The number of clicks on a link and the number of visits on the site can differ without an arithmetic error. First compare the event definitions, the period, and how the transition works. A click records an action on the link's side, while a visit is a sequence of actions that the site's analytics saw.
Start with a single transition
Take the exact address from the published material and open it in a normal client scenario. Check whether you reached the intended page, whether the parameters were preserved, and whether the site had time to load. Note any intermediate redirects, if there are any.
If a short link opens a warning, an app, or a different page, do not automatically count such a click as a visit to the target site. Blockers, consent settings, and closing too early are possible reasons for a missing record that need to be checked, rather than naming a culprit based on a single discrepancy.
Compare the definitions
The Metrica reference describes a visit as a sequence of activity and separately states that repeated transitions from an ad within an ongoing visit do not create a new visit each time. Your link service may have a different rule for repeats and for filtering automated requests. Read its counter description.
A hypothetical example: one person clicked the same link twice in a row and continued working on the same page. Two click events do not necessarily mean two people or two independent visits. This is an example of a difference in units, not a universal conversion formula.
A working check table
For one link, record the period, the time zone, total clicks, unique clicks — if the service defines them — and visits from the corresponding source. Next to that, note consent coverage and your own test actions. Do not compare the full click counter with visits from mobile visitors only.
If the transition works but the discrepancy remains, request an aggregated description of the tracking from the service and the analytics. Do not invent the missing visits and do not declare the difference to be proof of fraud. When the methodology is unknown, the outcome of the check may be a boundary of comparability rather than equality of the two numbers.
Diagram: 1 — check the action on the link; 2 — check loading and tracking on the site; 3 — compare identical windows and definitions.
Related task: Internal transitions to an order: how to measure a CTA without new UTMs.
Sources
Metrica: terms and definitions. Reviewed on 22 September 2026. Practical scenarios and diagrams are editorial methodology; the hypothetical numbers are not client data.
After preparing a separate public post, you can check the terms of the views service. The service does not perform the editorial or organizational work described and does not guarantee organic interest, inquiries, or sales. The method of obtaining activity and the platform's restrictions are checked separately.