Click IDs Explained: gclid, fbclid, ttclid, msclkid and 25 More

When someone clicks an ad, the platform usually adds a parameter to the landing URL. That parameter is a click ID: a unique identifier for that one click. Capturing it is the single best way to make an exact attribution match.

Common click IDs by platform

Search and shopping ads

• gclid, gbraid, wbraid: Google Ads (gbraid and wbraid appear on some iOS traffic)
• dclid: Google display and video campaigns
• msclkid: Microsoft Advertising (Bing)
• yclid: Yandex
• s_kwcid: Adobe Advertising
• maas: Amazon Attribution

Social and video ads

• fbclid: Meta (Facebook and Instagram)
• ttclid: TikTok
• li_fat_id: LinkedIn
• twclid: X (Twitter)
• ScCid and sccid: Snapchat
• epik: Pinterest
• rdt_cid: Reddit
• qclid: Quora
• ndclid: Nextdoor

Native, email and affiliate

• tblci: Taboola
• _kx: Klaviyo; mc_eid and mc_cid: Mailchimp; _hsenc: HubSpot
• irclickid (Impact), cjevent (CJ), awc (Awin), sscid (ShareASale), ranSiteID (Rakuten), clickref (Partnerize), _ef_transaction_id (Everflow)

Trakinit recognizes all of these automatically, and you can add your own, for example an in-house partner program parameter, under Settings → Click IDs.

Why click IDs beat UTMs for matching

UTM tags describe a campaign; they're shared by everyone who clicked. A click ID is unique to one click. If a Shopify order's landing URL carries the same gclid as an earlier visit, that's an exact match rather than a guess.

How to keep click IDs from getting lost

• Don't strip query parameters in redirects or link shorteners.
• Keep auto-tagging on in Google Ads and Microsoft Ads.
• Pass the landing URL to your store. Shopify stores the landing page on each order, which is how Trakinit reads click IDs from orders.
• Use UTMs too. UTMs still label the campaign; see our UTM best practices.

Click IDs and privacy

A click ID identifies a click, not a person. It's a strong matching key that doesn't require storing personal data, which makes it central to cookieless attribution.

Frequently asked questions

What is a gclid?

The Google Click Identifier, added by Google Ads auto-tagging to every ad click's landing URL. It ties a visit to one specific ad click.

What is fbclid?

The Facebook Click Identifier, added by Meta to outbound links from Facebook and Instagram. Like gclid, it identifies a single click.

Do click IDs expire?

The value itself doesn't change, but matches only count inside your attribution lookback window. Read the lookback window explained.

Can I add my own click ID parameter?

Yes. Add it under Settings → Click IDs with the channel it belongs to, and new visits carrying it are credited automatically.

Start a free trial and see which of your sales carry a click ID.