MonsterInsights and Page Visit Counter (PVC) both put website stats inside your WordPress dashboard, but in different ways. MonsterInsights connects your site to Google Analytics 4 and shows Google’s data in wp-admin. PVC counts visits itself and keeps them in your own WordPress database.
This Page Visit Counter vs MonsterInsights comparison is for bloggers, small businesses and agencies choosing between the two. Page Visit Counter is made by WPAnkit, the team behind this site. We have tried to keep it fair and back every MonsterInsights claim with its own website, documentation or plugin code.
Last updated: 24 September 2026
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Quick verdict
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In this comparison
Page Visit Counter vs MonsterInsights at a glance
| Feature | Page Visit Counter | MonsterInsights |
|---|---|---|
| Tracking method | One small script on your site sends each pageview to your own WordPress REST API | Adds Google’s gtag.js (Google Analytics 4) plus its own event-tracking script |
| Cookies | ✗ None, and no browser storage | ✓ Google Analytics cookies such as _ga |
| Where visit data is stored | Two tables in your WordPress database | Your Google Analytics property; MonsterInsights keeps no visitor database |
| Outside services | None per visit; downloads a GeoLite2 location database from pagevisitcounter.com; Freemius only if you opt in or use Pro | Google Analytics; reports are fetched through MonsterInsights’s API |
| Account needed | ✗ None for the free version | ✓ Google account and a GA4 property |
| Real-time visitors | ✓ Free (active in last 5 minutes, refreshed every 10 seconds) | Plus and higher (updates every 60 seconds) |
| Sessions, bounce rate, session duration | ✓ Free | ✓ Lite Overview report |
| Custom date ranges | ✓ Free on every report page (the overview dashboard is fixed) | Lite: last 30 days; any range on Plus and higher |
| Top content, countries, devices | ✓ Free, with date ranges | ✓ Lite Overview (top 10 countries, device breakdown, top posts/pages) |
| Referrers and traffic sources | Pro | Top 10 referrals in Lite; Source/Medium report on Plus and higher |
| UTM campaigns | Pro | Campaigns report on Plus and higher |
| Goals and conversions | Pro (page-visit goals) | Form and eCommerce conversions on Pro and higher |
| Heatmaps | Pro (click heatmaps, beta) | Elite (via UserFeedback Elite) |
| eCommerce revenue tracking | ✗ | Pro and higher (WooCommerce, Easy Digital Downloads, MemberPress and more) |
| Email reports | Pro (weekly) | Lite: monthly summary; weekly on Plus and higher |
| Price | Free; Pro from $49/year | Free (Lite); paid from $99.50 first year, then $199/year |
Setup and dashboard
Page Visit Counter: install and activate, and tracking starts. The free version needs no account, tracking code or API key, and the reports live under an Analytics menu in wp-admin. Posts and pages are tracked by default; you can add products or other custom post types under Settings > Track Post Types. Administrators are counted until you exclude that role, so do that on day one.
The dashboard shows today’s pageviews and sessions, active visitors, average session duration, bounce rate, a 7-day trend, devices, countries and browsers. Reports are available to administrators only. Some reports need MySQL 8.0+ or MariaDB 10.2+.
MonsterInsights: a setup wizard walks you through connecting your site. You need a Google Analytics property, then you sign in with Google and grant MonsterInsights access. MonsterInsights’s docs say data can take up to 24 hours to appear. By default, logged-in administrators and editors are not tracked, and both roles can view reports, which you can adjust in the permission settings.
Reports and metrics
PVC free includes the overview dashboard, real-time visitors, and date-range reports for top pages, posts and custom post types (with views per session and average time on page), countries, devices and browsers, and a list of individual sessions with entry page. PVC counts sessions, not unique people.
PVC Pro adds UTM campaign reports, page-visit goals, click heatmaps (beta), per-session user journeys, a referrer breakdown, top cities, a world map and weekly email reports.
