Does it matter if Google Analytics code is in the footer?
 

Hello,

When I first switched to this theme, I read on the wordpress forums to put the Google Analytics code in the footer.php file. Ever since, I noticed that GA shows my website getting far less traffic than any other tracking plugin I've used. I've since read that it should be added through the ATO, so I've done that. Would anyone know if having the tracking code in the footer would explain the lower stats GA reported though?


Thanks,
7th

Putting it into the footer would ensure that a hit gets counted only if the whole page was loaded. If a visitor backed out before the page finished loading then that visit would not be counted because the Google script at the bottom wasn't loaded yet. So the numbers should be lower but potentially more realistic

Ah, I see. After putting it in the body via the ATO options, my hits started to match up with the others much better. Not sure what the issue was outside of page loading but that fixed it. Thanks for the info. Flynn!

Thanks for that tip. Time to move the stat counter :)

Another thought... I know there are google analytic plugins. Do those also go in the footer or do they track all visitors even if the page isn't fully loaded?