In short
Faintrail is a session replay tool you can use instead of Hotjar's recordings. It records visits to your website, plays each one back beside a plain-words log of clicks, pages and problems, and keeps the data in the region you choose: the EU, the UK or the US. Typed text is never recorded. Unlike Hotjar, Faintrail has no heatmaps or surveys. It focuses on recordings, a searchable list of visits, and a text file of visits you can give to an AI assistant.
Hotjar is now part of Contentsquare
On 1 July 2025 Hotjar merged into the Contentsquare Group. Hotjar's tools, such as heatmaps, recordings and surveys, are now sold within Contentsquare's plans, and hotjar.com/pricing now redirects to Contentsquare's pricing page. That doesn't make Hotjar worse. It does make this a good moment to check what you pay for, and where your visitors' recordings are kept.
Why teams look for another tool
- You mostly watch recordings. If you rarely open a heatmap or send a survey, you may be paying for more than you use.
- You want to choose where the data lives. With Faintrail you pick the EU, the UK or the US, and your visitors' data is never sold or shared.
- You want to read visits, not only watch them. Every visit comes with a plain-words log, so you can skim a visit in seconds before you decide to watch it.
- You want an AI to do the first pass. Download the visits you care about as one text file and ask any AI assistant where people struggle.
Faintrail and Hotjar side by side
| Faintrail | Hotjar (Contentsquare) | |
|---|---|---|
| Watch recorded visits | Yes | Yes |
| A plain-words log of every visit, to read or download | Yes | AI summaries of replays on paid plans |
| Heatmaps | No | Yes |
| Surveys and feedback | No | Yes |
| Typed text | Never recorded | Hidden by default; an admin can allow chosen fields |
| Where recordings are kept | Hosted by Faintrail, in the EU, the UK or the US: you choose | Hosted by Contentsquare: Ireland on Free and Growth; Europe or the US, as you choose, on Pro and Enterprise |
| Give visits to an AI | Download up to 100 visits as one text file | Built-in AI on paid plans; connect AI tools (MCP), 300 calls a month free |
| Free plan | No prices yet | Yes: replays of 5% of sessions (at most 10,000 a month), kept 1 month |
| Paid plans from | No prices yet | $49 a month, or $39 a month billed yearly (Growth) |
Sources, checked 15 November 2026: Contentsquare pricing (where hotjar.com/pricing now redirects); Hotjar is now part of Contentsquare; Contentsquare sub-processors and hosting; Hotjar: suppressing user input.
For the longer table, with how long recordings are kept and how many visits are recorded, see Hotjar vs Faintrail. Weighing up Contentsquare's larger plans? See Contentsquare vs Faintrail.
When Hotjar is the better choice
Choose Hotjar if heatmaps or on-page surveys are the main thing you use, or you want them in the same tool as your recordings. Faintrail has neither today.
Moving from Hotjar
- Add Faintrail beside Hotjar. Both scripts can run at once, so nothing goes dark while you compare.
- Compare a week of visits. Check that Faintrail shows you what you used Hotjar for.
- Remove Hotjar when you're ready. Your old recordings stay in Hotjar; Faintrail can't import them, so keep anything you need before you close the account.
Questions people ask
Is Hotjar now Contentsquare?
Yes. Hotjar merged into the Contentsquare Group on 1 July 2025, and its heatmaps, recordings and surveys are now sold within Contentsquare's plans. The Hotjar name is still used for the product.
Is Hotjar GDPR compliant?
Hotjar publishes its own privacy information, and whether any recording tool is used lawfully depends on how it's set up: consent, what's hidden and which pages are recorded. We don't judge another company's compliance. What Faintrail offers is less to worry about: typed text is never recorded, private pages are left out, and you choose whether the data is kept in the EU, the UK or the US.
Does Faintrail have heatmaps?
Not yet. Faintrail shows recordings, a plain-words log of each visit and the problems in it. If heatmaps are what you use most, Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity will suit you better for now.
Can I import my Hotjar recordings into Faintrail?
No. Faintrail starts recording from the day you add it. Run both for a while, and keep anything you need from Hotjar before you close it.
Is there a free Hotjar alternative?
Microsoft Clarity is free with no traffic limits, and keeps most recordings in Microsoft's cloud for 30 days. Faintrail has no prices yet. See how they compare.
