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Technology · Analytics

Cloudflare Browser Insights

cloudflare.com

Cloudflare Browser Insights is the script, or beacon, behind Cloudflare Web Analytics. It measures how your pages perform for real visitors and shows page views and visitors in the Cloudflare dashboard.[1]

A performance monitoring tool integrated with Cloudflare's CDN services. Browser Insights provides real-time metrics on website performance from the end-user perspective, helping developers and site owners identify and resolve issues that impact user experience and page load times.

Cloudflare Browser Insights belongs toAnalyticsRUMcategories.

Price

Free, and available on all plans[2][1]

Proxy needed

No change to your DNS and no Cloudflare proxy required[1]

What it measures

Page load timing and Core Web Vitals[3][4]

Visitor tracking

No tracking of individual users across sites, says the vendor[3]

218websites

use it — 8.5% of the 2,555 websites we scanned in the last 12 months

#5of 146

tools in its category seen in our scans (we recognize 452)

71public pages

on UptimeCard — open any of them to see how that site is doing

In short: a free way to see page views and real-visitor load times. It reports timing and traffic, not session recordings, so pair it with another tool if you need those.[3][1]

6.52% of all websites we track run Cloudflare Browser Insights▲ 0.07 points since 20 Sep

Should you use Cloudflare Browser Insights?

The 10-second version, from the vendor’s own pages and what we see in our scans

Cloudflare Browser Insights fits if…

  • You already use Cloudflare and want load-time and visitor numbers at no cost[2]
  • You want page-load and Core Web Vitals data from real visitors[4]

Look elsewhere if…

  • You want to watch recorded visits and heatmaps[5]Microsoft Clarity offers session recordings and heatmaps.
Your Content Security Policy must allow the beacon script, or it will not load[3]

Cloudflare Browser Insights next to two free tools

Other analytics a site could add. Statements come from each vendor's own page; website counts are ours.

Cloudflare Browser InsightsGoogle AnalyticsMicrosoft Clarity
What the vendor says
PriceFreeavailable on all plans[2][1]Freefor businesses of every size[6]Freefree forever[5]
Main usePage performancereal user monitoring[1]Customer insighthow people use a site[6]Session recordingsand heatmaps[5]
What we see in our scans
Websites running it2188.5% of 2,555 scanned sites1,36853.5% of 2,555 scanned sites2349.2% of 2,555 scanned sites
Typical page load time4.6 s64 public sites4.4 s✓440 public sites5.4 s47 public sites
Typical page weight3.4 MB✓typical home page3.5 MBtypical home page4.4 MBtypical home page
Security grade B or better36%✓8 of 22 graded sites score B or better29%39 of 136 graded sites score B or better24%4 of 17 graded sites score B or better

Only what each vendor page states.

  • Google Analytics: Free analytics for businesses of every size, with a paid edition for enterprises[6]
  • Microsoft Clarity: Free session recordings and heatmaps[5]

Choose Cloudflare Browser Insights if…

  • You want real-visitor load times at no cost[1]

Choose Google Analytics if…

  • You want to understand customers and their journeys[6]

Choose Microsoft Clarity if…

  • You want to watch how visitors move through pages[5]

How Cloudflare Browser Insights sites protect themselves

Share of the 218 sites we scanned that run each protection

HSTS55% · 120 sites

HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) informs browsers that the site should only be accessed using HTTPS

Cloudflare Bot Management40% · 87 sites

Cloudflare bot management solution identifies and mitigates automated traffic to protect websites from bad bots

reCAPTCHA19% · 41 sites

reCAPTCHA is a free service from Google that helps protect websites from spam and abuse

Protections add up, they do not replace each other: a site can run all of them.

What sites use Cloudflare Browser Insights for

An estimate from UptimeCard's technology map of 60 public sites

Runs the whole site51 sites

abeta.co.uk · acquia.com · activecampaign.com

Hosts help, docs or support content4 sites

gemfury.com · scalingostatus.com · swell.store

Runs the marketing site4 sites

adeptcloud.net · broadvoice.com · qualified.com

Runs a shop or catalog1 sites

depict.ai

Rough guide, not a measurement: each description is written automatically from the site’s technology stack and the site has not confirmed it. A site is counted once, in the first group its description fits (shop, help and docs, blog, marketing site; otherwise the whole site). Descriptions that only guess (“likely”, “may”) are left out.

At a glance

UptimeCard's own scans and tests of 2,555 websites · refreshed weekly

How Cloudflare Browser Insights sites scoreout of 100 · hover or tap a score for details

46PerformancePooraverage site: 5089AccessibilityGoodaverage site: 8982Best practicesGoodaverage site: 9392SEOGoodaverage site: 92

Page load time

Loads about as fast as the average site

Cloudflare Browser Insights sites
4.6 s
All sites
4.3 s

Most Cloudflare Browser Insights sites load in 3.4–5.9 s. Home page weight: 3.4 MB vs 3.3 MB for all sites. 64 public sites measured.

Where are they hosted?

