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Google Content Experiments (discontinued) vs. Optimizely Web Experimentation

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)

    Score7.3 out of 10
    N/AGoogle Content Experiments was a tool that can be used to create A/B test from within Google Analytics. It has been discontinued since 2019, and Google now recommends using its Google Optimize service for A/B testing.N/A

    Optimizely Web Experimentation

    Score8.7 out of 10
    N/AWhether launching a first test or scaling a sophisticated experimentation program, Optimizely Web Experimentation aims to deliver the insights needed to craft high-performing digital experiences that drive engagement, increase conversions, and accelerate growth.N/A
    Pricing
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeOptional
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Considered Both Products
    Discontinued Products
    Chose Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    Google Content Experiments is a free tool and the leading tool in the industry. It's pretty simple to set up a test and use content experiments to monitor objectives once Google Analytics is installed. Less experienced team members can run tests with some training. There are …
    Incentivized
    Chose Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    Google CE is free, Optimizely isn't plus only until recently I found out that Optimizely can work with multiple goals, however, this was found by meeting their employees at a trade show and not via their website.
    Incentivized
    Chose Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    Google Content Experiments provides significantly more insight, historical data and analysis than Unbounce. However, if you do need a solution that offers a WYSIWYG editor, landing page hosting, and limited reporting and testing, Unbounce is a good all-in-one solution and that …
    Chose Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    GCE isn't better or worse than any of these, it's just different. When I have the time to build a new page, setup the testing scripts, and go - then I'll use GCE. If I'm doing multivariate I use VWO. If I'm testing a quick button or headline change, I use Optimizely or UnBounce.
    Chose Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    Google CE does a great job streamlining tools and features. Optimizely does not offer nearly the same amount of tools or resources that G CE does. I would use CE in the future but stay away from Optimizely. Google also has a lot more resources for accruing knowledge on it …
    Optimizely
    Chose Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Our choice of Optimizely was based on ease of use, reputation, and price. All 3 solutions seemed to have high reviews from users. We found VWO to be the most expensive, with Google CE being free and Optimizely in the middle. However we ruled out Google because it seemed to have …
    Incentivized
    Chose Optimizely Web Experimentation
    These competitors are great examples of what is below and above Optimizley, in terms of price and capability. Adobe Test & Target is going to have a lot more features and capabilities, and, as you probably have guessed, it is much, much less affordable. Google Content …
    Incentivized
    Chose Optimizely Web Experimentation
    We previously used Google's content experiments to do our A/B testing, but we found their testing methodology to be inflexible (they would often stop experments when they felt that a certain level of confidence was met and did not allow us to build in our own level of …
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    95%
    Would buy again
    89 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    96%
    Delivers good value for the price
    69 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    95%
    Happy with the feature set
    89 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    91%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    52 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    87%
    Implementation went as expected
    58 Answers
    Features
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Testing and Experimentation
    Comparison of Testing and Experimentation features of Google Content Experiments (discontinued) and Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Feature
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    9.2
    1 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Optimizely Web Experimentation
    8.0
    163 Ratings
    5% below category average
    a/b experiment testing9.01 Ratings9.0163 Ratings
    Split URL testing10.01 Ratings8.5135 Ratings
    Multivariate testing10.01 Ratings8.4139 Ratings
    Multi-page/funnel testing9.01 Ratings7.9126 Ratings
    Cross-browser testing8.01 Ratings8.197 Ratings
    Mobile app testing8.01 Ratings8.075 Ratings
    Test significance9.01 Ratings8.4147 Ratings
    Visual / WYSIWYG editor10.01 Ratings8.1133 Ratings
    Advanced code editor9.01 Ratings7.9125 Ratings
    Page surveys8.01 Ratings6.217 Ratings
    Visitor recordings8.01 Ratings8.418 Ratings
    Preview mode8.01 Ratings7.6145 Ratings
    Test duration calculator10.01 Ratings7.9112 Ratings
    Experiment scheduler10.01 Ratings8.2112 Ratings
    Experiment workflow and approval8.01 Ratings7.890 Ratings
    Dynamic experiment activation10.01 Ratings7.574 Ratings
    Client-side tests10.01 Ratings7.896 Ratings
    Server-side tests10.01 Ratings7.250 Ratings
    Mutually exclusive tests10.01 Ratings8.280 Ratings
    Audience Segmentation & Targeting
    Comparison of Audience Segmentation & Targeting features of Google Content Experiments (discontinued) and Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Feature
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    10.0
    1 Ratings
    13% above category average
    Optimizely Web Experimentation
    8.2
    152 Ratings
    7% below category average
    Standard visitor segmentation10.01 Ratings8.4147 Ratings
    Behavioral visitor segmentation10.01 Ratings7.6122 Ratings
    Traffic allocation control10.01 Ratings9.1144 Ratings
    Website personalization10.01 Ratings7.8111 Ratings
    Results and Analysis
    Comparison of Results and Analysis features of Google Content Experiments (discontinued) and Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Feature
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    9.9
    1 Ratings
    14% above category average
    Optimizely Web Experimentation
    8.3
    149 Ratings
    4% below category average
    Click analytics10.01 Ratings8.833 Ratings
    Form fill analysis10.01 Ratings8.072 Ratings
    Conversion tracking10.01 Ratings8.744 Ratings
    Goal tracking10.01 Ratings8.2127 Ratings
    Test reporting9.01 Ratings7.9137 Ratings
    Results segmentation10.01 Ratings7.7103 Ratings
    CSV export10.01 Ratings7.9102 Ratings
    Experiments results dashboard10.01 Ratings8.049 Ratings
    Heatmap tool00 Ratings9.313 Ratings
    Scroll maps00 Ratings8.517 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Small Businesses
    Google Optimize
    Score6.7 out of 10
    Google Optimize
    Score6.7 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    AB Tasty
    Score8.6 out of 10
    AB Tasty
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Google Optimize
    Score6.7 out of 10
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)
    Score7.3 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.0
    (13 ratings)
    8.7
    (254 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    7.5
    (10 ratings)
    9.5
    (51 ratings)
    Usability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (58 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (7 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.3
    (6 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (16 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    3.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (11 ratings)
    Configurability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.0
    (1 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (163 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Google Content Experiments (discontinued)Optimizely Web Experimentation
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Discontinued Products
    Do you already have Google Analytics? If so content experiments is a good, free, starting point to dip your toes in A/B testing. Do you need to run Multivariate experiments? If so, Google Content Experiments is not going to fit your needs.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Optimizely
