# Vidalytics vs Spotlightr: which wins? · VSL Host Report > Source: https://vslhostreport.com/compare/vidalytics-vs-spotlightr Head-to-head ## Vidalytics vs Spotlightr Down to Vidalytics or Spotlightr? One is for a sales video that paid traffic has to watch. The other locks a course and can charge before a lesson plays. By [Mara Vance](/authors/mara-vance), reviewed by the VSL Host Report desk. Updated October 2026. **Disclosure:**We may earn a commission when you buy through links on this page. It never affects our rankings. Quick answer Pick Vidalytics if you run a cold-traffic VSL and need native split tests scored on conversion rate plus Pro-level retention and thank-you-page conversion tracking; pick Spotlightr if you sell a course or membership, need HLS encryption and Stripe pay gates on lessons, and can live with bandwidth metering and CRM tags instead of sale-scored player tests. [See Vidalytics (opens in a new tab) ](https://vidalytics.com/?utm%5Fsource=vslhostreport.com&utm%5Fmedium=affiliate&utm%5Fcampaign=compare) You have two hosts left, and they only look alike once the video is on the page. One exists to tune a sales video that paid traffic has to sit through. The other exists to lock a course, charge for a lesson, and keep the file from being downloaded. Spotlightr vs Vidalytics is that choice from the course side. The [full Vidalytics review](/reviews/vidalytics) covers the conversion player. The [Spotlightr review](/reviews/spotlightr) covers the library. If a marketing platform is still in the running, [Vidalytics vs Wistia](/compare/vidalytics-vs-wistia) is that pair. If the other name is Voomly, [Vidalytics vs Voomly](/compare/vidalytics-vs-voomly) is the one to read. | | Vidalytics | Spotlightr | | ---------------- | --------------------- | --------------------------------------------- | | Best for | Direct response | Encrypted course video with funnel gates | | From | $19/mo | $13/mo billed annually | | Billing | Plays per month | Plan with bandwidth allowance, then per GB | | Free plan | 1,000 plays, 3 videos | No free plan: a 14-day trial with no card | | Sale attribution | Conversion tracking | CRM tags by percent watched, no sale tracking | | Tests | On Pro | Single-video stats | | Orders | Order page | CRM tags | | Lessons | One sales video | Stripe on Plus | ### Where Vidalytics pulls ahead ##### What works * Video conversion tracking pins the exact second a viewer converted, and heatmaps plus buyers-versus-non-buyers segments show where attention drops. * Smart Autoplay starts muted when the browser blocks sound, then plays the opening again with sound on the first click. Users credit that with the biggest conversion lifts. * A large direct-response customer base, and years on the market, give it a track record newer players do not have yet. ##### What to watch * Plans meter plays per month. On the paid annual plans, each play past the allowance is an extra charge, and going past the allowance does not turn the player off. * Attribution covers conversion tracking and CRM tags. The cart-verified sale is never sent from its server to the ad platforms. ### What you are actually choosing Vidalytics is a player for direct-response marketers. [Experiments](https://help.vidalytics.com/vidalytics-experiments) run a native test of variants on one embed, from Pro upward, so the ad link stays the same while the versions rotate. You choose one success metric. A Winner Recommender flags when a variant is ready to finish. Heatmaps and segmentation come with Pro, the tier above Starter, on the [pricing page](https://www.vidalytics.com/pricing). Spotlightr is a course and membership host that also sits in a funnel. The [pricing page](https://spotlightr.com/pricing/) puts HLS encryption on every upload, including the entry Light plan, which blocks an unauthorized download through a browser extension. On the [marketers page](https://spotlightr.com/marketers/), a gate can ask for an email or a phone number at the start or at any timestamp, and Stripe can take payment before a lesson. Plus adds course and gallery modules with pay access, so a series of lessons can require payment inside the module. The fork shows up after the embed is live. Vidalytics can finish the test on a sale. Spotlightr is the host you use to lock the file and charge for the lesson. On Premium, a CRM tag can fire from a timestamp and sort who hears from you next. ### What the player does in the funnel The pricing page includes Smart Autoplay, so the Vidalytics player can start muted when the browser blocks sound. Spotlightr's funnel controls are those gates. You choose the timestamp, collect the email or the phone number, or take payment before the rest of the lesson plays. The course module on Plus is where a course