Flying Analytics: Self-Host Google Analytics v4 with Speed Optimization
by Gijo Varghese · Analytics
Also makes 5 other plugins · 66.6K+ installs across the portfolio →
Self-host Google Analytics v4 or use Minimal Analytics, a lightweight gtag.js alternative, to improve site speed and enhance privacy.
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
B 84/100
no flags
Active installs
4K+
≈4.8K estimated
Momentum
+31%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Add “host”, “product analytics” and “google analytics alternative” to your wp.org tags. You rank #12, #13 and #15 for them without listing them, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 2 listed these are the slots worth spending.
84 health vs 67 average across 1,826 Analytics plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →6.6%
of downloads still active
At least 4K of 60.7K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Analytics plugin keeps 1.2%, across 1,006 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Analytics plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
This plugin shipped 1 release in the last 12 months, and every existing install that updated counted as another download. wp.org publishes no split between first installs and updates, so we show the raw rate rather than guess at one.
Details
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Excellent listing optimization
Most to gain: Listing tuning
Updated 164 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.0.8, the current branch or newer
4.9★ over 14 reviews, smoothed to 4.27★ and held back under 25 reviews
2 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Only 2 tags — use the full 5 relevant tags so search matches more queries.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
31
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.9
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
6%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.7
Acceleration
recent half vs earlier
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| self host | #1 | #2 | 0 |
| minimal analytics your tag | #3 | #5 | 0 |
| flying | #3 | #3 | 0 |
| minimal | #6 | #6 | down 1 |
| host | #12 | #17 | down 1 |
| speed optimization | #16 | #20 | up 1 |
| analytics | #20 | #20 | up 1 |
| product analytics | #13 | #12 | down 2 |
| google analytics your tag | #24 | #21 | down 1 |
| privacy analytics | #15 | #17 | 0 |
| google analytics alternative | #15 | #18 | down 4 |
| free analytics | #15 | #17 | down 2 |
| google analytics script | #20 | #20 | down 1 |
| site analytics | #21 | #21 | down 3 |
| plugin analytics | #23 | #20 | down 1 |
| google analytics add on | #23 | #22 | — |
19 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 16 listed. 3 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words).
What to do about it
- Add “host”, “product analytics” and “google analytics alternative” to your wp.org tags. You rank #12, #13 and #15 for them without listing them, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 2 listed these are the slots worth spending.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 3.2K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
Occasionally updatedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
1
releases in the last 12 months
5mo ago
latest release · v2.0.0 · 20 May 2026
6
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 84% run the current release. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “4K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 4 months ago and the previous band took 20 months to cross, so the real count is still just under 5K.
Install history since 11 Sep 2020
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ tdt343.0y ago
My pagespeed score is better since i use this pugin instead of the google site kit ! Thank you 😉
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Adnan Khan4.6y ago
Its a good plugin. However on multi author site, we lose the ability to add a dimension for counting the author’s views. That is an important aspect. Kindly add it.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ krashx64.7y ago
I landed on this plugin after trying Flying Scripts. As boring as this plugin is, it felt great installing this and just seeing a simple form that allows me to paste in my GA code, and get working analytics. Theres 100 other plugins that do this, but they all feel like a free-2-play app. You’re hit with ads, banners, and upsells. This just works.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ CodeAndMore5.5y ago
Works well. This topic was modified 5 years, 2 months ago by CodeAndMore.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ motmat5.6y ago
… in use 1y
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Saswata Baksi6.0y ago
Definitely easy to use, support GA 4.0, and self-hosted the script also. A complete solution.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ larsontw166.5y ago
Reduced my load speeds and inlined my analytics in less than 5 minutes setup time. Thanks Gijo!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ bluisier6.5y ago
I recently discovered Gijo’s facebook group wp speed matters and gave a few of his plugins a try. This one just works out of the box. I removed the analytics code from my theme, activated the plugin and voilààà… My analytics.js code is hosted locally. Thanks a lot for developing awesome tools to speedup wp sites!
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 2.0.0 New: Google Analytics v4 support 2.0.0
- — Version 1.1.3 Security updates 1.1.3
- — Version 1.1.2 [BUGFIX] 404 error on js files 1.1.2
- — Version 1.1.1 [BUGFIX] Warning for constant FILE 1.1.1
- — Version 1.1.0 [NEW] Disable for logged in admins (credits: Gulshan Kumar ) 1.1.0
- — Version 1.0.0 Initial release 1.0.0
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.4.8 · WP 5.8.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 4 languages, 4 at 90% or more
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Share of voice
How often each assistant names Flying Analytics: Self-Host Google Analytics v4 wi when asked about this topic, where it comes in the answer, and how that compares with its wp.org search position. Latest run 25 Oct 2026.
- Assistants
- ChatGPT, Claude
- Topics tracked
- Analytics
Readme readiness
4 of 8 pass · checked 28 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Self-host Google Analytics v4 or use Minimal Analytics, a lightweight gtag.js alternative, to improve site..."
- ! Has a FAQ No FAQ section.
- ! FAQ asks real questions No FAQ to judge.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Google Analytics, Facebook.
- ✓ Headings and lists 3 headings and 4 lists.
- ! Enough to quote 330 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text All 2 tags appear in the text.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-07-10 5K+ → 4K+ down after 587 days in tier
- 2024-11-30 6K+ → 5K+ down after 3 days in tier
- 2024-11-27 5K+ → 6K+ up after 7 days in tier
- 2024-11-20 6K+ → 5K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2024-11-19 5K+ → 6K+ up after 121 days in tier
- 2024-07-21 6K+ → 5K+ down after 39 days in tier
- 2024-06-12 7K+ → 6K+ down after 54 days in tier
- 2024-04-19 8K+ → 7K+ down after 3 days in tier
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
MonsterInsights – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Made Easy) 2M+ installs · 4.5★ · 1 shared tag A -
GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ installs · 4.5★ · 1 shared tag A -
WP Statistics – Simple, privacy-friendly Google Analytics alternative 500K+ installs · 4.1★ · 1 shared tag A -
GA Google Analytics – Connect Google Analytics to WordPress 400K+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag A -
ExactMetrics – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Plugin) 200K+ installs · 2.5★ · 1 shared tag B -
Insert Headers And Footers 200K+ installs · 4.9★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Flying Analytics: Self-Host Google Analytics v4 with Speed Optimization into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/flying-analytics" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Flying Analytics: Self-Host Google Analytics v4 with Speed Optimization — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Flying Analytics: Self-Host Google Analytics v4 with Speed Optimization: 4K+ active installs, 4.9★ (14 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/flying-analytics
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