    I think it can serve the whole spectrum of experiences from people who are just getting used to web experimentation. It's really easy to pick up and use. If you're more experienced then it works well because it just gets out of the way and lets you really focus on the experimentation side of things. So yeah, strongly recommend. I think it is well suited both to small businesses and large enterprises as well. I think it's got a really low barrier to entry. It's very easy to integrate on your website and get results quickly. Likewise, if you are a big business, it's incrementally adoptable, so you can start out with one component of optimizing and you can build there and start to build in things like data CMS to augment experimentation as well. So it's got a really strong a pathway to grow your MarTech platform if you're a small company or a big company.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Discontinued Products
    • Quick and easy to create and set up experiments
    • Results are presented in a way that is familiar and easy for any Google Analytics user to understand. So is great for beginners to conversion testing
    • Already integrated into Google Analytics and can measure results against your existing conversion goals
    • Allows nine possible variants to be A/B tested
    • Features more than one testing methodology, Bayesian (Multi-Armed Bandit,) and Full Factorial
    • Allows the user to select one of three possible confidence thresholds to ensure that experiment results are robust
    • Great value, it is free!
    Read full review
    Optimizely
    • The Platform contains drag-and-drop editor options for creating variations, which ease the A/B tests process, as it does not require any coding or development resources.
    • Establishing it is so simple that even a non-technical person can do it perfectly.
    • It provides real-time results and analytics with robust dashboard access through which you can quickly analyze how different variations perform. With this, your team can easily make data-driven decisions Fastly.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Discontinued Products
    • Their documentation is not the best and it's quite a steep learning curve.
    • They also don't tell you particularly well what sorts of things you should be testing.
    • Compared to other suppliers of A/B testing tools- it needs a simpler interface. Optimize is starting to answer that - but is still quite Beta-like.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Optimizely
    • JavaScript is hard to implement sometimes especially for JQuery elements
    • ROI reporting should be part of the overall experimentation reporting
    • CMP integration: where we can easily show status of test on the HPT request
    • CMS integration
    • More widgets like social proof banners, etc.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Discontinued Products
    Content Experiments just makes it is simple and easy to implement A|B tests. We will be evaluating other tools in search of a more robust system for multivariate and cross-page testing, such as Optimizely or Visual Website Optimizer. However, for basic testing, you can't really beat it.
    Read full review
    Optimizely
    I rated this question because at this stage, Optimizely does most everything we need so I don't foresee a need to migrate to a new tool. We have the infrastructure already in place and it is a sizeable lift to pivot to another tool with no guarantee that it will work as good or even better than Optimizely
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Optimizely
    Optimizely Web Experimentation's visual editor is handy for non-technical or quick iterative testing. When it comes to content changes it's as easy as going into wordpress, clicking around, and then seeing your changes live--what you see is what you get. The preview and approval process for sharing built experiments is also handy for sharing experiments across teams for QA purposes or otherwise.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Optimizely
    I would rate Optimizely Web Experimentation's availability as a 10 out of 10. The software is reliable and does not experience any application errors or unplanned outages. Additionally, the customer service and technical support teams are always available to help with any issues or questions.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Performance
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Optimizely
    I would rate Optimizely Web Experimentation's performance as a 9 out of 10. Pages load quickly, reports are complete in a reasonable time frame, and the software does not slow down any other software or systems that it integrates with. Additionally, the customer service and technical support teams are always available to help with any issues or questions.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Discontinued Products
    Using the free tool, overall "live support" is limited. However, there are plenty of online resources to get started. If you need handheld support, it is best to upgrade the service or hire a developer through one of Google's partner agencies. There could be more support for understanding what makes a test useful or not.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Optimizely
    They always are quick to respond, and are so friendly and helpful. They always answer the phone right away. And [they are] always willing to not only help you with your problem, but if you need ideas they have suggestions as well.
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Optimizely
    The tool itself is not very difficult to use so training was not very useful in my opinion. It did not also account for success events more complex than a click (which my company being ecommerce is looking to examine more than a mere click).
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Optimizely
    In retrospect: - I think I should have stressed more demo's / workshopping with the Optimizely team at the start. I felt too confident during demo stages, and when came time to actually start, I was a bit lost. (The answer is likely I should have had them on-hand for our first install.. they offered but I thought I was OK.) - Really getting an understanding / asking them prior to install of how to make it really work for checkout pages / one that uses dynamic content or user interaction to determine what the UI does. Could have saved some time by addressing this at the beginning, as some things we needed to create on our site for Optimizely to "use" as a trigger for the variation test. - Having a number of planned/hoped-for tests already in-hand before working with Optimizely team. Sharing those thoughts with them would likely have started conversations on additional things we needed to do to make them work (rather than figuring that out during the actual builds). Since I had development time available, I could have added more things to the baseline installation since my developers were already "looking under the hood" of the site.
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Discontinued Products
    Google Website Optimizer was a better product but has been discontinued. We have also used Test and Target , which has more features but we have been doing fine with Google Content Experiments. Most testing situations can be handled with Google Content Experiments.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Optimizely
    The ability to do A/B testing in Optimizely along with the associated statistical modelling and audience segmentation means it is a much better solution than using something like Google Analytics were a lot more effort is required to identify and isolate the specific data you need to confidently make changes
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Optimizely
    We can use it flexibly across lines of business and have it in use across two departments. We have different use cases and slightly different outcomes, but can unify our results based on impact to the bottom line. Finally, we can generate value from anywhere in the org for any stakeholders as needed.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Discontinued Products
    • CE has made efficient time use easy and fool-proof when it comes to learning the software
    • Because it integrates with other Google programs there is a benefit to track with Google Analytics
    • The learning curve can create initiate time investment that may go beyond what companies are willing to dedicate.
    Read full review
    Optimizely
    • We're able to share definitive annualized revenue projections with our team, showing what would happen if we put a test into Production
    • Showing the results of a test on a new page or feature prior to full implementation on a site saves developer time (if a test proves the new element doesn't deliver a significant improvement.
    • Making a change via the WYSIWYG interface allows us to see multiple changes without developer intervention.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Optimizely Web Experimentation Screenshots

