New vs. Returning Visitors: Difference, Interpretation and More

Published March 11, 2024

Understanding your audience is paramount when managing a website or running an online business. To dominate the digital realm, you must know this audience’s two key segments. They are new vs. returning visitors. 

Understanding the difference between the two can help you tailor your marketing strategies. Both are valuable. And a thriving site has a healthy mix of both. 

In this article, we’ll help you master new vs. returning visitors. We’ll discuss their differences, why their metrics are vital, and what a good ratio for both. We’ll also help you unlock their important behaviors and where you can find new vs. returning users in Google Analytics. Finally, we’ll have a section on what to do with new vs. returning visitors’ data. Let’s start. 

What’s the Difference Between New vs. Returning Visitors?

A user is an individual who engages with your website, online service, application, or virtual product. Analytics rules how many users there are for a given time period. New vs. returning visitors is one of the most basic types of user segmentation. 

New users (visitors) are the people who have never visited your site, app, etc. They are those interacting for the first time. Returning users (visitors) are those who have been on your site before and returned. For a business to thrive, both of them are needed. They have to fill the pipeline with new users who become returning users who are more likely to convert and spend more money. 

The difference between new and returning visitors is straightforward. Yet, there’s one dilemma. A new user can also be counted as a returning user if the new user returns within the tracking period. While both users may behave in the same manner, it’s critical to track each segment for different reasons. 

Why New User Metrics Are Critical?

Tracking first-time users can tell you a lot about your marketing strategies. It also discusses your conversion funnels, website design, and more. Below are the most vital insights you can take away from tracking new users. 

1. Find out how many new visitors convert on their first visit. 

On-point marketing messages, website copy, and conversion funnels. They can make users convert on their first visit. Tracing can tell you the conversion rate for new users. It can rule if it’s getting better over time. You can also know if the changes you made positively or negatively impact new user conversions. 

2. Know what new users do before converting.

Knowing what steps new visitors take before converting can help optimize conversion funnels. It will have you capturing more leads on their first visit. It also unlocks what interests new users the most. Further, you can open ways to enhance user experience. 

3. Tells you if your marketing campaigns are effective 

After launching a new marketing campaign, the number of unique visitors can suggest its effectiveness. A surge in them can indicate that it is a success. 

4. Which channels send the most vital new users

New users are great to have. Yet many of them won’t convert. Tracking where your new visitors come from can determine which channels send users with the highest conversion rate. 

5. The bounce rate suggests something requires attention.

Do new users have a high bounce rate? The new user bounce rate reflects your site or app’s first impression. If it is high, there’s an issue that needs to be taken care of. It could be the marketing message is off. It could also mean visitors aren’t sure what to do once they hit the landing page. You may also target the wrong market, or users may not see the product or service’s value. 

Why Returning User Metrics Are Important?

1. Tells you the stickiness of products

Suppose you have a high number of returning visitors. It can suggest that your product or service is “sticky.” Users are finding value in it. 

2. Know the retention rate of returning users.

Once you obtain a new user, the next thing you need to do is keep them. How often and soon a user returns speaks to the retention rate. 

3. Understand subsequent visit conversion rate.

Many return visitors don’t convert on their first visit. Tracking their behavior can provide insights into why users convert on subsequent visits. Also, how to increase the conversion rate. 

4. Find out how engaged users are 

Returning visitors typically spend more time onsite than new ones. This illustrates that returning users are more engaged. Unless you isolate its metrics, you won’t know how active they are and what interests them. 

5. Gauge customer loyalty 

The higher the return rate, the more loyal customers are. 

What Is a Good New vs. Returning Visitor Ratio?

Varying tracking tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console will typically display the percentage of both new and returning visitors. 

The ratio will typically depend on the industry you’re in. Still, an ideal returning visitor rate should be around 30% to 50%. It would be incredible if you could balance a consistent 50-50% ratio between new and returning users. It puts you and your brand in a great position. 

Having a reasonable rate of new visitors can lead to higher brand awareness and loyalty. Returning users are more likely to convert and purchase from you. It is because those who go back to your site feel more confident navigating around and know what they came back for. They may also potentially induce more sales by sharing it with friends who might be the ideal fit for your offerings. 

How To Analyze New vs. Returning Visitors Behavior

1. Use Google Analytics or a similar tool. 

Google Analytics is a free digital marketing tool. It renders detailed statistics about your website’s traffic. It can distinguish between new and returning visitors. It can track their behaviors and give many other valuable metrics. 

2. Compare key metrics 

You will benefit from learning about bounce rate, pages per session, average session duration, and conversion rate for both new and returning users. High bounce rates or low session durations for new users may indicate that your site isn’t immediately engaging or easy to navigate. On the other hand, high conversion rates among returning users suggest that people familiar with your brands are more likely to complete a desired action. 

3. Study the user journey. 

Tools like behavior flow reports in Google Analytics are helpful. It can illustrate the path users take through your site. It can assist in ruling out any common points where users leave the site. It can also know the most engaging pages and how these behaviors vary between new and returning users. 

4. Segment your analysis 

Break down your analysis. Divide it by device type, traffic source, location, and other factors. You might find that new visitors often come from social media. You might rule that returning ones primarily come directly to your site. It can inform where to fixate your marketing efforts. 

5. Conduct surveys or user tests.

Surveys or user tests can give in-depth qualitative insights. You can also bring new visitors to your site. You can ask whether they found what they were looking for. For returning ones, you can ask why they came back. You can ask what could improve their experience. 

6. Set up goals and funnels in Google Analytics. 

By setting up goals or desired actions you want users to accomplish and funnels,  the path you expect users to take to achieve such goals. You can see how successfully your site leads new and returning users toward conversions. 

Where Can You Find New vs. Returning Users in Google Analytics

In Google Analytics, you can find data about new versus returning users in the Audience section of your report. 

1. Log into your GA account. Select the website for which you’d like to see the data. 
2. On the left sidebar, click on Audience. 
3. Within the Audience section, you’ll find a subsection labeled Behavior 
4. Click on Behavior, then select New vs Returning 

New vs. Returning Visitors in GA4

In Google Analytics 4, this report has been altered a bit. 

In it, you can find the new vs. returning visitor data under Retention. The Retention Overview screen has numerous charts. All aid in visualizing new vs returning users. Google provides more data about each retention chart so you can familiarize yourself with them and acquire more insights. 

What To Do With the New vs. Returning Visitor Data

1. Improve user experience

If new visitors have a high bounce rate, your site may not be immediately engaging. Also, it isn’t easy to navigate. You ought to improve your site design, content, and layout. All these will help boost the engagement of new users. 

2. Tailor content

Returning visitors might be more familiar with your brand and offerings. You may want to craft advanced content or special offers for them. New visitors, however, might need more introductory content. 

3. Optimize marketing efforts

Suppose most of your traffic is from new visitors. Fixate on conversion optimization to turn them into customers. If most of your visitors are returning, invest in customer retention strategies. 

4. Personalize user journey 

Use the data to personalize the user journey. For one, you could display different homepages to new and returning visitors. You ought to base it on their previous site interactions. 

5. Adjust retargeting strategies

If you have many returning visitors yet low conversions, it may mean your retargeting efforts are working to bring them back, yet your site is not convincing enough for conversion. You may need adjustments on retargeting ads. Also, on your site conversion strategy. 

6. Identify effective channels 

You can look at where your new and returning visitors are coming from. It can help rule out which channels are most effective for attracting new ones and which are ideal for returning existing visitors.