A Snapshot is an on-demand report based on a sample of your traffic. The Snapshot size refers to the number of users used to generate a particular report.
Instead of collecting data from your site constantly, certain tools in Hotjar take an on-demand report approach, allowing you to generate an unlimited amount of Snapshot reports on an unlimited number of pages. This approach makes Hotjar extremely affordable and valuable.
Once the Snapshot is complete, you will need to start a new Snapshot for data to continue being collected. No previous data will be deleted automatically when a new Snapshot is started.
The following table will help you identify which tools use Snapshots on each plan level:
| Recordings | Heatmaps | |
| Basic | Snapshots | Snapshots |
| Plus | Continuous Capture | Continuous Capture (default) |
| Business | Continuous Capture | Continuous Capture (default) |
Hotjar Business and Plus Plans experience continuous capture
Continuous Recordings was just the beginning! In order to simplify how Hotjar works, both Heatmaps and Recordings will capture data continuously. Continuous Heatmaps are now available as default on Business and Plus plans, but you still have access to existing snapshot-based Heatmaps.
Learn more about Continuous Heatmaps.
Common questions and help with troubleshooting Snapshots:
Heatmap Snapshots
Basic plan - 1,000 users per snapshot
Plus plan - 2,000 users per snapshot
Business plan - 10,000 users per snapshot
Recording Snapshots
Hotjar users on Business plans do not use Snapshots for Recordings. Instead, they Record sessions continuously up to a daily limit. Learn more about capturing Recordings continuously.
Basic plan - 100 users per snapshot
Plus plan - 2,000 users per snapshot
Business plan - capture Recordings continuously
How do I know when my snapshot has completed?
When viewing the Recordings or Heatmaps list page in your dashboard, you'll notice status indicators to determine whether or not a snapshot is completed or still in progress.
- Green with a white checkmark - The snapshot is complete
- Green with a line in the middle - The snapshot is in progress
- Orange - Not collecting data due to issue with Tracking Code
- Grey - The snapshot is paused
Since Recordings can only have one snapshot running at a time, you'll know the previous snapshot has ended when you see the large green "Start Recordings" button at the top of your Recordings list.
You can also receive email notifications when Snapshots have completed. To enable these, go to your Notifications page from within your Hotjar dashboard Settings menu and check the box next to ANALYSIS TOOLS.
How long will it take for my snapshot to finish?
The time it takes to complete a snapshot depends on a few different factors:
- Site traffic: If you're targeting a page that gets a lot of traffic, your snapshot will complete faster than if you were targeting a page that gets a smaller number of visits per day.
- Sampling rate: Depending on your Hotjar plan's limits, it's possible that your site is being sampled. Sampling occurs when Hotjar is only able to track a percentage of your total users. This could cause a snapshot of high-traffic pages to take longer than expected to complete. Learn more.
- Snapshot size: Hotjar snapshots will run until they are completed and do not reset automatically based on a time period. Because of this, if you configure your snapshot to collect data based on a large number of pageviews, but your page only gets a few users per day, it might take longer than expected to complete the snapshot.