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

# Channel classification

> How Converge automatically classifies your traffic into channel groups and channels

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## Overview

Converge automatically classifies web traffic into **channel groups** (like *Paid Social* or *Organic Search*) and **channels** (like *Meta Ads* or *Google Ads*). This classification happens for each identified session and determines how your traffic sources appear in attribution reports.

Understanding how classification works helps you interpret your attribution data and troubleshoot unexpected categorization.

## Key concepts

**Channel group**: A high-level traffic category that describes the broad type of traffic source.

Examples: *Paid Social*, *Organic Search*, *Email*, *Direct*

**Channel**: The specific channel or source within a channel group.

Examples: *Meta Ads*, *Google Ads*, *Klaviyo*

**Classification priority**: When multiple signals are present (like UTM parameters and referrer data), Converge evaluates them in a specific order. Earlier matches take precedence.

## How classification works

Converge uses several data points from each touchpoint to determine the channel group and channel:

1. **Converge tracking parameters**: Internal channel identifiers (`cvg_source`, `cvg_adid`, etc.)
2. **UTM parameters**: `utm_source`, `utm_medium`, `utm_campaign`, `utm_term`, `utm_content`
3. **Click IDs**: Channel-specific tracking parameters (`fbclid`, `gclid`, `ttclid`, etc.)
4. **Referrer**: The HTTP `referrer` domain (the previous domain where the user clicked a link to your site)

### Classification priority

The system evaluates rules in this order:

#### 1. The `cvg_source` parameter

When `cvg_source` is present in the tracking parameters, the traffic is always classified as **paid**. The channel group and channel are determined by the channel value in `cvg_source`.

For example, `cvg_source=facebook` will be classified with a channel group of **Paid Social** and a channel of **Meta Ads**.

#### 2. Paid medium detection

If the `utm_medium` parameter indicates paid traffic, Converge looks for channel identifiers to classify the traffic.

**Paid medium values:**

* `cpc`, `cpm`, `cpv`, `cpa`, `ppc`, `retargeting`
* Any value starting with `paid`

When paid traffic is detected, the specific channel is determined by checking (in order):

1. Click IDs (`fbclid`, `gclid`, etc.)
2. UTM source (`facebook`, `google`, etc.)
3. UTM medium (`display`, `affiliate`, etc.)
4. Referrer domain

For example, `utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc` will be classified with a channel group of **Paid Social** and a channel of **Meta Ads**.

#### 3. Internal traffic detection

Converge classifies traffic as "Direct" when the landing URL domain matches the referrer domain. We compare top-level domains to handle subdomains correctly.

For example, if the landing URL is `https://www.example.com/cart` and the referrer is `https://shop.example.com/products`, the traffic will be classified as **Direct**, as Converge detects that the top-level domain is the same.
This avoids classifying internal traffic as organic.

#### 4. Organic traffic classification

If none of the paid rules match and the traffic isn't direct, Converge evaluates organic rules by checking (in order):

1. Click IDs
2. UTM source
3. UTM medium
4. Referrer domain

For example, if the referrer is `https://www.google.com/search?q=...`, the traffic will be classified as **Organic Search** and a channel of **Google**.

#### 5. Fallback rules

If no organic rules match:

* With a referrer → "Referral"
* Without referrer or UTM parameters → "Direct"
* With UTM parameters but no match → "Unknown"

## Supported classifications

This is a non-exhaustive list of channels and sources recognized by Converge.

### Paid marketing sources

| Marketing source | Channel Group | Recognized Sources                             |
| ---------------- | ------------- | ---------------------------------------------- |
| Facebook/Meta    | Paid Social   | facebook, fb, meta, ig, instagram, an, msg, th |
| Google Ads       | Paid Search   | google                                         |
| TikTok           | Paid Social   | tiktok                                         |
| Pinterest        | Paid Social   | pinterest                                      |
| Snapchat         | Paid Social   | snapchat                                       |
| Reddit           | Paid Social   | reddit                                         |
| Bing             | Paid Search   | bing, microsoft                                |
| Axon (Applovin)  | Display       | applovin, axon                                 |
| Criteo           | Display       | criteo                                         |
| Taboola          | Display       | taboola                                        |
| Outbrain         | Display       | outbrain                                       |

### Search engines

| Engine     | Channel Group  | Recognized Sources | Recognized Domains |
| ---------- | -------------- | ------------------ | ------------------ |
| Google     | Organic Search | google             | google.com         |
| Bing       | Organic Search | bing               | bing.com           |
| Yahoo      | Organic Search | yahoo              | yahoo.com          |
| DuckDuckGo | Organic Search | duckduckgo         | duckduckgo.com     |
| Baidu      | Organic Search | baidu              | baidu.com          |

### Social channels

| Channel   | Channel Group  | Recognized Sources | Recognized Domains |
| --------- | -------------- | ------------------ | ------------------ |
| Facebook  | Organic Social | facebook, fb       | facebook.com       |
| Instagram | Organic Social | instagram, ig      | instagram.com      |
| Twitter   | Organic Social | twitter            | twitter.com, x.com |
| LinkedIn  | Organic Social | linkedin           | linkedin.com       |
| TikTok    | Organic Social | tiktok             | tiktok.com         |
| Reddit    | Organic Social | reddit             | reddit.com         |
| Pinterest | Organic Social | pinterest          | pinterest.com      |
| YouTube   | Organic Video  | youtube            | youtube.com        |

### Click ID recognition

Channel-specific click tracking parameters:

| Click ID                           | Channel   | Type                |
| ---------------------------------- | --------- | ------------------- |
| fbclid                             | Facebook  | Paid/Organic Social |
| gclid, gad\_source, gbraid, wbraid | Google    | Paid/Organic Search |
| ttclid                             | TikTok    | Paid Social         |
| ScCid                              | Snapchat  | Paid Social         |
| epik                               | Pinterest | Paid Social         |
| rdt\_cid                           | Reddit    | Paid Social         |
| msclkid                            | Bing      | Paid Search         |
| \_kx                               | Klaviyo   | Email               |
| mc\_cid                            | Mailchimp | Email               |
| awc                                | Awin      | Affiliate           |
| igshid                             | Instagram | Organic Social      |

### UTM medium-based classification

| Medium                  | Channel Group | Notes                       |
| ----------------------- | ------------- | --------------------------- |
| email, mail, newsletter | Email         | Channel = utm\_source value |
| sms                     | SMS           |                             |
| affiliate               | Affiliate     |                             |
| display                 | Display       |                             |
| influencer              | Influencer    | Channel = utm\_source value |
| shop\_web               | Shopping      |                             |

## Related resources

* [Session attribution](/attribution/session-attribution)
* [Tracking parameters](/attribution/tracking-parameters)