Microsoft Clarity is a fantastic free tool. Unlimited session recordings, decent heatmaps, and zero cost—it's hard to argue with that value proposition.
But Clarity has real limitations. If you've outgrown those limitations, this guide covers the best Microsoft Clarity alternatives in 2026.
Why Teams Outgrow Microsoft Clarity
No Real User Identification
Clarity shows anonymous sessions. You can't connect recordings to individual users, see a user's history across sessions, or identify who specifically is experiencing issues. For product teams, this is a major blind spot.
Limited Event Tracking
Clarity captures basic interactions but doesn't support custom event tracking. You can't track business events like signups, purchases, or feature usage alongside your recordings.
Basic Filtering & Reporting
Finding specific sessions is challenging. Clarity's filtering options are limited compared to paid tools—you can't easily find "users who viewed pricing but didn't sign up" or similar segments. There's no advanced funnel visualization or complex path analysis.
No User Profiles
There's no concept of a "user" in Clarity. Each session is isolated. You can't see a visitor's journey across multiple sessions or understand their overall behavior pattern.
Data Caps & Retention Limits
Despite being marketed as "unlimited," Clarity has real limitations:
| Limit | Details |
|---|---|
| Daily sessions | 100,000 sessions per project per day |
| Recording retention | 30 days (then deleted) |
| Favorite recordings | Retained up to 13 months |
| Live sessions | Maximum 100 viewable |
| Labels per recording | Maximum 5 |
| Download recordings | Not possible |
Limited Integrations
Beyond Google Analytics, third-party integrations are limited. No direct connectors with A/B testing platforms or CRM systems—reducing flexibility for teams wanting to tie behavioral data into broader workflows.
New Consent Requirements (2025)
As of October 31, 2025, Microsoft requires consent signals before tracking visitors from the EEA, UK, and Switzerland. Without proper consent mode configuration, Clarity will block session recordings entirely for these visitors. This is a client-side tool with no server-side fallback.
No Surveys or Feedback
Clarity is recordings and heatmaps only. If you need user feedback, surveys, or NPS, you'll need additional tools.
Best Microsoft Clarity Alternatives in 2026
1. Peeke — Best Upgrade with User Profiles
Why upgrade from Clarity: Peeke adds what Clarity fundamentally lacks—user profiles. Every visitor gets a profile showing all their sessions, events, and behavior in one place.
Key advantages over Clarity:
- User profiles — See complete history for each visitor across all sessions
- User identification — Connect sessions to real users with email/name
- Custom event tracking — Track signups, purchases, feature usage
- Better filtering — Find sessions by user behavior, not just basic attributes
- Still has a free tier — Upgrade without losing free access
What Clarity does better:
- Unlimited recordings (Peeke has generous but not unlimited free tier)
- Microsoft ecosystem integration
Best for: Teams ready to understand individual users, not just anonymous sessions.
Pricing: Free tier available, then affordable usage-based pricing
2. Hotjar — Best for Heatmaps + Surveys
Why consider it: Hotjar adds surveys, feedback widgets, and superior heatmaps to your analytics toolkit.
Key advantages over Clarity:
- Excellent heatmaps (better than Clarity's)
- Built-in surveys and feedback
- Better filtering and segmentation
- Established brand with mature features
What Clarity does better:
- Free unlimited recordings
- Simpler, less overwhelming
Best for: Marketing teams who need heatmaps AND user feedback.
Pricing: Free tier (limited), paid from $39/month
3. PostHog — Best All-in-One Open Source
Why consider it: PostHog bundles session replay with product analytics, feature flags, and A/B testing. Self-host for complete data control.
Key advantages over Clarity:
- Full product analytics suite
- Feature flags and experiments
- Open source with self-hosting
- Strong event tracking
What Clarity does better:
- Simpler to use
- Completely free
- No setup complexity
Best for: Technical teams wanting analytics + experimentation in one platform.
Pricing: Free tier (5,000 replays/month), then usage-based
4. LogRocket — Best for Technical Teams
Why consider it: LogRocket captures console logs, network requests, and error context—essential for debugging that Clarity can't provide.
Key advantages over Clarity:
- Console and network logging
- Error tracking integration
- Performance monitoring
- Redux/Vuex state capture
What Clarity does better:
- Free and simple
- Less overhead
Best for: Development teams debugging production issues.
Pricing: Free tier (1,000 sessions/month), then from $99/month
5. Lucky Orange — Best for E-Commerce
Why consider it: Real-time visitor tracking plus live chat. Watch users browse and chat with them simultaneously.