library sits. I would not run split tests on Spotlightr. Its docs cover analytics for the single video you uploaded. A second version under the same embed, with a recommender that tells you when to stop, is Experiments on Vidalytics. ### What a sale actually attaches to On Pro, Experiments can be judged on Click Rate, Opt-In Rate, Conversion Rate, Average Percentage Watched, Unmute Rate or Bounce Rate. One test uses one of those metrics. The [conversion script](https://help.vidalytics.com/how-do-i-create-a-conversion-script-for-my-video) is a separate record from the test. It checks whether the visitor's session included a view of the video before they reached the conversion page. When it did, the conversion is attributed to that video. Cookie and IP tagging are how the session is recognized. The record stays on the video, inside Vidalytics. Sending that order to Meta or TikTok from a server is a different job. If the ad account has to learn from the purchase, read [TrackPlay vs Vidalytics](/compare/trackplay-vs-vidalytics). TrackPlay is narrow by design. It is a player for a paid-traffic sales video, so encrypted lessons, a payment gate on a module, and the webinar tooling of a content library sit outside it. The postback is for the sales video. Spotlightr Premium adds CRM tags that a timestamp triggers. The pricing page describes them as a way to segment people in your CRM. A verified reviewer on [G2](https://www.g2.com/compare/spotlightr-vs-vdocipher) says the tracking metrics and the reports need to get better, for viewers and for managers. If you edit the video by where viewers drop off, thin reports are the part that gets in the way. ### What each plan meters The invoices count different things. Vidalytics counts plays. Spotlightr counts gigabytes of storage and of delivery. A sales video is one file that many strangers open. A course holds many files, and buyers often watch them more than once. The two jobs produce different bills. #### Vidalytics plans | Plan | Annual | Included | | ------------ | ------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Free Forever | $0 | 1,000 plays, 3 videos | | Starter | $19/mo | Monthly rate $24\. 2,000 plays, 5 videos. Extra plays $0.02. | | Pro | $63/mo | Monthly rate $79\. Conversion tracking, heatmaps, segmentation, Experiments. | #### Spotlightr plans | Plan | Annual | Included | | ----- | ------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Light | $13/mo | Monthly rate $15\. 25 videos, 50 GB stored, 200 GB bandwidth. | | Plus | $21/mo | Monthly rate $25\. Unlimited videos, 600 GB bandwidth, 200 GB stored, course and gallery modules with pay access. | Vidalytics includes a free tier. Spotlightr's plans start at Light, on a 14-day trial with no card. A muted autoplay counts as a play. Vidalytics [explains the count](https://help.vidalytics.com/how-are-video-plays-calculated) in plain terms. Every muted autoplay on page load counts as a play. A landing page that starts the video for every visitor uses plays before those people turn the sound on. Bandwidth past Spotlightr's monthly allowance is $0.05 a gigabyte, and storage past the allowance is $0.03 a gigabyte. A 20-minute sales video that 5,000 people open, with a quarter of that audience watching, is about 625 GB. That is more than Light includes for bandwidth. The [VSL hosting cost calculator](/best/vsl-hosting-cost-calculator-what-one-sales-video-costs-on-each-host) uses your own length and traffic. The [Spotlightr pricing breakdown](/reviews/spotlightr/pricing) goes through the allowances in more detail. Hybrid hosting plays a file that lives on YouTube or S3 through the Spotlightr player, and that playback does not use Spotlightr bandwidth. Use it for a replay people will watch more than once. Experiments, and attribution back to the conversion page, start on Pro. A free or Starter account does not include the test. If the library is larger than Light allows, Plus removes the video cap and adds the course module. ### A Spotlightr alternative for a VSL If the video has to sell to people who have never heard of you, and you need to know which opening wins, Spotlightr is the wrong primary host. A Spotlightr alternative for a VSL, when the test has to be scored on orders, is a conversion player. See [Spotlightr alternatives for sales videos](/alternatives/spotlightr) for the other players. Already teaching on Spotlightr? Leave the lessons where the file is locked and a module can require payment. Put the ad video on Vidalytics. I'd make that split when one file has to be protected as a course and the other has to be tested against a recorded conversion. Spotlightr is the right primary host when the file is a webinar replay on hybrid hosting, or when the follow-up you run is a CRM tag