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What to Track

In this guide, we provide guidance on what to track and how to track it.

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Start With 2 Events

We recommend starting with just 2 events, which can provide a lot of value with little effort:

Sign Up

Track new user acquisition to understand your product’s growth. Answer questions like “How many new users am I acquiring every day, week, and month?”

Value Moment

Track when users experience value in your product. Answer questions like “How many users experience value each day?” or “How many users come back and retain?”
Starting with just 2 events keeps implementation simple while providing valuable insights into growth and engagement.

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Choose a Value Moment

Value moments are often the use of important features or taking a critical action. Here are some examples:
1

Social Products

Post Created, Friend Added, Message Sent
2

E-Commerce

Purchase Completed, Review Submitted, Item Added to Cart
3

Media & Content

Video Watched, Article Read, Content Shared
4

SaaS Products

Document Created, Call Started, Report Generated
Event Naming ConventionWe recommend keeping your event names short and descriptive. We like to use the Object-Action convention, as you can see in the examples above (e.g., “Post Created”, “Purchase Completed”).

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Include Properties

Properties add context to the event. We recommend these properties for your two events:

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Sign Up Event Properties

{
  "event": "Sign Up",
  "properties": {
    "source": "Referral",
    "country": "United States",
    "os": "iOS"
  }
}
Recommended properties:
  • Source (e.g., Referral, Organic, Paid) - Understand where users come from
  • Country (e.g., United States, Vietnam, Germany) - Track geographic distribution
  • OS (e.g., Windows, iOS, Android) - Know what platforms users prefer

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Value Moment Event Properties

{
  "event": "Video Watched",
  "properties": {
    "duration": 245,
    "category": "Tutorial",
    "quality": "1080p"
  }
}
Properties for your value moment will depend greatly on what it is:
  • A “Video Watched” event may benefit from a Duration property
  • A “Message Liked” event may benefit from a Message Type property
  • A “Purchase Completed” event may benefit from Amount and Product Category properties
Ask yourself: What is the most important information related to your value moment? Start with 2-3 key properties.

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We Recommend Server-Side Tracking

Adblockers and browsers are making it harder and harder to track users on the client-side. If you want to make sure the data you’re collecting is accurate, you’ll want to do most of your tracking server-side.
Frontend event tracking (especially on the web) loses between 15% and 30% of events.If you’re only tracking on the client-side, you’re missing out on a lot of data, even if you’re using a reverse proxy.

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Why Server-Side?

More Accurate

Avoid data loss from ad blockers and browser restrictions

More Secure

Keep sensitive data and API credentials on your server

More Reliable

Events are sent directly from your server, not dependent on client behavior

More Control

Full control over what data is sent and when
Want to learn more? Read our full guide on choosing the right method for tracking.

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Planning Worksheet

Use this template to plan your initial implementation:
Event TypeEvent NameKey PropertiesWhy Track This?
Sign UpSign Upsource, country, osMeasure user acquisition
Value Moment[Your value moment][2-3 key properties][Your reason]

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Example: E-Commerce App

Here’s a complete example for an e-commerce application: 
// Sign Up Event
mixpanel.track('Sign Up', {
  source: 'Google Ads',
  country: 'United States',
  os: 'iOS',
  signup_method: 'Email'
});

// Value Moment Event - Purchase Completed
mixpanel.track('Purchase Completed', {
  amount: 149.99,
  currency: 'USD',
  product_category: 'Electronics',
  product_name: 'Wireless Headphones',
  payment_method: 'Credit Card'
});

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Best Practices

Use the same naming convention throughout your implementation. We recommend Object-Action format (e.g., “Video Watched”, not “Watched Video” or “watch_video”).
Property names should be descriptive and use consistent formatting. Prefer snake_case or camelCase and stick with one style.
Start with 2-5 key events and add more as you learn what matters. Too many events early on can be overwhelming.
Think about the key steps in your user’s journey and ensure you’re tracking the critical moments.

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Next Steps

Once you’ve chosen a few events to track first, you’re ready to set up Mixpanel.

Start Quickstart Guide

Install Mixpanel and start tracking your events in minutes

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