A link referral site is an external website that sends a visitor to another website by way of a link. In analytics, that site may appear as the visit’s source, while “referral” describes the traffic type. The term does not, by itself, mean the referring site was paid or is an affiliate.
What “link referral site” means
“Link referral site” is a descriptive phrase, not a universal technical standard or product name. It generally means the website a visitor clicked away from to reach the destination. For example, if a visitor clicks a link to your site in an article on another website, that article’s site is the referring site.
Google Analytics describes referrals as traffic arriving through another source, such as a link on a third-party domain. The referring domain identifies where a visit came from; it does not establish whether the link was paid, endorsed, or part of a commercial arrangement. Google Analytics: Identify unwanted referrals
Referring site, source, and referral traffic are different terms
Analytics separates the location that sent a visit from the classification assigned to the visit. In Google Analytics, source names a platform, website, app, or other online location; medium describes the type of traffic, such as referral, social, email, or organic. Google Analytics: Traffic-source dimensions
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| Term | What it describes | What it does not necessarily mean |
|---|---|---|
| Referring site or referral source | The external website or online location that sent a visitor through a link | That the site received payment |
| Referral traffic or channel | A traffic classification for visits arriving through links on other sites or apps | That the source is an affiliate |
| Affiliate site or channel | A site whose links are part of an affiliate relationship | That every external link is commercial |
Google’s default channel definitions distinguish Referral, which covers visits via non-ad links on other sites or apps, from Affiliates, which covers visits via links on affiliate sites. Google Analytics: Default channel group
Is a referral link the same as an affiliate link?
No. A referral link is simply a link that sends someone from one place to another. An affiliate link is associated with a commercial relationship in which the referring publisher may earn a commission or other compensation. An affiliate link can bring a visitor to a site, but not every referring link is an affiliate link.
For compensated endorsements, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s guidance says that a blogger receiving a portion of sales through affiliate links should clearly and conspicuously disclose the compensation, because it could affect how readers assess the review. This is guidance in the context of endorsements, not individualized legal advice. FTC, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising
Why analytics may not show the referring site
Analytics reports use technical signals and reporting rules; they are not a complete record of every click or every step in a person’s journey. Google says visits may appear as (direct) / (none) when a clear referral source is unavailable. Missing campaign information, redirects that strip parameters, links in offline documents, and ad blockers can contribute to this classification. Google Analytics: Understand (direct) / (none) traffic
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Why a payment processor can appear as a referral
After a customer pays on a third-party processor’s site and returns to your site, analytics may record the processor as a referral source. Google documents referral-domain conditions that site owners can use to keep unwanted referrals, including payment processors, from appearing as acquisition sources. These settings change reporting, so use them for domains that should not be treated as sources of new traffic rather than excluding referral domains indiscriminately. Google Analytics: Identify unwanted referrals
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How common is referral traffic?
There is no universal percentage that applies to every site. A 2015 study of 116,657 unique visitors to a specific set of online public-report websites observed 15.80% referral traffic, alongside 63.95% search-engine traffic and 20.00% direct traffic. The study defined referral traffic as arriving through a link from a different website; its figures describe that sample and year, not a current benchmark for all websites. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 2015 study
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