Hotjar

Heatmaps and session recordings that show how users really behave.

Overview

Hotjar is the behaviour-analytics tool that made heatmaps and session recordings mainstream: click and scroll maps, replays of real sessions, funnels, and on-page surveys and feedback widgets. In 2025–2026 it merged into Contentsquare — hotjar.com now redirects there — and the product continues as part of the Contentsquare platform with a free tier and a Growth plan.

Where it fits in my work

Analytics tells you what happened; Hotjar shows you why. After a launch or a redesign, a week of recordings answers the questions numbers cannot: where people hesitate on the form, which section of the landing page nobody reaches, what the mobile layout actually looks like on a small phone. I use it in the deliver-and-improve stage of my stack — turn it on, watch enough sessions to see the pattern, fix the pattern, turn it off. A small on-page survey ("what stopped you?") at the right moment is often worth more than the recordings.

Key features

Heatmaps — click, move, scroll and rage-click maps per page Session recordings with filters and console/error context Funnels and conversion analysis Surveys, feedback widgets and interview scheduling Integrations with GA, HubSpot, Slack and others Now part of Contentsquare, with its broader experience-analytics suite

Best for

Product and marketing teams who need to understand behaviour on specific pages — landing pages, checkouts, onboarding. It is overkill for a low-traffic brochure site and underpowered for deep product analytics, where Amplitude or PostHog fit better.

Where it fits in my stack

Hotjar → site analytics for the numbers, Typeform for longer research, Basecamp for the fixes the findings become. It is a diagnostic tool, not a permanent fixture.

Pros

The fastest way to see a UX problem with your own eyes Free tier is enough for a short diagnostic on a small site Surveys and recordings together explain both what and why Simple to install — one script

Limitations

Recordings raise privacy and consent obligations that need handling Sampling and session caps on lower plans Watching sessions is time-consuming; it needs a question to answer The Contentsquare transition has changed plans and branding

Pricing

Hotjar is now sold through Contentsquare. The Contentsquare page for Hotjar users describes a free plan (200k sessions a month, versus Hotjar's old 35 a day) and a 15-day trial of the Growth plan for new signups; paid plan prices were not published on the page at the time of writing. Check the official pricing page for current plans.

Verdict

I keep Hotjar in the toolkit for the week after a launch, when watching real people use the thing teaches more than any dashboard. Used that way — briefly, with a question in mind — it pays for itself on the free tier.