Key advantages over Clarity:
- Real-time visitor monitoring
- Live chat integration
- Conversion funnels
- Announcements and surveys
What Clarity does better:
- Free unlimited recordings
- Microsoft backing
Best for: E-commerce teams wanting real-time engagement.
Pricing: From $39/month
6. Mouseflow — Best for Form Analytics
Why consider it: Dedicated form analytics showing exactly where users struggle—field-by-field dropout analysis that Clarity doesn't offer.
Key advantages over Clarity:
- Form analytics with field-level insights
- Six types of heatmaps
- Conversion funnels
- Better segmentation
What Clarity does better:
- Completely free
- Simpler setup
Best for: Teams optimizing forms and checkout flows.
Pricing: Free tier, paid from $39/month
7. Smartlook — Best for Mobile Apps
Why consider it: Native iOS and Android SDK. If you need session recordings for mobile apps, Clarity (web-only) won't help.
Key advantages over Clarity:
- Mobile app support
- Event-based analytics
- Retroactive data analysis
- Cross-platform view
What Clarity does better:
- Free for websites
- Microsoft ecosystem
Best for: Teams with mobile apps needing session recordings.
Pricing: Free tier, paid from $55/month
8. FullStory — Best Enterprise Option
Why consider it: If you have budget and need the best replay quality and search capabilities available, FullStory delivers.
Key advantages over Clarity:
- Best-in-class replay quality
- Powerful Omnisearch
- Strong user identification
- Enterprise features and support
What Clarity does better:
- Free (FullStory is very expensive)
- Simpler
Best for: Enterprise teams with substantial budgets.
Pricing: Custom enterprise pricing ($$$$/month)
Comparison Table: Microsoft Clarity Alternatives 2026
| Tool | User Profiles | Event Tracking | Heatmaps | Free Tier | Price After Free |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peeke | ★★★★★ | ★★★★ | ★★ | Yes | Affordable |
| Hotjar | ★★ | ★★ | ★★★★ | Limited | $39/mo |
| PostHog | ★★★ | ★★★★ | ★★★ | Yes | Usage-based |
| LogRocket | ★★ | ★★★★ | ★★ | Yes | $99/mo |
| Lucky Orange | ★★ | ★★★ | ★★★ | No | $39/mo |
| Mouseflow | ★★ | ★★★ | ★★★★ | Yes | $39/mo |
| Smartlook | ★★ | ★★★ | ★★★ | Yes | $55/mo |
| FullStory | ★★★ | ★★★★ | ★★★ | No | $$$$ |
Clarity vs Alternatives: Feature Comparison
| Feature | Clarity | Peeke | Hotjar | PostHog |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Session Recordings | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Heatmaps | ✓ | Basic | ✓✓ | ✓ |
| User Profiles | ✗ | ✓✓ | Basic | ✓ |
| User Identification | ✗ | ✓✓ | Basic | ✓ |
| Custom Events | ✗ | ✓✓ | Limited | ✓✓ |
| Surveys | ✗ | ✗ | ✓✓ | ✓ |
| Form Analytics | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Mobile Apps | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Self-hosting | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Free Tier | Unlimited | Generous | Limited | Generous |
When to Stick with Microsoft Clarity
Clarity remains the right choice if:
- Budget is zero and you can't justify any analytics spend
- You only need basic recordings without user identification
- Your site is simple without complex user journeys
- You're just starting out and need something quick and free
- Microsoft ecosystem is important for your stack
When to Upgrade from Clarity
Consider an alternative when:
- You need to identify users — "Who is this person?"
- You need user profiles — "What has this person done across sessions?"
- You need event tracking — "How many users completed signup?"
- You need better filtering — "Show me users who abandoned checkout"
- You need mobile apps — Clarity is web-only
- You hit the 100k daily cap — High traffic sites need paid tools
Migration Path: Clarity to a Paid Tool
- Keep Clarity running — It's free, so there's no reason to remove it immediately
- Install your new tool alongside — Run both for comparison
- Focus on new capabilities — Use the new tool for user profiles and events; keep Clarity for raw recordings
- Evaluate after 30 days — Decide if you need both or can consolidate
- Train your team — Ensure everyone knows where to find what data
Verdict: Best Microsoft Clarity Alternative in 2026
For teams ready to understand individual users: Peeke adds user profiles and event tracking while keeping a free tier. It's the natural upgrade path from Clarity.
For teams needing surveys and feedback: Hotjar bundles feedback collection with analytics.
For technical teams: PostHog or LogRocket add debugging capabilities that pure analytics tools lack.
For mobile apps: Smartlook is your only real option among session recording tools.
Microsoft Clarity is excellent for free, basic recordings. When you need more, the alternatives above deliver the features that justify their cost.
See all session recording tools compared in our comprehensive guide.