This information is correct as of March 2023. Growth Method has made every attempt to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information provided.

Since the shutdown of Google Optimise, many of our clients have been searching for a low-cost Google Optimise alternative, particularly after the sunset announcement was revised making it clear that A/B testing functionality would not be added to GA4. Rather than building native functionality in Google Analytics, Google's focus is now on integrating third-party A/B testing solutions.

We work with mid-size and enterprise B2B clients, companies that don't have to deal with e-commerce-like transaction volumes but nevertheless need a reliable A/B testing tool to run experiments and accelerate growth.

The two most popular Google Optimise alternatives that have emerged since the Optimize sunset announcement are Visual Website Optimizer (VWO) and Convert. In this article, we look at VWO.

VWO Introduction

The VWO platform is split into five products as below. The main AB testing product is called VWO Testing. Whilst traditionally more of a high-end solution, they recently launched a free plan for Google Optimise users called the VWO Testing Starter plan.

• VWO Testing: A/B, multi-variate, split, multi-device, and multi-page tests

• VWO Full Stack: Mobile app and server-side testing

• VWO Insights: CRO tools for session recording, surveys, and form analysis

• VWO Personalise: Advanced personalisation campaigns

• VWO Deploy: Deploy winning tests without development

• VWO Services: AB testing strategy, design, and development agency

• VWO Plan: Manage and prioritise your testing roadmap

Typically, VWO pricing for web-based testing ranges from $99 per month to $467 per month, but the new VWO Testing Starter plan is free for users for up to 50k tested visitors a month and available for $199 a month for users for up to 100K monthly tested visitors.

The number of different products and pricing options in the VWO platform can be confusing. For example, whilst VWO has the capability for form analysis and testing, analysis requires the VWO Insights product, whilst testing requires the VWO Testing product.

AB testing functionality review

The core features in VWO, Convert, and others are very similar, and for any team that is newer to growth marketing, agile marketing, or experimentation, either will be more than sufficient to get started.

Here are some questions to consider:

1. How many tested visitors do you need? Over 100k with VWO shoots up in price massively. At 50k and below, both are very similar.

2. What test types does the product offer? AB tests, Split tests (split-url tests), multi-variant tests (MVT), multi-page tests.

3. How many tests can you run? Are there limits?

4. How do you edit tests? Most products come with both a visual editor and a code editor.

5. How do you get support? Typically a mix of live chat, email, and phone support, depending on your plan level.

6. Is there zero flicker? Unlike Google Optimise, all commercial offerings should provide zero-flicker as standard.

7. What statistical model is used?

VWO AB testing functionality

We have reviewed VWO functionality in-depth below and provided a comparison with Convert (the most common competitor) for ease of reference. Despite the similarities, there are also a number of differences between the two products, outlined below.

• Launched: VWO (2010), Convert (2008)

• Based in: VWO (New Delhi, India), Convert (California, US)

• Statistics model: VWO (Bayesian-powered + A/B test duration estimator tool), Convert (Frequentist and Bayesian)

• Concurrent tests: VWO (Unlimited Campaigns), Convert (Unlimited Tests)

• Test types: VWO (AB and Split URL testing, Multivariant only in higher plans), Convert (AB, Split URL, and Multi-page testing, Multivariant only in higher plans)

• Targeting options: VWO (URL & Device only, advanced options in higher plans), Convert (Language, cookie, traffic source, time of day, geo/demo, custom, and advanced options)

• Goals: VWO (Up to 5), Convert (Up to 5 active goals)

• Segmentation: VWO (No segmenting functionality in the starter plan), Convert (Post-test segmentation for reporting + personalise segments for experiences)

• Real-time reporting: Both (Yes)

• Pricing: VWO (Free for up to 50k users), Convert ($99/mo for 50k tested users per month)

• Editor: Both (Visual editor and code editor)

• Integrations: VWO (Google Analytics, and Google Ads), Convert (Over 90 including Google Tag Manager, HubSpot, Google Data Studio, HotJar, Clarity, Salesforce, WordPress, Zuko, and more)

• Support: VWO (Email support), Convert (Email and forum)

• GDPR compliance: VWO (GDPR, HIPPA, CCPA, ISO 27001:2013, ISO 27001:2019, PCI DSS Compliant), Convert (No 3rd party cookies, 1st party only. PCI-DSS, SOC 2. EU servers.)

Final thoughts

When considering VWO as an AB testing solution or as a replacement for Google Optimise, there are two main questions to ask:

1. Are you likely to go above 100,000 tested visitors per month? If so, the VWO plans suddenly become extremely expensive.

2. Do you require targeting beyond basic URLs or device type (desktop or mobile) as the VWO Starter Plan provides no other targeting or segmentation options?

VWO does offer form analytics solutions, but they come at an extra cost as they require the (separate) VWO Insights plan.

As always, we recommend any AB testing is informed by good conversion research. Growth marketers should aim to understand users' needs, issues, doubts, and fears and use these to generate high-quality growth ideas that have a higher likelihood of success.

As always, remember that with typical B2B traffic volumes, you will likely need to make big, bold changes in order to get statistical significance on tests.

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