What internal transitions in Yandex Metrica are
An internal transition is a visit whose source is a page of your own website. Metrica checks where the person came from, sees your own domain and cannot assign the visit to search, ads or direct traffic. That is why a separate line appears in the report (in the Russian interface it is called «Внутренние переходы»).
The contradiction is only apparent. The person did arrive from outside at some point, but a new visit began inside the site and the original source was lost on the way. So internal transitions are not an acquisition channel. They are a signal about how tracking works on your site.
Where these visits come from
Usually two or three causes act at once, so do not rush to conclusions about data quality. The most common ones are below.
- Visit timeout. A visit ends after a period of inactivity, 30 minutes by default. A shopper opens your catalogue, leaves for errands, comes back to the tab and clicks another page: a new visit starts with an internal source. This is especially visible on sites with long articles, calculators and complex order forms.
- Several domains or subdomains. A main site, a shop on a subdomain, a blog on a separate address: if the counter is not set up for all of them, moving between them breaks the visit.
- Pages without the counter code. If one template misses the code, the next page may record a visit with an unclear internal source.
- Payment through Click, Payme or a bank. The customer leaves for the payment page and returns to a thank-you page. If the link to the original visit is lost, the return is recorded as a new visit and the order goes to the wrong channel.
- Duplicate counters, iframes and widgets. Two codes on one page or embedded pages can create extra visits.
- Restored browser tabs. After a restart the browser reopens old tabs, and the first click after a long gap starts a new visit.
What share is normal and when to investigate
A small share of internal transitions exists on almost every site. There is no single correct percentage: a blog with long reads or a shop with a multi-step checkout will naturally show more than a one-button landing page.
It is time to check the counter in these cases:
- the share jumped after site changes, a platform migration, a new subdomain or a new payment method;
- internal transitions bring a noticeable part of leads or sales and you cannot tell where those customers really came from;
- the share is clearly higher than on similar sites in your niche.
How to find the cause step by step
Do not guess. Work in order and note the result after each step.
- Open the internal transitions report and look at entry pages. If the post-payment thank-you page leads, the cause is the payment flow.
- Watch several Webvisor recordings to see what the person did before and after such a visit.
- Check the main address, additional domains and visit timeout in the counter settings.
- Make sure the code is on every template and not duplicated.
- Walk the customer path yourself: ad click, order, payment, return to the site, then see how it was recorded.
How internal transitions distort channel results
Imagine a shop in Tashkent running ads on Instagram and Google. A buyer clicks an ad, studies the product, closes the tab, and in the evening returns to the page and pays through Click. If that visit is recorded as an internal transition, the order will not be credited to the ad, and the channel will look weaker than it really is.
The result is that part of the credit for search, ads and social media disappears, budgets get reallocated on inaccurate data, and you may switch off a channel that was actually bringing customers.
How to read reports so this does not mislead you
Metrica lets you choose an attribution model. Models such as last significant source skip internal transitions and show the previous external source, so the contribution of channels looks closer to reality. Before comparing channels, check which model the report uses.
If leads land in a CRM or a Telegram bot, compare Metrica data with real inquiries from time to time: Metrica shows the path across the site, while the CRM shows who eventually bought.
What to do next
Internal transitions are part of a bigger task: making sure the numbers in your reports can support decisions. The markdev team sets up end-to-end analytics: counters and goals, tracking of payments and of leads from the website, Telegram and calls, and clear reporting. If you want to know how accurate your channel data is, discuss the task with markdev and we will suggest where to start.
FAQ
Are internal transitions always bad?
No. A small share appears on almost every site because of visit timeouts and open tabs. It becomes a problem when the share jumps or when such visits bring a noticeable part of your leads.
Can internal transitions be removed completely?
Not entirely, and you do not need to. You can cut the unnecessary ones: add all domains to the counter, put the code on every template, remove duplicates and check the path after payment.
Why is an order after Click or Payme payment credited to an internal transition?
The customer leaves for the payment page and returns to a thank-you page. If Metrica does not link the return to the original visit, it starts a new one and names your own site as the source.
Should I increase the visit timeout?
If long pauses are typical on your site, such as reading long articles or filling in complex forms, it may help. After changing it, compare the share of internal transitions over several weeks before and after.
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