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Comparing browser stats from 3 trackers

Three free trackers are compared on this page: OneStat, eXTReMe tracker and StatCounter. These three record (nearly) all hits for at least 20 months.

Warning: There are hundreds of free tracker services to choose from, but some will use your email for spam. Stick to services which have established a good reputation.

You can view demo statistics by clicking on the icons. JavaScript and session cookies are required to view the OneStat demo. OneStat and StatCounter are real-time trackers.

The eXTReMe tracker report shows visitors to this page. It could take 15 minutes or more for your visit to be added to the report.

Why the statistics might be different

Before 2005, very few tracker scripts correctly identified the newer browsers like Firefox and Safari. When this page was set up, in January 2004, browser identification by eXTReMe was exceptionally poor. Now, eXTReMe uses an improved browser detection script.

One Stat counts "pageviews", while the other two count unique visitors. The counters might not register a hit if the server is too busy, or if the user clicks STOP before the counter code has run.

The free version of StatCounter provides detailed reports for the last 500 pageviews.

Server-side log file analysis software, such as AWStats, is more likely to produce accurate browser statistics than third party trackers.

More about statistics and browsers

Browser statistics vary according to the clients of sites where data is gathered. For example, visitors to a site like this are more likely to have high specification PCs and the latest web browsers. Visit Browser News to learn more about the cautions to bear in mind when assessing browser statistics.

To find out about browsers and colors visit the Website Colors Homepage.

The StatCounter script comes in two flavours: valid HTML or valid XHTML. In the OneStat script the "&" character needs to be changed to the entity & for the code to validate as HTML.

Example browser charts for the three trackers are shown below the counter icons.

One Stat

OneStat Free is designed to work with an unlimited number of pages. You can choose to receive weekly or monthly visitor reports by email (example - now in PDF format).

eXTReMe tracker

Although eXTReMe's free tracker reports all hits as a single page, there is no restriction on using it in combination with other counter services.

Stat Counter

StatCounter is designed to work with an unlimited number of pages. It's entirely optional whether you display a count or keep it invisible.
eXTReMe Tracker statcounter.com

OneStat Free - points to note:

  • The average number of hits must be less than 10,000 per day over a 30 day period.
  • Reports the Top 10 most visited pages.
  • Reports the Top 50 referrers.

eXTReMe tracker - points to note:

  • No traffic limit.
  • Doesn't track pages individually.
  • Displays the last 20 search engine queries.
  • Records all keywords and website referrers.

StatCounter - points to note:

  • Option: weekly or monthly visitor reports by email (example).
  • Option: display a counter or icon, or keep it invisible.
  • Reports referrers from the last 500 pageviews.

Sources of browser statistics

OneStat.com provides tracker services to 75,000 subscribers in more than 100 countries. It publishes press releases every few months. According to OneStat's October 2006 press release, Internet Explorer's global market share had risen to 85.85%, while Mozilla-based browsers had fallen to 11.49%. The press release includes a breakdown of the most popular browsers in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Germany, France, Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands.

TheCounter.com no longer provides a free tracker service, but usually publishes global statistics on a monthly basis.

WebSideStory vs. OneStat

WebSideStory's June 2006 press release presented browser statistics for the United States and five European countries. OneStat's July 2006 press release presented browser statistics for nine countries. A comparison is only possible for Internet Explorer and Firefox because WebSideStory combined the rest as "Other." View a comparison chart showing browser shares from WebSideStory and OneStat for the USA, UK, Germany, France and Italy. Differences between the figures probably reflect differences between the types of clients using the two services.

Browser spoofing

There are some websites which only serve pages to MS Internet Explorer & Netscape, usually as a result of outdated browser detection scripts. For more information see: A Note on User Agent Identifiers and Browser Statistics. Because of this problem Opera identified itself as MSIE in earlier versions, although the default setting could be changed via the Opera Quick Preferences Menu.

An article on Opera's website explains how scripts can be modified to correctly identify Opera even when it reports itself as another browser:  How can I find out if someone is using Opera?

Several other browsers can do the same. An extension for Mozilla/Firefox offers similar options.

Browser statistics for this page

Opera has been available as a free download - without banner ads - since September 2005. The first chart below is a snapshot of Opera's share when the counters were reset on 25/9/2005. They were reset again a year later, on 25/9/2006. The OneStat chart shows a count since 01/01/2006.

The stats for this page are not representative of overall browser usage. The page receives a small number of visitors each day. It would only take one link from a high traffic site for browser-X users to render the stats meaningless.

Browser Totals.

The following charts are included as examples only:

Browser chart examples.

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