    Screenshot of AI-Powered Experimentation with Opal:

- Instant Test Ideas: Generates high-quality A/B test ideas based on any goals and audience insights.
- Smarter Experimentation: The AI can suggest impactful variations, reducing guesswork and increasing test velocity.
- More Than Just Ideas: From hypothesis generation to analyzing results, Opal helps optimize every stage of the experimentation process.Screenshot of the new Visual Editor with an AI Variation Development Agent

Create simple or advanced website changes fast without writing a line of code with our AI Development Agent.

Use natural language to build out your ideas and apply brand styles to your experiments instantly.Screenshot of Advanced Audience Targeting:

- Delivers personalized experiences by targeting users based on behaviors, attributes, and real-time conditions.
- Defines precise audience segments using first-party data, geolocation, and device type.
- Can test and optimize for different audience groups to maximize impact and engagement.Screenshot of Variation Template

Library of experience templates that you can access right within the Visual Editor. Customize these templates or create your own to easily reuse throughout your experimentation program.

- Offers pre-built templates for common test setups.
- Standardized variations and maintains brand integrity with reusable templates.
- Templates can be customized visually or tweak them with code for full flexibility.Screenshot of Web Experimentation Results Page:

- Data visualizations help interpret experiment performance.
- Displays which variations are winning with built-in statistical significance calculations.
- Results can be filtered by audience segments, events, and conversions to uncover key trends.Screenshot of the custom code editor for JavaScript & CSS changes, used to build complex tests.