The Ultimate Guide to A/B Testing Platforms After Google Optimize Sunset

Exploring the best Google Optimize alternatives

We’ve highlighted five Google Optimize alternatives and will discuss their implementation, privacy, integration, and cost. This article will guide you through these considerations to help you with the selection process for your company’s next A/B testing platform.

1. VWO

VWO is a cloud-based A/B testing platform that offers A/B, multi-variate, split-URL, multi-device, and multi-page testing capabilities with a point-and-click visual editor and a suite of conversion optimization tools. It also has behavior analytics tools like heatmap, session recording, funnel analysis, and on-page surveys.

• Privacy – VWO prioritizes security and privacy by collecting only necessary data with visitors’ consent for product enhancement, marketing, and analytics. Personal information collected is anonymized, with the last octet of IP addresses being automatically anonymized before storage on the server. Furthermore, customer privacy is ensured through one-way hashing to encrypt UUIDs before storage, which pseudonymizes the data and makes it impossible for unauthorized individuals to access sensitive information. All data is securely stored in compliance with GDPR regulations, with data centers located in the US and Europe. Additionally, VWO is compliant with other privacy regulations such as ISO 27701:2019, CCPA, and HIPAA.
• Variant creation – VWO’s visual editor is intuitive and easy to use, allowing you to make changes to your website without requiring any coding. You can also insert custom code if needed.
• Google Analytics integration – VWO has a built-in/native integration with Universal Google Analytics and GA4, allowing you to track your experiments and see its impact on your analytics metrics.
• Other integrations – VWO offers integrations with popular e-commerce platforms like Shopify, Magento, and WooCommerce, as well as tag management systems like Google Tag Manager and Tealium. VWO also integrates with behavior analytics tools like FullStory and Contentsquare.
• Pricing – VWO offers four package options: Starter, Growth, Pro, and Enterprise. Pricing ranges from free for Starter, which can be used to test basic experiments with up to 50,000 unique visitors per month, to $1,438/month for Enterprise. Learn more about VWO pricing on the VWO website.

With its Google Analytics integration, VWO is a great option for companies that are looking for a platform that is easy to use and integrates seamlessly with their existing analytics setup.

2. Optimizely

Optimizely is an enterprise digital experience platform that provides A/B testing, targeting, and personalization capabilities through its Web Experimentation product. The platform supports app testing through open-source SDKs for Swift, Objective-C, and Java that are compatible with Android and iPhone. With its full stack and add-on options, Optimizely offers server-side testing and an AI recommendations generator, although it lacks heat mapping and user recording functionalities.

• Privacy and configurations – Optimizely’s privacy policies are stringent, with adherence to various data protection regulations, including the GDPR and CCPA, to ensure that customers’ data is collected and stored securely. To further protect customer data, Optimizely only collects necessary information to conduct experiments and uses the latest industry standards for secure data storage. Optimizely provides customers with complete control over their data through customizable privacy settings, allowing them to select the level of data collection and determine how their information is shared with third parties. Additionally, Optimizely has a data subject request form to facilitate customers’ rights under data protection laws.
• Variant creation – The Optimizely visual editor provides users with the ability to edit the layout and appearance of their site, including elements like visibility, position, text, images, background styles, and borders. In addition to the WYSIWYG editor, users can insert HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and use jQuery selectors.
• Google Analytics integration – Optimizely offers a built-in integration with Universal Analytics, allowing for Google Analytics to record an event whenever an Optimizely experiment is active for the user, along with custom dimensions for the experiment ID and variant. This integration enables custom segments and reports to be created to track the impact of experiments on all Google Analytics metrics. Optimizely is currently working on building a GA4 integration directly within the platform, but it is not yet documented when this will be available. In the meantime, Optimizely provides a custom HTML script that can be implemented on-site or through a tag management system to send events and parameters to GA4 for analysis.
• Other integrations – Optimizely offers a range of integrations with popular platforms, such as Shopify, Magento, and WordPress, as well as digital experience platforms like Contentsquare and Fullstory. It also integrates directly with multiple CRM and ERP systems, including Salesforce.
• Pricing – Optimizely’s pricing varies according to the features offered. Visit its website for more information about Optimizely pricing plans.

3. Adobe Target

Adobe Target is an AI-powered, rule-based testing and targeting tool that offers A/B, multi-armed bandit, and multivariate testing. The platform provides both app and server-side testing capabilities and boasts advanced targeting activities with AI-driven Auto-Allocate, Auto-Target, and Automated Personalization features. Its Recommendations engine serves personalized content like articles, products, offers, or videos based on users’ previous activity, preferences, or other criteria.

