What click maps show
- Which buttons, links and menu items people actually use
- Elements that look clickable but aren’t, such as images or underlined text
- Calls to action that get overlooked
- Differences between desktop and mobile behavior
Tools
Click maps come with tools such as Microsoft Clarity, Hotjar, Crazy Egg and Mouseflow. They aren’t a feature of Google Analytics, although GA4 can report clicks on links as events.
Use click maps together with scroll maps and session recordings, on pages with enough traffic for the patterns to be reliable.
Click map example
A software company sees on its pricing page that many visitors click the plan names, which are not links, while the “Start free trial” button gets few clicks. It makes the plan names clickable to a comparison table and moves the button next to the price. A week later the click map shows the clicks spread across the buttons, and trial sign-ups rise.
How to read a click map
- Choose a page with enough traffic. A few hundred visits are the least needed to see a pattern.
- Compare desktop and mobile, because layouts differ.
- Look first at the elements that matter for your goal, such as the main button.
- Note clicks on things that are not links: they show what visitors expect to work.
- Change one thing, wait, and check the map and the conversion numbers again.
Click map mistakes
- Drawing conclusions from a very small number of visits.
- Reading a lot of clicks as a good sign when they may show confusion.
- Ignoring consent rules, because these tools use cookies or similar tracking.
- Using click maps without the numbers from Google Analytics.
Click map FAQs
What is the difference between a click map and a heat map?
A click map is one type of heat map. Others show scrolling and mouse movement.
Can I see how individual visitors behave?
Yes, with session recordings. Use them with care for privacy. See also eye tracking.