FAQ & troubleshooting

Not seeing any data

I set everything up but my dashboard shows nothing. What's wrong?

The most common cause by far is page caching. If your site uses a caching plugin (like WP Rocket, LiteSpeed Cache, W3 Total Cache) or sits behind a CDN, visitors — including AI bots — may be served a saved, static copy of your page. When that happens, WordPress (or your server code) never actually runs for that visit, so nothing gets reported to AI Tracker.

Fixes, easiest first:

  • If you use LiteSpeed Cache, the WordPress plugin configures this automatically — no action needed.
  • For other caching plugins, exclude AI bot user-agents from being cached (check your caching plugin's settings for an “exclude user agents” option).
  • Switch to the Cloudflare Worker connector instead — it detects visits at the network edge, before caching happens, so it isn't affected by this at all.
How long does it take for the first visit to show up?

It depends entirely on how often AI bots actually visit your site — that's not something we control. Some sites see a visit within minutes; others take a day or two. Setup working correctly (shown by the green “Connected” status) and data appearing are two different things — connected just means the plumbing works, not that a bot has visited yet.

How can I check the connection is working without waiting for a real visit?

On the WordPress plugin's settings page, click Send test ping — it simulates a visit and should appear on your dashboard within seconds.

The "Send test ping" button shows an error

Some web hosts block your website from making outgoing requests to other servers. Contact your hosting provider's support and ask them to allow outbound HTTPS requests from your site.

Understanding what's counted

Does this track my human visitors, like Google Analytics does?

No — AI Tracker is specifically about AI bots and agents visiting your site (ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and similar), not general human traffic. The one exception is “AI referral visits”: real people who click a link an AI chat gave them — that's tracked separately as a distinct category, not folded into your main analytics.

Why do some visits say 'unverified' or get excluded from my totals?

Anyone can send a fake “I am ChatGPT” label with a request — we don't trust that label alone. We cross-check the visit's real IP address against each AI company's official, published list of IP addresses before counting it as verified. See Reading your dashboard for the full explanation.

Account & billing

Do I need a credit card to try it?

No. Every account gets a 7-day free trial with no credit card required.

What happens when my trial ends?

Tracking pauses until you subscribe — no data is deleted, and nothing is charged automatically. Subscribe any time from your account page to resume.

How much does it cost?

$99 per tracked site, per year. Adding or removing a site adjusts your bill automatically.

I have another question not answered here

Email us at ish@hardstuck.ai — we typically respond within 1–2 business days.