Headstream vs Google Analytics
Updated 2026-11-02
Google Analytics 4 is free and sits at the center of Google's ad products. Headstream is built around one question for SaaS teams: which marketing produced Stripe revenue? If you mostly run Google Ads and want a free tool, stay with GA4. If you need revenue you can reconcile, read on.
Side by side
| Headstream | Google Analytics | |
|---|---|---|
| Stripe revenue attribution | Yes, beta | Not listed |
| Attribution models | First touch, last touch, linear, U-shaped | Data-driven, paid and organic last click, Google paid channels last click |
| First click and linear models | Yes | Removed in November 2023 |
| Self-reported attribution | Yes | Not listed |
| Heatmaps and recordings | Yes | Not listed |
| A/B tests | Yes | Third-party tools since Google Optimize ended |
| MCP server | Yes | Yes, official |
| Raw export | Yes, every event | BigQuery export, 1 million events a day on standard properties |
| Data retention | Life of the account | 2 or 14 months for event-level data on standard |
"Not listed" means we couldn't find it on Google Analytics's own site. It doesn't mean they don't offer it, so check with them. We reviewed their site on November 1, 2026.
Pricing
Headstream is free for 10,000 events a month, $99 for 250,000 and $299 for 1 million, pooled across unlimited sites. Standard GA4 is free. Analytics 360 is a paid plan, and Google doesn't publish dollar rates on the pages we found.
Where Google Analytics is the better pick
It's free and connects directly to Google Ads, with data-driven attribution for that ecosystem. Nearly every marketer, agency and tool already knows it.
When to choose Headstream
- You want revenue credited from Stripe, including refunds and disputes.
- You want to compare first touch, last touch, linear and U-shaped models.
- You want to keep event-level data for as long as you have an account.
- You want to trace any number to the rows behind it.
Moving from Google Analytics
Historic GA4 data doesn't transfer. Add the Headstream script next to your current tag and run both for a few weeks. You can compare totals before you remove anything. Your agent can do the install from agent.md.
You can see how every number is calculated in our methodology. Stripe connection is in beta.
Source: Google Analytics's website.