As many businesses enter the 2025 budget season, it's a great time to rethink your approach to data ownership, organization, management, and visualization.
Historically, implementing a robust, enterprise-level analytics solution would cost a medium-sized business around $300,000 annually. However, today's technology allows you to build a modern analytics stack with a selection of free and low-cost tools for just over $30,000 a year. Let's explore how.
Recommended 2025 Analytics Stack for a Mid-Sized Business
We've curated a set of efficient and cost-effective analytics tools from Google and other platforms to provide you with comprehensive website measurement, digital marketing insights, tag management, and data warehousing. Here's a detailed breakdown:
Website Measurement
- Tool: Google Analytics 4 (GA4)
- Estimated Monthly Cost: $0
Google Analytics offers businesses of all sizes a range of free tools at no cost, enabling marketing teams to gain insights into website performance and user behavior without additional costs.
Tag Management
- Tool: Google Tag Manager (GTM) - Web Container Only
- Estimated Monthly Cost: $0
Google Tag Manager simplifies the process of managing tags on your website, allowing you to deploy and manage analytics and marketing tags easily, all at no cost.
Data Warehousing
- Tool: Google BigQuery
- Estimated Monthly Cost: $100
Google BigQuery is a powerful data warehousing solution that allows you to store and analyze large datasets quickly. Its cost-effectiveness makes it a great option for mid-sized organizations.
Extract, Transform, Load (ETL)
- Tool: Launchpad ETL
- Estimated Monthly Cost: $900
Launchpad ETL automates the data extraction, transformation, and loading processes, ensuring your data is clean, accurate, and ready for analysis. Two-week free trial available.
Data Visualization
- Tool: Google Looker Studio (Free Version)
- Estimated Monthly Cost: $0
Google Looker Studio provides a user-friendly interface for creating interactive dashboards and reports without any cost.
- Tool: Launchpad Visualization
- Estimated Monthly Cost: $300
For advanced reporting needs, Launchpad Visualization offers robust features like portal functionality with dynamic user permissions, data blending, and 12+ different chart formats that make it easy to create detailed and insightful dashboards.
Analytics Stack Support
- Tool: Analytics Experts ("A Good Mechanic", as we like to call it)
- Estimated Monthly Cost: $1,500
Comprehensive support for your analytics stack is essential to ensure smooth operation, effective communication of best practices, and fast resolution of any issues. This cost should include both ongoing maintenance and technical assistance.
The Grand Total?
- Total Estimated Monthly Cost: $2,800
- Total Estimated Annual Cost: $33,600 (with optional Launchpad Visualization)
After reviewing the budget categories, aiming for a monthly analytics budget of $2,800 would be a reasonable target for a mid-sized organization. This amount would ideally support tools for website measurement, tag management, data warehousing, ETL processes, data visualization, and expert support.
Medium-sized businesses can achieve a robust and scalable analytics infrastructure at a fraction of the historical costs by leveraging these free and affordable solutions.
Investing in a modern analytics stack not only reduces expenses but also enhances data-driven decision-making capabilities, empowering businesses to stay competitive and drive growth in today's data-centric world.
Need Help?
Calibrate Analytics is committed to making it easy for companies to improve their data analytics capabilities. We provide a comprehensive solution that incorporates everything outlined in this article — from website measurement and tag management to data warehousing, ETL processes, and data visualization.
By partnering with Calibrate Analytics, businesses can seamlessly implement and maintain a modern analytics stack without the hassle of managing multiple vendors or tools. Our expert support ensures that your analytics infrastructure is optimized and running smoothly, allowing you to focus on leveraging insights to drive growth and efficiency.
