Glossary

View-through conversion (VTC)

A conversion credited to an ad a user saw but did not click, within a defined attribution window.

Also called: VTC, view-through attribution

A view-through conversion happens when someone is served an impression of an ad, does not click it, but goes on to convert anyway within the ad platform's view-through attribution window. The platform infers the ad influenced the outcome even though there is no click to trace, unlike click-based tracking that relies on a Click ID.

View-through windows are almost always shorter than click-through windows, commonly measured in hours to a day or so rather than weeks, reflecting the weaker and harder-to-verify link between simply seeing an ad and later converting. Display and video campaigns, along with retargeting, generate the bulk of view-through conversions, since these formats are designed to be seen by many people who never click.

View-through conversions matter because they capture some of the influence of brand and awareness advertising that click-based metrics miss entirely, but they are also the most inflated and disputed number in a media report. A user might have converted regardless of ever seeing the ad, and unlike click tracking there is no interaction to confirm intent. Practitioners typically report view-through and click-through conversions separately rather than summing them, and treat view-through totals with more skepticism, especially when ad viewability was low.

Last reviewed September 22, 2026

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Related terms

Attribution window The fixed period after an ad click or view during which a resulting conversion is still credited to that ad. Impression One instance of an ad being served and rendered on a page or app, whether or not anyone noticed or clicked it. Click ID A unique parameter appended to a URL when an ad is clicked, used to match that click to a later conversion. Ad viewability A measure of whether an ad impression had the actual opportunity to be seen, based on standardized on-screen thresholds. Retargeting Showing ads to people who have already interacted with a brand's website, app, or content, based on tracked prior behavior.

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