Mostly Cloudflare and Amazon Web Services

  • Cloudflare65%
  • Amazon Web Services11%
  • Automattic1%
  • Bitrise1%
  • Other21%
Canada 61%United States 23%Germany 3%

Who uses it?

Technology and Software is the biggest group

Technology and Software58%
Business Services1.3× avg16%
Software as a Service (SaaS)7%
Fintech Solutions3%

Share of 71 classified public sites. “× average” compares with all 961 public sites.

Browser-security check

36% of graded sites pass

8of 22 score B or better

Rates each site’s own security settings, not Cloudflare Browser Insights. 22 public sites graded so far.

How Cloudflare Browser Insights sites are built

Closest partners. The number says how many times more often the tool runs on Cloudflare Browser Insights sites than on an average website. Hover a partner for its share of sites.

Cloudflare Bot Management3×Google Sign-in2×Funding Choices2×

Stacks we see most. Tools that tend to run together with Cloudflare Browser Insights on the same websites. The percentage is the share of all 218 Cloudflare Browser Insights sites that run the whole stack.

15 stacks · swipe, drag or use the arrows
#1

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Funding Choices + Google AdSense

5.5%12 of 218 sites
#2

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Next.js + Google Sign-in

4.1%9 of 218 sites
#3

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Bootstrap + Google Sign-in

4.1%9 of 218 sites
#4

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Funding Choices + Google Sign-in

4.1%9 of 218 sites
#5

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Next.js + Datadog

4.1%9 of 218 sites
#6

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Next.js + Microsoft Clarity

3.7%8 of 218 sites
#7

Cloudflare Browser Insights + OneTrust + Bootstrap

3.2%7 of 218 sites
#8

Cloudflare Browser Insights + OneTrust + Prebid

3.2%7 of 218 sites
#9

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Google Sign-in + Prebid

3.2%7 of 218 sites
#10

Cloudflare Browser Insights + OneTrust + Next.js + Tailwind CSS

2.3%5 of 218 sites
#11

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Funding Choices + Prebid + Amazon Advertising

2.3%5 of 218 sites
#12

Cloudflare Browser Insights + OneTrust + Microsoft Clarity

2.3%5 of 218 sites
#13

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Bootstrap + Microsoft Clarity

2.3%5 of 218 sites
#14

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Funding Choices + Microsoft Clarity

2.3%5 of 218 sites
#15

Cloudflare Browser Insights + Tailwind CSS + Vue.js

2.3%5 of 218 sites

Usually installed alongside

The bigger the bubble, the more of the 218 Cloudflare Browser Insights sites also run the tool. Colour shows what the tool does. Hover or tap a bubble for details.

Google Tag Manager67%Google Analytics63%Facebook Pixel18%Linkedin Insight Tag15%OneTrust22%Funding Choices12%Microsoft Advertising17%DoubleClick Floodlight10%Yoast SEO11%HubSpot9%
Tag managerAnalyticsCookie consentAdvertisingSearch visibilityMarketing

Similar tools in its category

Analytics: 452 tools known, 146 seen in our scans

Google Analytics1,368 sitesAlternativeFacebook Pixel468 sitesAlternativeLinkedin Insight Tag435 sitesAlternativeMicrosoft Clarity234 sitesAlternativePiwik PRO Core181 sitesAlternativeHubSpot Analytics166 sitesAlternativeGoogle Ads Conversion Tracking140 sitesAlternativeHotjar113 sitesAlternativeDatadog87 sitesUsed togetherSnowplow Analytics42 sitesUsed together

How websites combine Cloudflare Browser Insights with other tools

Relationships found on the websites that use it, from the same map status pages show.

Built on a platform 40Needs another tool 15Complements another tool 13Integrates with another 4Overlaps with another 3

Who is behind Cloudflare Browser Insights

From its own pages and public records, with sources

Operated by

Cloudflare, Inc.[2]

since 2009[7]

Questions about Cloudflare Browser Insights

What does Cloudflare Web Analytics measure?
The performance of your pages as real visitors experience them, collected with a small script that uses the browser Performance API.[1]
Do I need to use Cloudflare's proxy?
No. Cloudflare says Web Analytics works without changing your DNS or using its proxy; you need a Cloudflare account and a script on your page.[1]
Where does the script load from?
From static.cloudflareinsights.com. Your Content Security Policy may need to allow it.[3]
Does it track individual visitors?
Cloudflare states that it does not track individual end users across its customers' sites.[3]
How many websites use Cloudflare Browser Insights?
We found Cloudflare Browser Insights on 218 of the 2,555 websites we scanned in the last 12 months (8.5%). 71 of them have a public status page.
What is Cloudflare Browser Insights often used with?
Among the websites we scan, Cloudflare Browser Insights is often found alongside Cloudflare Bot Management (39.9% of its sites), OneTrust (21.6% of its sites), Next.js (20.2% of its sites).
What are the alternatives to Cloudflare Browser Insights?
Other analytics tools we recognize include Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Linkedin Insight Tag, Microsoft Clarity.

Is your website built with Cloudflare Browser Insights?

UptimeCard checks it around the clock, tells you the minute it stops answering, and gives your visitors a status page.

Monitor my site freeCreate a status page