I’ve been in enough product discussions to know how the build vs. buy product analytics debate goes. Someone on the team— usually an engineer— suggests, ‘Let’s build our own analytics solution.’ It sounds reasonable. Except it never works out that simply.

I’ve seen teams sink months of engineering time into building internal product analytics tools, only to abandon them later when they realized the maintenance nightmares, missing features, and data pipelines that barely hold together.

On the flip side, I’ve also seen companies rush to buy from embedded analytics vendors to feel boxed in by rigid pricing models or missing customization options.

There’s no universal “right” choice here— just tradeoffs between cost, speed, flexibility, and long-term sustainability. The real challenge isn’t just picking a side. It’s knowing when to build, when to buy, and where to draw the line.

That’s exactly why I wrote this: to help you cut through the confusion, weigh the tradeoffs, and make a decision that won’t cost you months of wasted effort.

Why is there a build vs buy debate?

The build vs. buy conversation comes up repeatedly because both the benefits of each option seem compelling on paper. I will shed some light:

• Building used to be the only option. Years ago, analytics tools weren’t advanced enough, so teams had no choice but to build in-house. That mindset still lingers.
• Full control vs. ongoing responsibility. Building gives complete control over features and data, but it also means handling maintenance, debugging, and scaling internally.
• Cost perception vs. reality. While building seems cheaper upfront, hidden costs like engineering time and maintenance often make it more expensive in the long run.
• Off-the-shelf tools have evolved. Modern analytics platforms now offer custom dashboards, integrations, and automation—without the hassle of building from scratch.
• Speed and scalability. Buying lets you start tracking user behavior immediately, while building takes months (or years) and may still struggle to scale.
• Resource constraints. Not every company has data engineers to maintain an in-house analytics tool, making buying the more practical choice.

At the end of the day, it’s not just about what’s possible— it’s about what’s practical. And for most teams, that’s where the real debate begins.

So, regarding product analytics solutions, what’s the smarter move: build or buy?

Should you build or buy product analytics?

At some point, every company faces this question: do we build our own product analytics tool or buy an existing solution?

The answer? Buy. Whether you’re a startup or an enterprise, investing in an embedded analytics solution saves internal resources focused on product innovation while ensuring your analytics system includes cutting-edge analytics capabilities.

Why? Because successful companies don’t waste time reinventing the wheel. They focus on what moves the needle.

• Focus on what matters: Your team should work on your product, not build and maintain an analytics system. Buying lets you instantly track activation, retention, and feature adoption instead of waiting months for custom dashboards.
• Let the experts handle it: Product analytics tools offer built-in event tracking, session replays, heatmaps, and compliance updates (Automatic GDPR, SOC 2, and HIPAA), ensuring accuracy, scalability, and security without draining engineering resources.

As Vadim Kravcenko highlights in his Build vs. Buy vs. No-Code article, building may eventually pay off, but reaching a break-even point takes time and effort. The cost curve below illustrates this: Buying accelerates time to value while building delays ROI with heavy upfront investment.

If you’re still weighing the decision between external tools and in-house, consider this: significant upfront investment, time, and expertise required to build an embedded analytics platform often make buying the best choice. Here’s why.

Why is buying better than building your own analytics solution?

Before deciding whether to build or buy, you need to ask yourself some important questions:

• How dependent will you be on this tool? Will analytics be a core part of your operations or just something you use occasionally?
• What’s the true cost of building vs. buying? Have you factored in ongoing analytics software maintenance, engineering resources, and long-term scalability?
• Is there a mature market for third-party analytics platforms? If established solutions exist, does it make sense to reinvent the wheel?
• Will building in-house slow you down? Could it become a bottleneck instead of an advantage?
• How much customization do you need? Are off-the-shelf solutions flexible enough to meet your needs without the hassle of building from scratch?

