> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: /docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# ClickFlare Numbers Do Not Match the Ad Platform

> Why ClickFlare, your ad platform and your affiliate network each report different figures, and how much of a gap is normal.

ClickFlare says one thing, the ad platform says another, and the network says a third. Some difference is expected — these systems count different events at different moments. The question is whether the gap you are seeing is normal or a symptom.

## Some discrepancy is structural

> **They count different things**
>
> The ad platform counts a **click on the ad**. ClickFlare counts a **visit that reached your tracking link**. Every visitor lost in between — back button, slow connection, redirect blocked — is a click the platform counts and ClickFlare never sees.
>
> A gap of a few percent in this direction is normal and not fixable.
>
> See [Understanding ClickFlare Events](/docs/en/getting-started-with-click-flare/understanding-clickflare-events.md).

> **They count at different times**
>
> Platforms attribute a conversion back to the time of the *click*. ClickFlare records it when the postback *arrives*. For an offer with a long conversion window, the same conversion lands on different days in the two systems.
>
> Always compare a range wide enough to absorb the lag, never a single day.

> **Timezones differ**
>
> Your ClickFlare workspace, your ad account and your network each have their own timezone. A day boundary in one is mid-afternoon in another. Two systems can both be right and still disagree on every single day while agreeing on the week.

> **Platforms restate figures**
>
> Ad platforms revise spend and conversions after the fact as invalid traffic is filtered. Yesterday's number is not final. Networks likewise reverse conversions that later fail validation.

## When the gap is a real problem

Investigate when the difference is large, one-directional, or sudden.

| What you see | Where to look |
| - | - |
| ClickFlare shows **far fewer clicks** than the platform | Redirect or domain problem — see [Clicks not tracked](/docs/en/troubleshooting/clicks-not-tracked.md) |
| ClickFlare shows **no conversions** while the network does | The postback round trip — see [Conversions not showing](/docs/en/troubleshooting/conversions-not-showing.md) |
| Conversions arrive **with no campaign attached** | The click ID is not surviving the trip — same page |
| **Cost is zero or frozen** | See [Cost not pulling](/docs/en/troubleshooting/cost-not-pulling.md) |
| Revenue is present but **wrong per conversion** | See [Payout or revenue wrong](/docs/en/troubleshooting/payout-or-revenue-wrong.md) |
| The gap **appeared suddenly** | Something changed — a token, a domain, an integration's authorisation |

## How to compare properly

**1. Pick a settled range**

Use a period that ended at least a day ago, so both systems have finished restating. Avoid today.

**2. Align the timezones**

Set the ad platform and ClickFlare to the same timezone before reading either. This alone resolves a large share of reported discrepancies.

**3. Compare like with like**

Match ad-platform clicks against ClickFlare visits, not clicks. ClickFlare's click metric counts the move from lander to offer, which is a different event entirely.

See [How Click Tracking Works](/docs/en/getting-started-with-click-flare/how-click-tracking-works.md).

**4. Check one campaign, not the account**

Account-level totals hide which campaign is responsible. Narrow to a single campaign before drawing conclusions.

## Three-way mismatches

When a third system is involved — an optimisation tool, a reporting layer, a revenue partner — each additional system adds its own attribution window and timezone. Compare them in pairs rather than all at once, and establish which pair actually disagrees before changing anything.

## Related

> **[How conversion tracking works](/docs/en/getting-started-with-click-flare/how-conversion-tracking-works.md)**
>
> What ClickFlare records, and at which moment.

> **[Multicurrency](/docs/en/tracking/multicurrency-support-in-click-flare-how-it-works.md)**
>
> How conversion between currencies affects reported figures.


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