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

# Revenue attribution guide

> Learn how to connect revenue to your analytics

Connect your payment provider to see which marketing channels drive revenue, not just traffic.

## Why revenue attribution?

Revenue attribution helps you:

* **See ROI** - Understand which campaigns drive revenue, not just traffic
* **Optimize spend** - Focus your marketing budget on channels that convert
* **Measure success** - Track revenue by source, campaign, and keyword
* **Make data-driven decisions** - Use revenue data to guide your marketing strategy

## How it works

1. **Track visitors** - PostMetric tracks all visitors to your site
2. **Record payments** - When a payment is completed, it's recorded in PostMetric
3. **Link payments to visitors** - Payments are linked to visitors using:
   * Visitor/session IDs (most reliable)
   * Email matching (if user identification is enabled)
   * Timestamp correlation (fallback)
4. **View revenue data** - See revenue by source, campaign, and more in your dashboard

## Setup methods

### Method 1: Webhooks (Recommended)

Webhooks automatically send payment data to PostMetric when a payment is completed. This is the most reliable method.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Stripe" icon="stripe" href="/revenue-attribution/stripe">
    Set up Stripe webhooks
  </Card>

  <Card title="LemonSqueezy" icon="lemon" href="/revenue-attribution/lemonsqueezy">
    Set up LemonSqueezy webhooks
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

### Method 2: API

Record payments manually using our API. This is useful for custom payment providers or server-side implementations.

See our [Payment API documentation](/api-reference/payment) for details.

## Linking payments to visitors

You don't need a backend PostMetric integration. Get visitor identification on the **client** and pass it into your payment flow (e.g. Stripe metadata).

### Option 1: Script API (recommended)

Use the PostMetric script's methods (same values as in cookies):

```javascript theme={null}
// When creating a checkout or payment (e.g. before redirecting to Stripe)
const visitorId = window.postMetric?.getVisitorId?.();
const sessionId = window.postMetric?.getSessionId?.();

// Pass to your backend or into Stripe metadata
const session = await stripe.checkout.sessions.create({
  // ... payment config
  metadata: {
    websiteId: "your-website-id",
    visitorId: visitorId,
    sessionId: sessionId,
  },
});
```

### Option 2: Client cookies

PostMetric sets cookies that you can read from your own code:

* **Visitor ID:** cookie `_pm_vid`
* **Session ID:** cookie `_pm_sid`

Read these on the client before starting checkout and include them in payment metadata (e.g. Stripe `metadata.visitorId`, `metadata.sessionId`). Also include `websiteId` in metadata so the webhook can attribute the payment to your site.

## View revenue data

Once payments are linked, you can view:

* **Revenue over time** - See revenue trends
* **Revenue by source** - Which channels drive the most revenue
* **Revenue by campaign** - Campaign performance
* **Conversion rates** - Revenue per visitor by source
* **Average order value** - AOV by source

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Stripe integration" icon="stripe" href="/revenue-attribution/stripe">
    Detailed Stripe setup guide
  </Card>

  <Card title="LemonSqueezy integration" icon="lemon" href="/revenue-attribution/lemonsqueezy">
    Detailed LemonSqueezy setup guide
  </Card>
</CardGroup>