MonsterInsights Lite gives you the Overview report: sessions, pageviews, new vs returning visitors, device breakdown, top 10 countries, top 10 referrals and top posts/pages, covering the last 30 days. Plus unlocks Traffic, Publishers, Search Console, Real-Time, Site Speed and Media reports and any date range. Pro adds eCommerce, Forms and custom dimension reports. You can also open Google Analytics itself for deeper analysis.
Privacy and data ownership
Visit data from PVC is written to two tables in your own WordPress database. PVC sets no cookies and stores nothing in the visitor’s browser. It groups visits into sessions on the server with a salted hash of the IP address, user agent and a 30-minute time block.
PVC never writes raw IP addresses to the database and collects no names or email addresses. It does store a one-way hash of the IP (pseudonymized, not anonymous), the browser user agent, and approximate location (country, region and city). Location lookups run on your server against a local GeoLite2 database, which the plugin downloads (about 63 MB) from pagevisitcounter.com and currently refreshes daily. Data is kept for a period you choose, up to 365 days (90 by default), then removed automatically.
MonsterInsights sends visit data to your Google Analytics property. Its own GDPR guide says the plugin keeps no database of visitor data, and the plugin code fetches reports through MonsterInsights’s API. Google Analytics uses cookies such as _ga, and the same guide says GDPR requires consent for Google Analytics in almost all cases. The EU Compliance addon (Plus and higher) anonymizes IPs, disables demographics and User-ID tracking, and works with CookieBot, Cookie Notice, CookieYes and Complianz to wait for consent.
Neither plugin can guarantee legal compliance, as MonsterInsights itself says. Going cookie-free can make consent simpler, but still mention PVC in your privacy policy and check the rules that apply to your site.
Performance and site speed
PVC loads one script of 743 bytes (about 400 bytes gzipped) in the footer and sends one background request per pageview to your own site. That request runs PHP and a database write on your server, which adds up on very busy sites. Tracking works with page caching as long as cached pages are refreshed within WordPress’s nonce lifetime (about 12 to 24 hours).
MonsterInsights loads Google’s gtag.js asynchronously from googletagmanager.com, plus its own event script in the page head (11.9 KB minified, about 3.3 KB gzipped, in version 11.3.0). Data collection then happens on Google’s servers, not yours. On Plus and higher, the Performance addon can host gtag.js locally. We have not run benchmarks, so test both on your own site.
Free vs paid features
PVC free covers sessions, time metrics, real-time and date ranges; traffic sources and campaigns are Pro, and every Pro tier gets every Pro feature (see the Free vs Pro table). MonsterInsights Lite covers the Overview report and a monthly email summary. Real-time, custom ranges and most reports need Plus, eCommerce, forms and ad tracking need Pro, and heatmaps need Elite.
Pricing
Prices as of 24 September 2026, in USD, billed yearly:
| Plugin and plan | Sites | First year | Renewal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Page Visit Counter Free | Any | $0 | $0 |
| Page Visit Counter Pro | 1 | $49 | $49 |
| Page Visit Counter Pro | 5 | $99 | $99 |
| Page Visit Counter Pro | Unlimited | $199 | $199 |
| MonsterInsights Lite | Any | $0 | $0 |
| MonsterInsights Plus | 1 | $99.50 | $199 |
| MonsterInsights Pro | 5 | $199.50 | $399 |
| MonsterInsights Elite | 5 | $299.50 | $599 |
| MonsterInsights Agency | 25 | $399.50 | $799 |
MonsterInsights’s first-year prices are introductory, and its pricing page says renewals are at full price. PVC plans renew at the signup price, plus any VAT or sales tax. Both offer a 14-day money-back guarantee, and neither lists monthly or lifetime plans.
Support and development
MonsterInsights has been on WordPress.org since 2007. It has 2+ million active installs and is rated 4.5 out of 5 by 3,151 users. Version 11.3.0 shipped on 16 September 2026, and the changelog lists 21 releases so far in 2026. All 13 forum threads from the last two months are marked resolved. Paid plans add standard, priority or premium support.
Page Visit Counter is a newer plugin published by WPAnkit. Version 4.1.0 was released on 23 September 2026. Free support runs through the WordPress.org forum, with pre-sales and Pro help via the contact page and guides in the documentation.
