Written by the MapMyVisitors team — running visitor counters since 2005
Everything here follows one rule: we don't publish a number we didn't measure or a verdict we didn't test. Trackers get curl'd, widgets get embedded on live pages, pricing gets re-checked against the vendors' own pages… and when something changes, the guide changes with it. Bookmark whatever's relevant, folks — these pages get tended like a garden.
Eight tools on one test page with DevTools open: what each stores in the browser, which need a consent banner, what they cost, and an honest verdict — including when the winner is not your pick.
Comparison · updated August 2026Every embed generated, every free tier verified. Counters, maps, flags and globes — what each widget shows, whether you need an account, and which analytics to pair it with.
Comparison · updated August 2026GA4's tag transfers ~146 KB; the lightest tracker we measured is 397 bytes. Full curl methodology, sorted table, and what script weight does to LCP and INP.
Benchmark · measured August 2026Consent requirements by tracking method — third-party cookies, first-party cookies, localStorage, fingerprinting, cookieless counting — with the tools that skip the banner entirely.
Explainer · updated July 2026The four counts everything else is built on, and why GA4, Matomo, and a counter widget report three different numbers for the same afternoon of traffic. None of them is lying.
Glossary · updated May 2026Part obituary, part rescue guide: how the counter era died, with Wayback screenshots — and the working 2026 replacements for every dead service, tested by someone who ran them all.
History + guide · updated June 2026Build campaign URLs with utm_source, utm_medium, and utm_campaign — with presets, history in your browser, and a QR code. No signup, nothing stored on our side.
Free toolWhere to place a counter, how to keep it from slowing your page, and the setup mistakes we keep seeing after twenty years of looking at other people's footers.
GuideAnd the tool all of this grew around…
Create Your Free Visitor Map Widget