AWSTATS always shows up to 10 times more visitors than Analytics and it does make sense. I can see visitors appearing there after a SM or PPC campaign, while Analytics doesn't even see them. How's that? Analytics somehow lags behind. Yes, I have the code on all pages. All sites and I always experienced the same thing: AWSTATS tracks more (real) visitors. Perhaps Analytics filters them out for some reason? For example: my SM campaigns attract a lot of traffic, comments. I'm 100 % they are real people, but they barely show up in Analytics. Have you had any similar experiences?
Google Analytics will not capture visitors with Javascript disabled (unless they made some changes) or those that block it. AWStats, in my experience, severely overstates visitors. How does AWStats track visitors where IP addresses change (such as AOL used to do or some mobile networks might do)? Analytics will not measure bots like AWStats will. My AWStats can show 700 - 800 visitors a day to a site where Analytics shows 300. I always believe the Analytics number over the AWStats number.
They measure visitors differently, but AWSTATS is straight on the source, not some embedded code. AWSTATS is less sophisticated, but to me it seems rather like Analytics is missing out on real visitors rather than AWSTATS counting too many.
Nah, AWStats is vastly overstating "visitors" because it sees anything making an HTTP hit as a visitor... so things like Googlebot/search engine spiders are counted as visitors.