TL;DR
Best Optimizely alternatives for startups: ExperimentHQ ($29/mo) for visual A/B testing, PostHog for product analytics + experiments, Statsig for feature flags. Optimizely costs $50,000-$200,000+/year—no startup needs to spend that on A/B testing.
Why Startups Avoid Optimizely
$50,000-$200,000+/year
Enterprise pricing for enterprise companies
Complex implementation
Requires dedicated engineering time
Overkill features
Most startups use 10% of capabilities
Long sales cycles
Weeks of demos and negotiations
Alternative Comparison
| Tool | Price | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| ExperimentHQ | $29/mo | Best Value |
| PostHog | Free - $450/mo | Best All-in-One |
| Statsig | Free - Custom | Best for Product |
| GrowthBook | Free (self-hosted) | Best Open Source |
Our Recommendation
For startups: Start with ExperimentHQ at $29/month. You can always upgrade to enterprise tools later if you actually need them.