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Web Analyticsdocker-readyOpen-Core🔴 Full · ~2GB💾 Recommended storage: 15GB

PostHog: Open-Core alternative to Mixpanel in 2026

PostHog combines product analytics, session replay, feature flags, A/B testing and surveys in one self-hostable platform built for product teams.

Core is open source, but advanced features or enterprise support may be behind a paid tier — check the license.

Alternative to MixpanelAlternative to Amplitude
License MIT40.3k starsWebsite GitHub Repository

Audit Snapshot

View notes →

  • License — Not verifiable on GitHub

  • GitHub — Active

  • Latest release — desktop-v0.61.686 · today

  • Docker Compose — Not verified

  • Production — Not production-tested by AltFreeStack

PostHog vs. Mixpanel

Pros

  • Replaces several SaaS tools at once

Things to consider

  • Large-scale self-hosted deployment needs more pieces (ClickHouse, Kafka)

Quick Docker installation guide

Copy this docker-compose.yml, adjust the example passwords and run docker compose up -d on your server. See the full step-by-step guide →

💡 Official SaaS or self-hosted with AltFreeStack?

  • On the official cloud: a recurring monthly fee and usage limits on Mixpanel.
  • On your own VPS: the core is free to self-host on your own server — no more monthly SaaS fee, though some advanced features stay behind a paid plan.
docker-compose.yml
version: "3.9"
services:
  posthog:
    image: posthog/posthog:sha-3175e8adc29b5cbec176021ecf4a3de1f037daa8
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "8000:8000"
    environment:
      - DATABASE_URL=postgres://posthog:change-me-postgres-password@posthog-db:5432/posthog # password must match the canonical db password below
      - SECRET_KEY=change-me-super-secret
      - REDIS_URL=redis://posthog-redis:6379
    depends_on:
      - posthog-db
      - posthog-redis
  posthog-db:
    image: postgres:15-alpine
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_USER=posthog
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=change-me-postgres-password # REQUIRED: generate a random secret before first run
      - POSTGRES_DB=posthog
    volumes:
      - posthog_pg_data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
  posthog-redis:
    image: redis:7-alpine
    restart: unless-stopped
volumes:
  posthog_pg_data:

🚀 Deploy in 1 command

Recommended for beginners

Copy this single command and paste it into your freshly created VPS's console (Vultr, DigitalOcean...). It downloads the script, prints it to your screen so you can see exactly what it's about to do (never a blind direct pipe), and only then installs Docker if needed, writes the files with secrets already generated, and starts everything — no nano, no pasting code blocks.

curl -sSL ".../api/deploy?stack=posthog" -o deploy.sh && cat deploy.sh && bash deploy.sh
See what this script does →

This docker-compose corresponds to an actively maintained project — last commit today.

This docker-compose not working for you? Report it on GitHub →

Technical profile

License
MIT
Category
Web Analytics
Replaces
Mixpanel, Amplitude
Tech stack
DjangoReactClickHousePostgreSQL

Under the hood

Database

PostgreSQL + ClickHouse

Language

Python (Django)

Platforms

Web

Key features

  • Session replay and heatmaps
  • Feature flags and A/B experiments
  • Funnels, retention and cohorts

Preview

PostHog interface preview

Public image provided by PostHog on its own website.

💾 Backups in 3 steps (Day 2)

As long as the ./data folder (the "volume" mapped into the container) exists on your server, your data survives any restart or container update — that's the only thing you need to back up.

1. Create a compressed backup on the server

tar -czvf backup-$(date +%F).tar.gz ./data

2. Download it to your computer

From your computer's terminal (not your server's):

scp root@YOUR_IP:~/app/backup-*.tar.gz ./

3. Restore in case of emergency

tar -xzvf backup-file.tar.gz
🌐 Connect your domain with free SSL

Step 1 — Set up the DNS

In your domain registrar's dashboard (Cloudflare, Namecheap, GoDaddy...), create a record:

Type
A
Name/Host
@ (root domain) or a subdomain, e.g. app
Content/Value
Your server's public IP

Wait 5 to 15 minutes for the record to propagate across the internet.

Step 2 — Automatic reverse proxy with Caddy

One single file, no Nginx config or manual certificates — Caddy issues and renews Let's Encrypt HTTPS on its own.

Create a file called Caddyfile:

yourdomain.com {
    reverse_proxy localhost:8000
}

Start Caddy with this command (pulls the image and runs it in the background):

docker run -d -p 80:80 -p 443:443 --name caddy --restart always -v $PWD/Caddyfile:/etc/caddy/Caddyfile -v caddy_data:/data caddy