• Privacy – Adobe Target places a strong emphasis on data privacy and security. To comply with data privacy laws, Adobe Target offers several settings to safeguard customer information, such as IP address obfuscation and geosegmentation. Adobe Target also follows Google’s security best practices by enabling SameSite cookies by default, which restrict the use of cookies across different domains and enhance security.
• Variant creation – Adobe Target offers custom code editing and its own visual editor: Visual Experience Composer (VEC). The platform also has a form-based experience composer and specialized visual composers for single-page apps and mobile apps.
• Integrations – Overall, Adobe Target is a powerful testing and targeting platform, offering advanced AI-driven features and robust integrations with other Adobe platforms. However, if you are already using Google Analytics, integration may require custom development work.
• Pricing – Because of businesses’ varying needs, Adobe Target offers flexible pricing. Considerations include omnichannel delivery, volume, and other product options. Contact Adobe for personalized Adobe Target pricing.

4. AB Tasty

AB Tasty is an alternative to Google Optimize that is designed to help website owners and marketers improve the customer experience on their websites. It offers a range of A/B testing, personalization, and optimization tools that are easy to use and provide actionable insights into customer behavior.

• Privacy – Customers have complete control over their data through customizable privacy settings that allow them to determine the level of data collection and control data sharing with third parties. Additionally, the platform provides data deletion and subject access request features to enable customers to exercise their rights under data protection laws. AB Tasty employs pseudonymization and anonymization techniques to protect customer privacy. The platform uses hashing to encrypt data, making it impossible for unauthorized individuals to access sensitive information.
• Integrations – AB Tasty seamlessly integrates with several popular marketing and analytics tools, including Google Analytics, AdWords, and Salesforce. This allows businesses to leverage their existing data to drive their optimization and personalization efforts.
• Implementation – AB Tasty is easy to implement, with a simple and straightforward setup process that requires no coding skills. The platform is also highly customizable, so you can adapt it to the specific needs of your website and business.
• Pricing – AB Tasty offers a range of pricing plans to suit different budgets and business needs. Prices start at $299 per month and increase based on the size of your website and the level of support you require.

5. SiteSpect

SiteSpect is a comprehensive optimization platform that offers A/B testing, personalization, and conversion rate optimization tools. It is designed for enterprise-level websites and businesses, providing advanced features and functionality to help improve the customer experience.

• Privacy settings – SiteSpect is fully compliant with GDPR and CCPA regulations, and has strict data protection policies in place to ensure that user data is secure. The platform also offers advanced security features, such as two-factor authentication, secure data storage and one-way hashing to encrypt data, making it impossible for unauthorized individuals to access sensitive information.
• Integrations – SiteSpect integrates with a range of popular marketing and analytics tools, including Google Analytics, AdWords, and Salesforce. This allows you to use data from these tools to inform your optimization efforts and personalization strategies.
• Implementation – SiteSpect is designed for enterprise-level websites and businesses and requires a certain level of technical expertise to implement. However, the platform provides detailed documentation and support to help you through the setup process. SiteSpect utilizes reverse-proxy A/B testing, which negates the negative site performance impact that is often present in browser-based and server-side execution.
• Pricing – SiteSpect is a premium optimization platform, and its prices reflect this. Prices are based on the size of your website, the level of support you require, and start at $20,000 per year.

Summary

With the sunset of Google Optimize on the horizon, now is the time to start considering alternative A/B testing platforms. Whether you prioritize privacy, ease of use, or integrations with other tools, one of these five platforms will likely meet your needs.

Here is a quick recap of each:

1. VWO is a versatile platform that offers a free starter plan. It integrates seamlessly with Google Analytics.
2. Optimizely is a full-stack platform with a robust selection of integrations and server-side testing capabilities.
3. Adobe Target is a powerful AI-driven platform. However, its integration with Google Analytics may require custom development work.
4. AB Tasty offers a user-friendly platform that emphasizes ease of use and flexible integrations.
5. SiteSpect provides robust enterprise-level technology, which is reflected in its typically higher price point.

Choose the platform that best fits your organization’s specific needs and ensures a smooth transition from Google Optimize. It’s important to note that each of these tools has its own unique strengths and weaknesses: The best choice will depend on specific use cases and individual requirements. With these alternatives, you can continue to optimize your site and deliver better digital experiences to your users.

P.S. Please note that VWO is Agital’s preferred A/B testing partner.