SkipRate

SkipRate is a metric used in digital media and software analytics to quantify how often users perform a skip action relative to opportunities to skip. It is typically expressed as a percentage. The exact meaning of a "skip" varies by context: in video streaming, a skip may mean skipping a video segment, skipping an advertisement, or dismissing a suggested clip; in onboarding or tutorial flows, it may mean bypassing a step; in playlists or auto-playing feeds, skipping a track or a post may count.

Calculation and data collection are central to SkipRate. SkipRate = (Skips / Presents) × 100, where Skips is the number of skip actions recorded and Presents is the number of items shown or offered for skipping. Skips can be detected via user interactions such as clicking a skip button, pressing fast-forward, or closing the item early. Presents depends on the scenario: the number of ads shown, videos started, steps offered, or recommended items delivered.

Applications of SkipRate include informing content strategy and ad format decisions in video and advertising contexts, helping balance user experience with monetization. In product analytics, it measures feature engagement, identifies friction points, and optimizes onboarding or recommendations. It is often analyzed over cohorts and time to detect trends and evaluate changes in design or content.

Limitations and considerations include the varying definitions of what constitutes a skip across platforms, which can affect comparability. Data quality issues, bot activity, sampling, and measurement lag can distort the metric. SkipRate is most effective when interpreted alongside related metrics such as completion rate, dwell time, engagement, and conversion.