WordPress is the platform where Matomo runs most easily, and the one where it is easiest to get something wrong. Matomo offers two free plugins that sound alike but work very differently. For shops with WooCommerce, there is also the question of how orders reliably reach Matomo.
Two plugins from Matomo
| Matomo for WordPress | Connect Matomo | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | a complete Matomo inside WordPress, in the same database | a connection to your own Matomo or Matomo Cloud |
| WooCommerce | orders and cart out of the box | no e-commerce tracking |
| Tag Manager | built in, not in a multisite network | via your own Matomo’s container |
| Limits | no Matomo API, users and sites in WordPress, load on the WordPress server | none |
| Suits | small websites without their own Matomo | your own Matomo, more traffic, many sites |
Matomo for WordPress is convenient because no second installation is needed. In return, the WordPress server processes every request as well, and from about 50,000 page views a month, by its own account a rough estimate, Matomo advises your own Matomo with Connect Matomo. There are also limits: instead of the Matomo API there is the WordPress REST API, sign-in plugins for Matomo such as SAML do not run, and Matomo 6 requires PHP 8.1 and MySQL 8.0 or MariaDB 10.6 here too. What your own Matomo means in operations is covered in Matomo hosting.
Using both plugins at the same time is not a good idea: according to Matomo, they interfere with each other’s tracking.
WooCommerce: measuring orders reliably
With Matomo for WordPress, orders arrive without any add-on. According to the plugin’s source code, it reports an order on the thank-you page, flags it so it is not counted twice, and leaves out back-office orders as well as cancelled, failed and refunded ones.
With your own Matomo, Matomo offers the premium plugin WooCommerce Analytics. It reports orders and cart changes from the shop’s server, so ad blockers do not swallow them, and handles variations, subscriptions and multilingual shops. It only counts product views if the tracking code also runs in the browser; for that, Matomo recommends Connect Matomo. Matomo’s own e-commerce guide advises using this plugin for WooCommerce orders with your own Matomo.
If you do not want a premium plugin, there are free third-party plugins, such as Matomo Site Kit by Openmost with tracking code, Tag Manager or server-side tracking and WooCommerce data.
The Complianz trap
Complianz is one of the most widely used consent plugins, and Matomo has its own guide for it. It recommends setting the tracking mode in the Matomo plugin to “Disabled” and letting Complianz include Matomo.
For shops, this has a consequence the guide leaves out: in the source code of Matomo for WordPress, all WooCommerce functions depend on the tracking mode not being disabled. If you follow the guide, you measure page views via Complianz, but no more orders. So after every change to consent, check whether orders still arrive in Matomo. In addition: according to the same guide, e-commerce does not fall under the French regulator CNIL’s exemption for measuring without consent, so shops need the consent variant.
How Matomo measures with and without consent is covered in Matomo and privacy.
How Matomo fits WordPress
- The right pluginSmall inside WordPress, otherwise your own Matomo with Connect Matomo.
- Orders from the serverWooCommerce Analytics for shops with your own Matomo.
- One plugin at a timeNever Matomo for WordPress and Connect Matomo together.
Typical pitfalls
- Matomo inside WordPress with high trafficThe WordPress server carries every request.
- Connect Matomo in a shopPage views yes, orders no.
- Complianz by the guideThe "Disabled" tracking mode switches off WooCommerce tracking.
Sources
As of 12 November 2026
- Matomo: Which plugin should I use with WordPress?
- WordPress.org: Matomo for WordPress
- WordPress.org: Connect Matomo
- Matomo: Matomo for WordPress with high traffic
- Matomo: Differences between Matomo On-Premise and Matomo for WordPress
- Matomo Marketplace: WooCommerce Analytics
- Matomo: Setting up e-commerce tracking
- Matomo: Complianz with Matomo
- GitHub: Matomo for WordPress, WooCommerce tracking in the source code
- WordPress.org: Matomo Site Kit