When MonsterInsights is the better choice
- You run a store. MonsterInsights Pro reports revenue, conversion rate, average order value, coupons and funnels, with integrations for WooCommerce, Easy Digital Downloads, MemberPress and more. PVC does not track sales.
- You buy ads or rely on forms. Pro tracks form conversions and ad conversions for Google, Microsoft, Meta, TikTok, Pinterest, Snapchat and LinkedIn.
- You already live in Google’s tools. Search Console and demographics reports are available on Plus and higher, next to the rest of your Google Analytics setup.
- Your traffic is very high. Collection happens on Google’s servers, so your database does not record every pageview.
- Others need access. Editors can see MonsterInsights reports by default, and you can add other roles. PVC reports are admin-only, and PVC has no front-end counter or popular-posts widget.
- You want long history. PVC keeps at most 365 days, while MonsterInsights Plus can show any date range your Google Analytics property holds.
Frequently asked questions
Can I switch from MonsterInsights to Page Visit Counter?
Yes. PVC does not import Google Analytics data, but your history stays in your Google Analytics property. Install PVC, exclude the Administrator role, and run both for a while to compare. Expect different numbers, because the two count visits differently.
Is Page Visit Counter free?
Yes. The free version on WordPress.org includes the dashboard, real-time visitors and date-range reports. Pro starts at $49/year for one site.
Do I need Google Analytics to use Page Visit Counter?
No. PVC records visits itself and needs no Google account, tracking code or API key.
Which is better for GDPR?
Neither guarantees compliance. PVC uses no cookies but stores an IP hash, user agent and approximate location in your database. MonsterInsights relies on Google Analytics cookies; its own guide says consent is needed in almost all cases, and its EU Compliance addon (Plus and higher) helps automate that.
Does Page Visit Counter track WooCommerce?
It counts product page views once you enable the Products post type in settings. It does not track carts, orders or revenue.
Why Page Visit Counter is the better choice if you want simple, self-hosted stats
If you want to understand your audience without sending visitor data to an outside platform, PVC makes the stronger case.
1. You want your stats in your own database
Visit data is written to two tables in your WordPress database. No outside analytics service receives it, and you can back up, query or clear it like any other site data. MonsterInsights sends it to Google Analytics and keeps no visitor database of its own.
2. You want useful reports without paying
The free version already reports sessions, bounce rate, average session duration and pages per session, plus a list of individual sessions, real-time visitors and date-range reports. MonsterInsights Lite shows similar headline metrics, but in one Overview report for the last 30 days; real-time and custom ranges need Plus at $99.50 for the first year and $199 after.
3. You want to avoid cookies
PVC sets no cookies and stores nothing in the visitor’s browser. Google Analytics, which MonsterInsights installs, uses cookies such as _ga, and MonsterInsights’s own guide says it needs consent in almost all cases under GDPR.
4. You want nothing to connect
Install and activate, and tracking starts. MonsterInsights needs a Google Analytics property, a Google sign-in and permissions, and its docs say data can take up to 24 hours to appear.
5. You want a light, first-party front end
PVC adds one script under 1 KB, served from your own site, with no third-party tracking scripts. By default, MonsterInsights loads Google’s gtag.js from Google’s servers plus its own 11.9 KB (minified) script. Each PVC pageview does make one request to your own server.
6. You want simple, flat pricing
Pro costs $49/year for 1 site, $99/year for 5 sites or $199/year for unlimited sites (as of 24 September 2026), and every tier includes all Pro features, with a 14-day money-back guarantee. MonsterInsights Plus costs $99.50 for the first year and renews at $199/year for one site; eCommerce starts at Pro ($399 renewal) and heatmaps at Elite ($599 renewal).
If you run a store or an ad-driven business, MonsterInsights is still the stronger tool. For everyone else who wants clear, self-hosted stats in wp-admin, start with Page Visit Counter free on WordPress.org, and upgrade to Page Visit Counter Pro when you need campaigns, goals, heatmaps and email reports.