Once you have the answer, it will become clear that buying software is the best ROI for the business. In the following few sections, I’ll break down exactly why:

1. It helps you accelerate time to value

• See ROI fast. A pre-built analytics tool gets you insights in weeks, not months so that you can make data-driven decisions without delay.
• Faster iteration = better product decisions. Instead of spending months developing tracking, you can immediately analyze activation rates, drop-offs, and feature adoption to improve retention.
• Speed up development. Off-the-shelf analytics tools come with pre-built dashboards, event tracking, and integrations, so your team can focus on refining the product, not debugging data pipelines.

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2. You can avoid the significant upfront and ongoing costs of building

Thinking about building in-house? Prepare for a wild budget ride:

• Unexpected costs? Always a surprise: Budget overruns are a common headache with in-house projects. Why risk the financial stress?
• Scaling up shouldn’t mean forking out more: With off-the-shelf solutions, scaling comes without the hefty price tag of expanding infrastructure. Many people in managerial roles seem to approve buying decisions based on their own experience. Look at the ongoing thread on LinkedIn.

3. You benefit from the advanced features and expertise

Investing in an embedded analytics solution gives you access to advanced analytics capabilities without the hassle.

• You can access enterprise-grade features instantly. Tools like autocapture, session replays, and AI-powered analytics provide deep insights without extra engineering effort.
• See exactly how users interact with your product. Features like session replays (as shown in Alice’s recording) allow you to pinpoint friction points and optimize the user journey—something that would take months to build in-house.

• Stay ahead with continuous improvements. Bought analytics solutions evolve with new features, security updates, and compliance improvements, so you don’t fall behind.

4. You can still build for customization

If you think analytics provider means you’re stuck with a one-size-fits-all solution, then let me bust that myth right now.

• Built-in customization features. It extends analytics beyond default features, adapting the tool to your needs without building from scratch. For example, you can import CRM data from other tools or request custom segmentation filters as an enterprise customer with Userpilot. Instead of developing in-house, you get tailored flexibility within an existing platform.
• Seamless integrations unify your data. Pre-built integrations let you connect analytics tools with your existing tech stack, ensuring data flows smoothly between CRM, marketing automation, and customer support systems.

For example, Userpilot integrates with HubSpot, Salesforce, and other tools. This helps combine product and business data into a unified view, making tracking user behavior easier and driving smarter decisions.

What are the options for buying a product analytics tool?

Now that we’ve established why buying is the smarter choice, the next step is choosing the right type of product analytics tool or embedded analytics platform to fit your existing systems and data security needs.

Here are the two key decisions to consider:

Self-hosted vs cloud-based

While self-hosted solutions give you more control, cloud-based analytics tools are the better choice for most businesses.

• Cloud-based tools offer better data security and scalability. You don’t have to worry about maintaining infrastructure or updating security. Everything is handled for you.
• Self-hosted tools require ongoing maintenance. PostHog, for example, offers both self-hosted and cloud-based plans. The self-hosted version is free and open-source, but maintaining it requires no more effort than building your analytics solution.

The smarter choice? Cloud-based analytics tools like Userpilot offer enterprise-grade security and require no ongoing maintenance.

Low code vs no code

When it comes to accessibility, no-code analytics tools are the best option for product teams. They allow both technical and non-technical members to access insights effortlessly.

• Low-code tools require setup and technical knowledge. For example, Amplitude is a powerful analytics tool that requires teams to learn event instrumentation before setting up tracking.
• No-code tools make tracking effortless. Tools like Userpilot simplify the process with auto-capture and a visual labeler (as shown in the image below), allowing teams to name and track events without developer input.

No-code is the way to go if you want faster adoption and easier access across your team.

Interested in buying product analytics software?

When it comes to build vs. buy product analytics, it’s clear that buying a product analytics tool is the smarter, faster, and more cost-effective choice. Instead of spending months building an in-house solution, you can get instant insights, automated event tracking, and built-in security without the engineering burden.

Here’s what you get with the right tool:

• Instant user insights. Track feature adoption, activation rates, and drop-offs without complex setup.
• Seamless integrations. Sync with HubSpot, Salesforce, and other tools for a unified view of user behavior.
• No-code event tracking. Use auto-capture and visual labeling to track key actions—zero dev work needed.

Want to see how Userpilot makes product analytics effortless? Book a demo with Userpilot today!

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