pricing increases as your contact list and needs grow
Once you’re in the HubSpot ecosystem, switching out can be tricky later
Doesn’t go as deep into technical web metrics as GA4
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Feature |
Google Analytics (GA4) |
HubSpot Analytics |
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Primary Focus |
Anonymous website and app behavior |
Known contact behavior across marketing, sales, and service |
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Tracking Model |
Event-based (each interaction is an event) |
Contact-centric (tracks interactions tied to specific leads) |
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Ease of Use |
Powerful but complex; steep learning curve |
Intuitive and user-friendly, especially within HubSpot |
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Data Integration |
Seamless within Google tools; requires effort for others |
Built-in integration with HubSpot CRM, forms, email, ads, and third-party apps via Marketplace |
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Reporting Depth |
Highly customizable web traffic analysis |
Lead lifecycle, marketing funnel, and campaign attribution |
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Attribution Modeling |
Advanced models available; strong on data-driven attribution |
Multi-touch attribution tied to contacts, deals, and revenue |
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Predictive AI |
Yes – includes behavior prediction and churn analysis |
Yes – includes lead scoring, content suggestions, and sales forecasting |
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Real-Time Reporting |
Yes |
Yes |
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Lead-Level Insights |
No, data is anonymous |
Yes, tied directly to individual contacts |
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Cost |
Free (GA360 is enterprise-tier and paid) |
Paid – included in Starter, Professional, and Enterprise HubSpot plans |
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Best For |
Deep web traffic insights, SEO tracking, and large-volume sites |
Businesses needing a unified view of the customer journey and marketing ROI |
| Winner - Google Analytics |
If your main goal is to understand how people are finding your website, what pages they’re landing on, and where they’re dropping off, Google Analytics does this really well. It's packed with charts, reports, and custom dashboards.
For traffic-heavy sites, especially if you’re running SEO or ad campaigns, it gives you the raw data you need to spot trends and improve performance.
| Winner - HubSpot Analytics |
Traffic numbers are great, but what about knowing who that visitor was?
HubSpot gives you the full story. You’ll see that a visitor downloaded your brochure or checklist, opened your email three days later, and then booked a call. It's all tied to one contact record. No more relying on guesswork.
For you, that means smarter follow-ups and better conversations with leads who already trust your brand.
| Winner - HubSpot Analytics |
To be honest, Google Analytics isn’t exactly beginner-friendly. Setting it up with tags, filters, and views can get technical fast and overwhelming.
HubSpot? Much simpler. You get clean dashboards, easy-to-read reports, and everything in one place. No coding, no fiddling.
If you’d rather focus on growth than data wrangling, this makes your life easier.
| Winner - HubSpot Analytics |
Whether you’re trying to justify your marketing spend or plan your next campaign, you need to show results.
With HubSpot, you can track every touchpoint…from email opens to closed deals. That means you can confidently say, “This campaign brought in X leads and Y revenue.”
GA can give you traffic numbers. HubSpot gives you proof of ROI.
| Winner - Google Analytics |
Google Analytics is free. For small teams or early-stage MSPs, that’s a huge saver.
HubSpot comes with a cost, for sure. But depending on how much you value visibility, lead nurturing, and automation, that cost often pays for itself.
So, what’s right for you?
If you need a bird's-eye view of how your website performs, go for Google Analytics. It's a strong (and free) choice.
But if you're serious about growing your business, closing more deals, and understanding your leads, HubSpot is the one for you, with better insights.
Google Analytics is free and great for tracking anonymous website traffic
HubSpot offers contact-level insights tied to marketing, sales, and service
GA4 suits businesses focused on SEO, web behavior, and high traffic volume
HubSpot is more intuitive and connects every lead action to your CRM
If you want to grow smarter and prove ROI, HubSpot is the better fit
Tactics Marketing can help you implement HubSpot with zero overwhelm
With HubSpot, you don’t just get reports, you get real visibility into what’s working across your entire funnel. From tracking deal stage conversions to spotting drop-offs in nurturing sequences, it helps you make smarter, faster decisions.
Plus, with built-in automation and personalization, you’re not just monitoring leads, you’re moving them forward.
Wondering how to set it up? That’s where Tactics Marketing comes in.
We understand the overwhelm that comes with using tools like HubSpot. With decades of hands-on experience in tech and marketing, we’ll help you implement, optimize, and get real value from it, without the headaches.
Book a call with us today and turn your analytics into actual business growth!