Session Duration

[sesh-un doo-rey-shun]

Session duration is the total amount of time a user spends actively engaging with a website during a single visit. It begins when a user first lands on any page and ends when they either close the browser, navigate away from the site, or remain inactive for a set period (typically 30 minutes).

How Session Duration is Calculated

Session duration is calculated by measuring the time between a user’s first and last interaction within a given session. These interactions can include:

Page views
Click events
Form submissions
Video plays
Scroll depth
Custom events

Why Session Duration Matters

Session duration is a vital metric for several reasons:

User Engagement: Longer sessions often indicate more engaged users who find value in your content
Content Quality: It helps evaluate how compelling your content is to visitors
Website Performance: Can highlight technical issues that might be causing users to leave quickly
Conversion Potential: Generally, longer sessions correlate with higher conversion rates

Tracking with PostHog

At CRFT Studio, we use PostHog analytics to track session duration and other important metrics. PostHog provides detailed insights into:

Average session duration across different time periods
Session duration distribution
Session duration by traffic source
User paths and engagement patterns
Real-time session monitoring

Improving Session Duration

To optimize session duration, consider:

Content Strategy

Create engaging, relevant content
Implement clear navigation
Use internal linking effectively
Optimize page load times

User Experience

Ensure mobile responsiveness
Maintain consistent design
Implement intuitive navigation
Reduce friction points

Technical Optimization

Minimize load times
Fix broken links
Ensure cross-browser compatibility
Implement proper caching

Industry Benchmarks

Average session duration varies by industry:

Blog sites: 2-3 minutes
E-commerce: 3-4 minutes
B2B websites: 2-6 minutes
News sites: 2-4 minutes

Remember that these are general guidelines, and your optimal session duration will depend on your specific goals and content type.