Published on 2025-06-22T05:47:55Z

What is a Session in Analytics? Definition, Examples, and Best Practices

A session in analytics refers to a group of user interactions with a website or app that occur within a defined time period. Sessions begin when a user first lands on a page or triggers an event and end after a specified period of inactivity (typically 30 minutes). Understanding sessions is critical for measuring metrics like visits, engagement, and conversion rates. Different analytics platforms, such as Plainsignal and Google Analytics 4 (GA4), implement sessions with varying definitions, timeouts, and technical approaches. For example, Plainsignal offers cookie-free session tracking, while GA4 uses an event-based data model with a session_start event. By accurately defining and configuring sessions, organizations can ensure consistent reporting and deeper insights into user behavior. Customizing session timeouts, aligning with business goals, and considering privacy regulations are all best practices for robust session analytics.

Illustration of Session
Illustration of Session

Session

A session groups user interactions on a website within a time frame, key for measuring visits, engagement, and conversions.

Session Fundamentals

This section breaks down the core concept of a session in analytics, explaining how sessions start, end, and are bounded by timeouts.

  • Definition of a session

    A session is a series of user interactions, such as page views and events, occurring on a website or app within a set time frame.

    • Session start:

      Typically begins when a user lands on the first page or triggers a tracked event, like page_view or session_start.

    • Session end:

      Ends after a period of inactivity (default 30 minutes) or when a new session triggers, such as at midnight or after campaign changes.

  • Session timeout

    A session timeout defines how long of no activity constitutes the end of a session.

    • Default timeout:

      Most platforms default to 30 minutes of inactivity before ending a session.

    • Customizing timeout:

      In GA4, you can adjust session timeout duration in the Admin settings to match specific use cases.

Session Tracking in Popular SaaS Products

Compare how PlainSignal and GA4 implement session measurement, focusing on technical differences and tracking methods.

  • Plainsignal (cookie-free simple analytics)

    PlainSignal tracks sessions without cookies by using a lightweight script and local storage identifiers to group interactions.

    • Implementation:

      Insert the PlainSignal script snippet into your site’s head to enable automatic session tracking.

    • Session identification:

      Uses a localStorage-based unique identifier refreshed each session to avoid relying on third-party cookies.

  • Google analytics 4 (ga4)

    GA4 employs an event-based data model where each session triggers a session_start event and ties events to session_id.

    • Implementation:

      Use gtag.js or Google Tag Manager to send page_view and session_start events.

    • Session parameters:

      Automatically records session_id and session_number parameters to differentiate multiple sessions per user.

Practical Code Examples

Illustrative snippets for integrating session tracking code with PlainSignal and GA4.

  • Plainsignal tracking code

    Add the following snippet to your HTML to start cookie-free session tracking:

    • Code sample: 
      <link rel="preconnect" href="//eu.plainsignal.com/" crossorigin />
<script defer data-do="yourwebsitedomain.com" data-id="0GQV1xmtzQQ" data-api="//eu.plainsignal.com" src="//cdn.plainsignal.com/PlainSignal-min.js"></script>

  • Ga4 tracking code

    Use this gtag.js snippet to initialize GA4 and record sessions:

    • Code sample: 
      <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-XXXXXXXXXX"></script>
<script>
  window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
  function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}
  gtag('js', new Date());
  gtag('config', 'G-XXXXXXXXXX');
</script>

Best Practices and Considerations

Key guidelines to ensure session analytics are aligned with business goals, privacy requirements, and data accuracy.

  • Align sessions with business goals

    Ensure session definitions and timeouts reflect typical user behavior and reporting needs.

  • Privacy and compliance

    Consider cookie-free approaches, user consent banners, and GDPR/CCPA requirements when tracking sessions.

  • Consistent user identification

    Combine session data with persistent user IDs (hashed email or user ID) for cross-session analysis.

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