How much JavaScript does Google Analytics tracking add to your site and is Plausible really the best option?
A typical GA4 setup ships around 215 KB gzip of tracking code per pageview. At 100,000 pageviews per month that adds up to 21.5 GB — just for measurement. +Analytics Pro delivers privacy-compliant tracking starting at 1 KB gzip; 21.5 GB turn into 0.1 GB per month.
Every pageview counts
Tracking does not load once. It multiplies with every pageview — and with every visitor, every month, every year.
JavaScript is more than download
The code has to be transferred, parsed and executed. That costs bandwidth, battery on mobile devices, and interaction latency (INP, LCP).
Tracking quickly becomes a stack
The GA4 script rarely arrives alone. Tag manager and consent tool are loaded along with it in most installations — and the script weight climbs noticeably.
The GA4 file alone is just the start.
In most live installations, Google Tag Manager handles delivery, and a consent tool adds banner, configuration and runtime logic. It all adds up.
Google Analytics 4
The GA4 script on its own — as Google ships it.
GA4 + Tag Manager
When GA4 is delivered through Google Tag Manager. In many setups the rule rather than the exception.
GA4 + GTM + Cookiebot
A typical stack with a consent tool from the SMB and agency space.
GA4 + GTM + OneTrust
A heavier consent stack, common in enterprise installations.
onEco +Analytics Pro delivers tracking by choice.
You decide how much tracking capability you need. The profiles are not product plans or pricing tiers — they describe functionality and script size.
Minimal Mode
Pageviews with the smallest possible script weight. Even smaller than the already small Plausible tracking script.
Standard Mode
Pageviews, Core Web Vitals and engagement. The lean default setup.
Extended Mode
Additional context. Still a fraction of any GA4 stack.
Script sizes at a glance.
All values per pageview. Linear scale.
What does that mean for your website?
Pick pageviews and a setup to compare.
Ratio
Data difference per month
Additional CO₂ impact per year
Google Analytics 4 has a paradoxical problem: Google itself penalises websites that embed the script. Core Web Vitals have been a ranking factor since the Page Experience update — and a typical GA4 setup with Tag Manager and a consent tool measurably drags LCP and INP down. This is not polemics. It is Google's own mechanic: a GA4 stack makes your site worse in Google rankings by Google's own logic.
Plausible does not have this problem: 2.5 KB barely affect Core Web Vitals. If pageviews, sources and top pages are enough, Plausible is a clean choice.
+Analytics Pro plays one class higher: cookie-free like Plausible, even smaller in Minimal Mode — and with pro features Plausible does not have. Live traffic, user journeys, funnel drop-offs, conversion attribution, continuous audits — and Core Web Vitals from real-user data, exactly the metrics a GA4 stack degrades. You pick the profile per site. Even Extended Mode stays below ten kilobytes.
All data volumes account for gzip compression.
Pageviews × script weight gives the monthly data volume. The CO₂ estimate uses 0.06 kWh/GB and 0.445 kg CO₂e/kWh.