from a moment in the video. You are not waiting on a variant to win. Course sellers who recommend Spotlightr on a [public thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/MarketersSuccessClub/comments/1mn5yh9/what%5Fare%5Fthe%5Fbest%5Fvideo%5Fhosting%5Fplatforms%5Ffor/) praise the support. That matters when you are running a lesson library. Our pick ### Vidalytics Vidalytics is the pick if you want a proven direct-response player with deep conversion analytics and can live with play-based pricing. [Visit Vidalytics (opens in a new tab) ](https://vidalytics.com/?utm%5Fsource=vslhostreport.com&utm%5Fmedium=affiliate&utm%5Fcampaign=comparison) ### Frequently asked questions Which is better for a VSL, Vidalytics or Spotlightr? For an ad video, Vidalytics. A test there can be called from a metric you choose, and an order page later in the session can be tied to the view. Keep Spotlightr when the file is a lesson you need locked and paid. Can Spotlightr replace Vidalytics for split testing? It documents results for the video you uploaded. Two versions under a single embed, with a prompt for when to stop, start on Vidalytics Pro. I would leave that test there. Which is cheaper for heavy traffic? The cheaper host is the one whose meter matches the file. Page-load starts spend plays. A long watch spends gigabytes. A replay kept off Spotlightr's own delivery, noted with hybrid hosting above, avoids that gigabyte count. The calculator takes your length and your visitors. Does either post sales to Meta? The order record in Vidalytics stays with the video. Spotlightr can mark the person in a CRM from a moment in the video. When the ad account has to receive the purchase, open the TrackPlay comparison in the analytics section. Can I use both for a course and a VSL? Yes. That split matches the two products. Keep each lesson where the file is locked and a module can require payment. Move the ad video to the player that can run the test. Does Spotlightr encrypt video on the cheapest plan? The entry plan already locks every upload against a download extension. You do not step up a tier to turn that on. ### Sources We read each vendor's own pages for what the products do and cost, and public reviews for how they hold up in use. The vendors' own pages * [Vidalytics pricing](https://www.vidalytics.com/pricing) * [Vidalytics Experiments](https://help.vidalytics.com/vidalytics-experiments) * [Vidalytics conversion script](https://help.vidalytics.com/how-do-i-create-a-conversion-script-for-my-video) * [How Vidalytics counts plays](https://help.vidalytics.com/how-are-video-plays-calculated) * [Spotlightr pricing](https://spotlightr.com/pricing/) * [Spotlightr for marketers](https://spotlightr.com/marketers/) Other sources * [A G2 note on Spotlightr reports](https://www.g2.com/compare/spotlightr-vs-vdocipher) * [Course hosts, from a public thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/MarketersSuccessClub/comments/1mn5yh9/what%5Fare%5Fthe%5Fbest%5Fvideo%5Fhosting%5Fplatforms%5Ffor/) [See Vidalytics (opens in a new tab) ](https://vidalytics.com/?utm%5Fsource=vslhostreport.com&utm%5Fmedium=affiliate&utm%5Fcampaign=compare) Related reading * [Vidalytics review](/reviews/vidalytics) * [Spotlightr review](/reviews/spotlightr) * [Spotlightr pricing breakdown](/reviews/spotlightr/pricing) * [Spotlightr alternatives for sales videos](/alternatives/spotlightr) * [Vidalytics vs Wistia](/compare/vidalytics-vs-wistia) * [Vidalytics vs Voomly](/compare/vidalytics-vs-voomly) * [TrackPlay vs Vidalytics](/compare/trackplay-vs-vidalytics) * [VSL hosting cost calculator](/best/vsl-hosting-cost-calculator-what-one-sales-video-costs-on-each-host) * [Video hosting for agencies](/best/video-hosting-for-agencies) * [All head-to-head comparisons](/compare) * [How we evaluate video hosts](/methodology) Written by Mara Vance Editor Mara edits the reviews and roundups on VSL Host Report. She checks autoplay, watch time, timed buttons, lead gates and page speed when the visitor is new and the traffic is paid. She also maps what each host really costs, whether it bills per play, per gigabyte or per seat, and rebuilds the monthly bill for a typical VSL funnel. For each piece she reads long-term user reports across forums and review sites, works through the vendor's own docs and pricing, and confirms the numbers before a verdict goes live. [marav@vslhostreport.com](mailto:marav@vslhostreport.com) Last checked 2026-10-17 --- [ VSL Host Report ](/) Independent reviews of video hosting for VSLs and sales videos, judged on how well each player and its analytics turn paid traffic into sales. © 2026 VSL Host Report. Independent and reader-supported. We may earn a commission when you buy through links on this page. It never affects our rankings.