Liwan

Self-hosted, privacy-first web analytics that runs as a single binary or Docker container.

Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb analytics tools

Verified facts: 4 of 4
Alternatives ranked: 5
Approved reviews: 0
Visits sent from here: 0

About Liwan

Liwan is a small open-source web analytics tool focused on easy self-hosting. It ships as a single binary or Docker container with the dashboard and database built in, so there are no extra services such as PostgreSQL or ClickHouse to manage. The real-time dashboard shows most-visited pages, traffic sources and changes over time, and filters bots by default. It uses no tracking cookies or cross-site tracking, keeps data on your server and doesn't record raw IP addresses, and lets you choose how much location, campaign and session detail to collect and how long to keep it. You can add a one-line browser script or send events from your server, and teams can sign in with Google Workspace, Microsoft Entra ID or other OpenID Connect providers. It is licensed under Apache 2.0 and free. The trade-offs are a young, small project, no hosted version and fewer reports than larger tools such as Plausible or Umami.

Best for: Developers who want privacy analytics with nothing extra to run.

What works

Single binary with built-in database
No tracking cookies or raw IP storage
Single sign-on with common identity providers

Why people leave

Young project with a small community
No hosted version
Fewer reports than larger tools

Top Liwan alternatives

See all 5

1
Medama Analytics
Another single-binary self-hosted option with a tiny tracker.
66.5
2
GoatCounter
Self-host or use the free donation-supported hosted service.
62.6
3
Umami
More reports and a cloud option, still open source.
59.6
4
Plausible Analytics
Mature privacy analytics with a free self-hosted edition.
57.2
5
GoAccess
Analyse server logs directly, with no tracking script at all.
55.3

Why people left Liwan

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

No switching stories yet. If you moved away from Liwan, review the app you switched to and tell us why.

Reviews

No approved reviews yet. How we verify reviewers

Write a review of Liwan

Your rating of Liwan

Name

Never shown publicly. A work email helps us verify you.

Title

Your review

What did you use it for, and what was good or bad? At least 40 characters.

Did you switch from another app?

Why did you leave it?

How can we verify you use it? (optional)

A GitHub username, your company domain, or say you can send a screenshot. Verified reviews count more.

I received money, credit or a gift for writing this review. (Incentivized reviews are shown but don't count toward rankings.)

By submitting, you confirm you're at least 16 and agree to our terms. Your name, rating, review and the date are published; your email isn't. See our privacy policy.

Liwan: common questions

Is Liwan free?

Yes. Liwan is free, open-source software that you can host yourself.

Is Liwan open source?

Yes. The source code is on GitHub at explodingcamera/liwan. You can also run it on your own server.

What platforms does Liwan run on?

Liwan is available for Self-hosted and Web.

What are the best alternatives to Liwan?

The highest-ranked Liwan alternatives right now are Medama Analytics, GoatCounter and Umami. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

See all 5 Liwan alternatives

Liwan facts

4 of 4 verified

License: Apache 2.0; Checked Oct 25, 2026liwan.dev(opens source in a new tab); “Fully open source, licensed under the Apache License 2.0.”
Deployment: Single binary or Docker container; Checked Oct 25, 2026liwan.dev(opens source in a new tab); “Easy to self-host Run liwan as a single binary or Docker container .”
Privacy: No tracking cookies; raw IPs not recorded; Checked Oct 25, 2026liwan.dev(opens source in a new tab); “Your analytics data stays on your server , and raw IP addresses aren’t recorded.”
Single sign-on: Google Workspace, Entra ID, OIDC; Checked Oct 25, 2026liwan.dev(opens source in a new tab); “Single sign-on Set up teams and manage accounts with Google Workspace, Microsoft Entra ID, or an OpenID Connect provider such as Keycloak or Dex.”