Bot Traffic %, Microsoft Clarity

Bot Traffic % for Microsoft Clarity stores. Tracked live in Vortex IQ Nerve Centre. How to read it, why it matters, and how to act on it.

Metrics type: Supporting Metrics • Category: Sessions & Audience

At a glance

Microsoft Clarity flags sessions it suspects are automated, and this card shows what share of your traffic those bot sessions make up. A high share matters because bots inflate session counts, distort engagement signals, and can make every other metric look better or worse than reality. Keeping an eye on it helps you trust the numbers underneath.

What it counts	The percentage of tracked sessions that Microsoft Clarity flags as suspected bot activity.
Sample type	Behavioural session data from Microsoft Clarity (heatmaps and session recordings), refreshed on the standard data refresh.
Why it matters	A high bot share inflates and distorts every other metric, so it undermines confidence in the whole dashboard.
Reading the value	Lower is better; a rising percentage means more of your traffic is automated and your real-shopper signals are getting diluted.
Currency	percent
Time window	30D vsP
Alert trigger	>15%
Sentiment key	clr_bot_traffic_pct
Roles	owner, marketing

Calculation

Microsoft Clarity classifies suspected automated sessions as it records traffic. Vortex IQ expresses those flagged sessions as a percentage of all tracked sessions over the window and compares it against the prior period. See the At a glance table for the alert trigger and time window, and the worked example below for how it reads in practice.

Worked example

A representative reading of Bot Traffic % for a typical merchant on Microsoft Clarity. A store usually sits around 6% bot traffic. Over a fortnight it climbs to roughly 18% and crosses the alert trigger. The merchant opens Vortex Mind to trace the rise upstream and finds a surge from a single data-centre region hitting one campaign URL. They ask Ask Viq “which pages are getting the most bot sessions this month?” in plain English, then add a filter and tighten the affected ad targeting so the real-shopper picture sharpens again.

Sibling cards merchants should reference together

Card	Why merchants reach for it
clr_sessions_captured	The raw session count that bot traffic inflates.
clr_country_split	Helps spot bot surges concentrated in a single region.
clr_sessions_by_device	Device mix often reveals automated traffic patterns.
clr_alert_tracking_broken	A bot-filtering shift can move session counts and trigger this alert.
clr_top_pages_by_sessions	Pinpoints which pages are absorbing the bot sessions.

Reconciling against Microsoft Clarity

Where to look in Microsoft Clarity’s own dashboard:

Open the Clarity Dashboard and review the session and traffic insights, applying any available bot or filter views. Confirm the period and any device or channel filters match the Vortex IQ profile.

Why the Vortex IQ value may legitimately differ:

Reason	Direction	What to do
Period boundary. Vortex IQ uses rolling windows by default; Clarity may use calendar periods.	Variable	Match the period range.
Sampling. Clarity may sample sessions on high-traffic sites; Vortex IQ reads what Clarity exposes.	Variable	Allow for sampling on busy stores.
Filter scope. Profile-level filters (device, channel, bot exclusion) may narrow the Vortex IQ view.	Variable	Match filter settings.

Cross-connector reconciliation: complement with sibling cards in the same category for the full diagnostic picture. For divergence investigations, use Vortex Mind.

Known limitations / merchant FAQs

Q: How often does Bot Traffic % update? The card refreshes on the standard data refresh (typically every 30-60 minutes for live integrations). For real-time signals, force a manual refresh from the dashboard.

Q: Why does my Microsoft Clarity dashboard show a different number? Clarity applies its own bot detection and may sample sessions on high-traffic sites, so its bot share can differ from the Vortex IQ view. Period boundaries and any device or channel filters in your profile also shift the percentage. Match those settings before assuming a real divergence.

Q: Does a low bot percentage mean my data is clean? Bot detection is best-effort, so some automated traffic can slip through as human and some genuine visitors can be misflagged. Treat the figure as a strong directional signal rather than an exact census of bots.

Q: Can I customise the alert threshold? Yes, alert thresholds are configurable per profile in the Alert Rules tab. Adjust to match your business baseline rather than relying on the generic default.

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Tracked live in Vortex IQ Nerve Centre

Bot Traffic % is one of hundreds of KPI pulses Vortex IQ tracks across Microsoft Clarity and 70+ other ecommerce connectors. Nerve Centre runs the detection layer; Vortex Mind investigates the cause when something moves; Ask Viq lets you interrogate any number in plain English.

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