After yesterday’s post, I decided to take a look at the way my page view and statistics counter faired compared with other products.

The results varied by product and need.

Freestats… It is the first counter I encountered and started using just to get statistics on page views. It is Ok for beginners, they give daily and weekly stats. Unique and combined. They also give Raw data for one day, to see where your views originated. You need to sign up for different accounts for any additional pages. This makes viewing stats for individual accounts cumbersome. If you need more information, upgrades available for a fee.

StatCounter… This is the counter I just started using. It gives you more statistics for each inquiry. You can view time, date, url, viewer stats eg. city, country, IP address, browser. There are stats for unique, new and repeat viewers. You can have multiple pages on one account, this makes viewing and comparing stats for individual sites and pages very easy. The current statistics only cover the most recent 100 page views, not visitors. Although I have just started with this service, I am quite satisfied so far. Upgrades are available for a fee.

SiteMeter… Although I have not tried this one personally, I have heard good things about the service. They offer all the regular stats, but do not limit you to 100 page views, rather they report on the last 100 unique visitors. They also report page ranking. This is good for someone who has multiple pages on one site. It shows which page someone entered the site, this could help in determining Ad placement for better CTR’s. Upgrades are available for a fee.

Google Analytics… This is a premier counter and analytics service. It will integrate with your AdWords account, if you have one. Unfortunately, it is by invitation only at this time. You can sign up now, and when they open for business again, you may be picked from the list.

All of these services are FREE to start. Links are provided for you to investigate and determine which service is best for you.