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Rage clicks and dead clicks: what they mean

Short answer

A rage click is several fast clicks on the same spot, usually because nothing happened. A dead click is a click on something that does nothing, like plain text or a photo. Both point at a page that looks like it should respond and doesn't. Fix the element, or make it look less clickable.

A real heatmap, read step by step

On phones, 24% of taps land on text and backgrounds and 4% on images. Most of those are dead clicks: taps on things that aren't links.

35%16%17%13%19%end of first screen47% get past here28% reach halfway9% reach the end1234
  1. 1

    35% of taps land on the first screen

  2. 2

    51% land in the top quarter of the page

  3. 3

    Only 30% land in the middle half

  4. 4

    19% land at the end, where scrollers look for the offer

Two weeks of phone visits on about 130 live Replo sites: over 800,000 taps and over 850,000 page views. Each site counts once, no figure rests on fewer than 20 sites, and no store is shown.

What phone taps land on
Buttons and links58%
Text and backgrounds24%
Header and menu8%
Images4%
Cart drawer3%
Other3%

How to find and fix them in five steps

  1. Find taps on non-links

    On a click map, look for heat on text, photos, prices and badges. Those are your dead clicks.

  2. Look for clusters of repeat taps

    Heavy heat on one small button, or on a slow-loading element, often means people tapped it again and again.

  3. Try it yourself on a phone

    Tap the hot spot on a real phone. If nothing happens, or it lags, you've found the cause.

  4. Fix the element or its look

    Link what people want to open. Restyle what looks like a button but isn't. Speed up what lags.

  5. Read the page again

    After the fix, compare the next heatmap: the stray heat should move to the element you meant.

Common causes and fixes

Common causes and fixes
Taps on a product photoShoppers want to zoom or swipeOpen a gallery on tap
Taps on underlined or colored textIt looks like a linkLink it, or change its style
Repeat taps on a buttonIt's slow, or looks disabledShow a loading state and speed it up
Taps on a badge or iconPeople want the detail behind itOpen a short explanation on tap
Taps on a size or color labelThe selector isn't obviousMake every option a clear button

See your own heatmap

Every page Replo publishes collects clicks, scroll and revenue per element, with nothing to install. Open a page, pick the last 7, 30 or 90 days, and click any element to see what it led to.

See your own heatmapHow heatmaps work

Frequently asked questions

What is a rage click?
A rage click is when a visitor clicks or taps the same spot several times in quick succession. It usually means they expected something to happen and it didn't, or it happened too slowly.
What is a dead click?
A dead click is a click or tap on something that doesn't respond: plain text, a photo that doesn't open, a badge. It shows what people expected to be interactive, which is often a link worth adding.
Are dead clicks always bad?
No. Some taps on text are people reading with a finger. Worry when the heat clusters on one element, like a photo or price, because that's a shared expectation the page doesn't meet.
How do I see dead clicks on my pages?
Look at clicks per element. On pages Replo publishes, every element's clicks are recorded, so heat on text and photos shows up next to the buttons. See how Replo heatmaps work.

More heatmap guides

All heatmap guides

See where shoppers click

Replo records where visitors click and how far they scroll, so you know what to fix first.

Start for freeSee Heatmaps

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