Tracking & Attribution
Get credit for every sale you actually drive.
Affiliate tracking is where commissions are won and lost. Click IDs, postback URLs, first-party data, the Conversion-API-vs-pixel decision, and the attribution model your network uses — explained clearly, with the browser and privacy changes that break tracking in 2026 and how to work around them.
Start here · The Playbook
The Tracking Setup Playbook
The step-by-step build — from click to postback. How to wire tracking links, capture click IDs, fire server-side conversions, and confirm the whole chain reports correctly before you spend on traffic.
Original data
The Click ID Survival Matrix
Every ad-click ID — gclid, fbclid, gbraid, ttclid, msclkid and more — mapped to which browsers strip it and how to recover it server-side. Sourced against WebKit, Mozilla, Brave, and Google; current for 2026.
The tracking chain
Click IDs, postbacks, and server-side conversions
Comparison
Conversion API vs Pixel
Why the browser pixel is dying and the server-side Conversion API is taking over — event IDs, the 48-hour window, deduplication, and when you need both.
Definition
gclid
Google's Click Identifier — paid clicks only, and retained for just 90 days. The deadline every offline conversion import runs against.
Definition
fbclid
Meta's Click ID — appended to organic links as well as ads, so it isn't proof of a paid click. Plus the exact _fbc format.
Definition
msclkid
Microsoft's Click ID. Auto-tagging is already on, so a missing msclkid means something in your funnel stripped it.
Definition
twclid
X's Click ID — sent raw, no hashing, and the only identifier that doesn't need a partner.
Definition
dclid
DV360's DoubleClick Identifier. Not a gclid substitute — and untagged, it hides your display traffic inside Direct.
Click IDs
Click ID
The parameter that ties a click to a conversion — gclid, gbraid, wbraid, fbclid, ttclid, msclkid. What each one is, and which browsers strip which.
Server-to-Server
Postback URL
Server-side (S2S) conversion tracking — how a network fires a postback to your tracker with no pixel, and why it survives ad blockers and cookie loss.
Definition
Conversion API
The server-side event API (Meta CAPI, and its equivalents) that sends conversions straight from your server to the platform — bypassing the browser entirely.
Definition
First-Party Data
The data you collect directly — and why, in a post-third-party-cookie world, it's become the foundation of durable affiliate and ad tracking.
Definition
Deep Link
Sending affiliate traffic to a specific product page instead of a homepage — how deep links carry your tracking and lift conversion rates.
Attribution
Who gets the credit — and the commission
Definition
View-Through Conversion
A conversion credited to an impression the user saw but didn't click. How it's counted, why it inflates reported results, and when to trust it.
Definition
Last-Click Attribution
The default model in most affiliate networks — the last referrer before the sale wins. What it rewards, what it misses, and how it shapes payouts.
Definition
UTM Parameters
The campaign tags that tell your analytics where traffic came from — source, medium, campaign — and how affiliates use them to separate what works.
Need a tracker to run all this?
Compare the ad trackers affiliates use for paid traffic — Voluum, RedTrack, BeMob, Binom, ClickFlare — by hosting, pricing, and server-side support.
Keep exploring
Track it right — but keep it compliant.
Tracking and privacy law move together. The compliance hub covers disclosure, the legal requirements, and the data-handling rules that govern what you're allowed to collect.