General Marketing
How to Track Website Metrics
With One Free, Privacy-
Friendly Tool
Contents
There are plenty of website metrics out there, and just as many tools to track them.
So, to clear up the confusion, I’ll show you the key metrics that really matter, explain how to make sense of them, and show you how to do it all with one free, privacy-friendly tool that’s ready for the AI age.
Four types of website metrics everyone should track
Throughout this article, I’ll be using Ahrefs Webmaster Tools suite. It includes three tools: Web Analytics to track traffic and site performance, Site Explorer to see how your site is doing in search, and Site Audit to check for technical SEO issues.
I’ll also suggest some other tools you can use if you’re looking for different features or have specific needs.
1. Traffic metrics
Traffic metrics answer the fundamental question: “How many people are visiting my website, and where are they coming from?”.
Traffic sources show you exactly where your visitors are coming from. Are they finding you through Google searches? Social media posts? AI assistants?
Click the “Campaigns” button in the Sources table to see how your ads, emails, and other campaigns are performing.
2. Engagement metrics
Once someone lands on your site, engagement metrics reveal whether your content is actually connecting with them.
For deeper behavioral insights, you might also consider Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity for heatmaps and session recordings.
3. SEO metrics and AI citations
Ahrefs Webmaster Tools also monitors when AI tools cite your content as source material in their responses, even when users don’t click through to visit your website.
If you also want to know when and how your brand was mentioned by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot, and AI Overviews, take a look at Ahrefs’ Brand Radar. It’s got data on your competitors, too.
Core Web Vitals measure the technical user experience of your site: how fast pages load, how quickly they respond to clicks, and how stable the layout is while loading. These metrics can affect both your search rankings and user satisfaction. Nobody likes waiting for a slow, clunky website to load.
4. Conversion metrics
Ahrefs Webmaster Tools also monitors when AI tools cite your content as source material in their responses, even when users don’t click through to visit your website.
If you also want to know when and how your brand was mentioned by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot, and AI Overviews, take a look at Ahrefs’ Brand Radar. It’s got data on your competitors, too.
Core Web Vitals measure the technical user experience of your site: how fast pages load, how quickly they respond to clicks, and how stable the layout is while loading. These metrics can affect both your search rankings and user satisfaction. Nobody likes waiting for a slow, clunky website to load.
Metrics vs. KPIs
Once someone lands on your site, engagement metrics reveal whether your content is actually connecting with them.
For deeper behavioral insights, you might also consider Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity for heatmaps and session recordings.
Once someone lands on your site, engagement metrics reveal whether your content is actually connecting with them.
For deeper behavioral insights, you might also consider Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity for heatmaps and session recordings.
