What is Rage Clicks?

What are rage clicks?

Rage clicks occur when users click repeatedly on a particular element or certain area of your app or website over a short period of time, usually less than a minute. In general, rage clicks signal slow responses times, browser issues, broken elements, dead links, bugs, design flaws, and other usability issues.

Users also rage click because a website or mobile application isn’t loading fast enough, though it’s also common to see rage clicking occur because of client-side JavaScript errors and console errors. 

Rage clicks that can’t be traced back to errors can help teams to enhance the user experience (UX) of their website or application. Misleading buttons (elements that seem like they do something but don’t) and confusing copy can cause just as many problems as JavaScript errors. For instance, a user might rage click on a visual element that looks like it contains a link, but doesn’t. In this case, the design team might modify the element to include a micro conversion. 

Some users engage in rage clicking by moving their mouse erratically, as opposed to actually clicking. Such movements usually indicate that users were confused, lost, or impatiently waiting for a page to load. 

But many people casually click as they scroll through a website out of habit or to highlight the website’s text. In this case, rage clicks can actually be a false signal.

How to evaluate and analyze rage clicks

It’s best to think of rage clicks as moments of customer frustration, friction, or pain points. In general, rage clicks correspond to increases in bounce rates and lower conversion rates.

One of the most common ways to identify and analyze rage clicks is to use session replay technology. Platforms like Quantum Metric offer session replay technology that allow organizations to view a user’s mouse movements, clicks, taps, scrolls, and other actions. 

For project managers, UX designers, software developers, and other stakeholders, identifying rage clicks is a crucial step in establishing design priorities.

Tools to identify rage clicks 

Some common tools that companies use to identify and analyze rage clicks include:

  • Quantum Metric
  • Dynatrace
  • Fullstory
  • Hotjar

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