“Website hits” is a term that was more commonly used in the early days of the internet to refer to the number of requests made to a web server for a particular page or resource. However, the term can be somewhat ambiguous, as it doesn’t necessarily equate to the number of unique visitors or users.
A “hit” generally refers to any request made to a web server, including requests for HTML pages, images, stylesheets, scripts, and other resources. For example, if a web page contains several images and a visitor opens that page, it might generate multiple hits – one for the HTML page itself and additional hits for each image.
As the internet and web analytics have evolved, more accurate and meaningful metrics, such as pageviews, sessions, and unique visitors, are now used to measure website traffic. Pageviews represent the number of times a particular page is viewed, while sessions represent a series of interactions a user has with a website within a given time frame.
In modern web analytics, terms like hits have been largely replaced by more precise metrics to better understand user engagement and website performance. Below are some examples of these metrics.
Website Hits
Website hits measure the number of requests made on your website. For example, if a person visits your website and your homepage has five images, one stylesheet, and calls on one JavaScript, then that equates to eight hits. If two people visit your website’s homepage, that will equate to 16 hits and so on.
Website Visitors
Website visitors refer to the individuals who access your website. Each visitor is counted as a unique user within a specified time frame, typically defined by a set period, such as a day, week, or month. If a person opens your website, clicks through a few pages, leaves, and returns later (e.g., the next day), they are considered two separate visits. In this context, a visitor is identified based on distinct sessions within the defined time frame, recognising multiple visits from the same user as separate instances.
Website Sessions
Website sessions represent a series of interactions that a user has with your website within a specific timeframe. A session starts when a user enters your site and ends when there is a period of inactivity or when the user leaves the site. Sessions help gauge the overall engagement and activity of users during a visit to your website.
Website Pageviews
Website pageviews represent the total number of times a particular page on your website is viewed. It counts each time a user loads or reloads a page, irrespective of the number of elements (images, stylesheets, etc.) within that page. Pageviews are a key metric for understanding the popularity and visibility of specific content on your website.
If you are looking for information on a metric related to the number of pages viewed within a session, you might be interested in the “Pages per Session” metric. This measures the average number of pages a user views during a single session and provides insights into user engagement and navigation on your website.
How Do I Track Visitors To My Website?
To track website visits or hits, use analytic tools designed for this purpose. Platforms like Google Analytics or built-in tools from your hosting provider can provide insights into user traffic, page views, and other essential metrics. Simply sign up for these services, follow their setup instructions, and integrate the tracking code they provide into your website. This allows you to monitor and understand your website’s performance, helping you make informed decisions for optimisation.
What Analytics Tool Should I Use?
There are various free analytics services that you can use to measure activity on your website, with the most popular being Google Analytics. It is free to use but can be a little overwhelming for first-time users.
Other options include Clicky, Matomo, and Microsoft Clarity.
If you are a WordPress user, JetPack Stats is a great alternative and includes most of the important metrics you will need to understand how your website is performing. These metrics include website visitors, website pageviews, referrers, best content, search terms, and outgoing link tracking. JetPack is free for non-commercial websites and starts from £6 per month for commercial websites.
Another option is Independent Analytics. This WordPress plugin is a GDPR-friendly analytics plugin specifically built for WordPress. While this is a good, simple alternative, there is a small drawback: all data is stored on your WordPress installation, which increases the size of your database. However, the developer says performance will not be affected, and they estimate that an average of 1 million sessions will use around 200-300MB of database space.
If you need help setting up your website analytics, we can help.