What is Direct Traffic in Google Analytics?

I was thinking that Direct Traffic is when people type the name of your site in their browsers and hit enter. But I have too many of those visitors now. (I am using Google Analytics to see this). There is no way so much people type the name manually. I can understand if they come from links or search, but this is just mystery to me. Is there something that I am missing?

 

Anything that GA can't ascertain the source of can show up as Direct type in traffic, bookmarked, anything where the source is hidden

 

I cannot get it either

 

I have the same situation and it's interesting for me too.

 

you folks should try using filters where you should indicate your IP address. Most of those hits are probably from your own computer, when you view/test your website.

 

These are visitors who came to your site without first visiting a search engine, another site or some marketing tactic.

 

Interesting, I think there may no solution

 

Some browsers may not to send http_referer

 

may be they are bookmarked visitors.

 

I think these are the visitors that comes straight by typing your website url in the browser and the bookmarked websites

 

the visitor who visit to your website directly by typing your website name in url that's all notng else and don't worrie abt that

 

I agree with this...

 

*sighs* why are so many people joining in this thread to keep repeating that it's type in traffic, when he said in the original question that he thinks the number is too high for it just to be that. Props to marat777 - I think his suggestion that the OP may not have filtered out his own IP may be at least part of the answer.

 

Direct traffic are those visitors who come to you site through search engine previously and bookmark or save you site name and then come again directly.

 

One reason could be:

Email Signatures: If you have your website link in your email signatures, then the clicks that happen because of it, will be shown under 'Direct Traffic' in Google Analytics.

 

it is when type the name of your site in their browsers and hit enter OR
bookmark OR
copy-paste your url OR
opened in new window with target=_blank (at least for some browsers) OR
when their firewall, proxy, or firefox addon prevents their browser sending the referrer

 

I think it's not only direct typing of sa url into the browser but also when you bookmark a page as well

 

i think those actually show up as referrals rather than direct

 

if it is webmail (gmail/hotmail/etc), it will show the appropriate referrer. If it is a standalone client e.g Outlook - no referrer

 

I am baffled by all of this direct traffic too. Around the end of May I went from 100 something visitors to btwn 1100 to 1300 a day. I cannot figure out why.