Optimizely is the 800-pound gorilla of A/B testing. It's powerful, feature-rich, and used by some of the world's largest companies. But is it right for your team? Let's break it down.
Quick Verdict
Choose ExperimentHQ if you want to run A/B tests quickly without enterprise complexity. Choose Optimizely if you need feature flags, server-side testing, and have a large engineering team plus enterprise budget.
The Enterprise Trap
Optimizely was built for enterprise. That means enterprise pricing (often $50K-$200K/year), enterprise sales cycles (weeks of calls), and enterprise complexity (features you'll never use). For most teams, it's like using a sledgehammer to hang a picture frame.
Pricing Reality
ExperimentHQFree: 1,000 visitors/mo
Pro: $49/mo (50K visitors)
✓ Sign up and start testing in 2 minutes
Web: $50,000+/year
Full Stack: $100,000+/year
⚠ Requires sales calls, no public pricing
Feature Comparison
| Feature | ExperimentHQ | Optimizely |
|---|---|---|
| Visual Editor | ||
| Free Plan | ||
| Self-Serve Signup | ||
| Transparent Pricing | ||
| Setup Time | 2 minutes | 2-4 weeks |
| Script Size | <5KB | ~80KB |
| Statistical Engine | Frequentist | Stats Accelerator |
| Feature Flags | ||
| Server-Side Testing | ||
| Personalization |
Setup & Implementation
Optimizely implementations often take 2-4 weeks with engineering involvement. ExperimentHQ takes 2 minutes — copy one script tag, and you're ready to create experiments.
ExperimentHQ
2 minutes
Copy script, start testing
Optimizely
2-4 weeks
Sales, onboarding, engineering
When Optimizely Makes Sense
To be fair, Optimizely has features ExperimentHQ doesn't (yet). If you need these, Optimizely might be worth the investment:
- Feature flags — roll out features to % of users
- Server-side testing — test backend changes
- Personalization — show different content to different segments
- Multi-armed bandits — automatic traffic allocation
Choose ExperimentHQ if:
- You want to start testing today
- You're running client-side A/B tests
- You don't have $50K+ budget
- You value simplicity over features
Choose Optimizely if:
- You need feature flags
- You need server-side testing
- You have enterprise budget
- You have dedicated CRO team
The Bottom Line
Optimizely is a fantastic tool — if you need everything it offers and can afford it. But for the majority of teams who just want to run A/B tests and improve their conversion rates, it's massive overkill.
ExperimentHQ gives you 80% of the value at 1% of the cost. Try it free and see if it's right for you.