Bounce Rate

Definition

Bounce rate is the percentage of website visitors who land on a page and leave without interacting further or navigating to other pages. It measures single-page sessions and serves as a key indicator of user engagement and content relevance. A high bounce rate may suggest that visitors aren’t finding what they expected or that the page experience could be improved.

Why It Matters

Bounce rate is an important metric because it signals how well your website is engaging visitors. If your website has a high bounce rate, that can hint at problems with page speed, content relevance, or messaging. Be sure to keep an eye on this metric in order to spot anything that may be turning away visitors. If you spot an issue, you can then make improvements to boost conversions, increase leads, and maximise sign-ups.

Example

An e-commerce brand launches a landing page for a limited-edition sneaker drop. If 70% of visitors leave without clicking “Add to Cart” or exploring other pages, the bounce rate is high. The brand can then analyse the page for improvements. They can do this by optimising images, clarifying calls-to-action, or enhancing load speed to reduce bounce and increase engagement.

Additional Insights

Bounce rate should be considered alongside other metrics such as average session duration, pages per session, and conversion rate to get a fuller picture of user behaviour. Not all high bounce rates are negative; for single-page content like blogs or FAQs, users may leave after getting the information they need. Segmenting bounce rate by traffic source, device, or landing page type provides actionable insights for optimisation.

Bottom Line

Bounce rate measures the percentage of visitors who leave a page without taking any further action or exploring other parts of your site. It’s a key indicator of user engagement and can help identify areas where your website experience or content could be improved.