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The Cohort component is designed for displaying cohort analysis and retention data. While Django Unfold doesn’t include a dedicated cohort template, you can build cohort visualizations using the Table and Tracker components.

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What is Cohort Analysis?

Cohort analysis tracks groups of users over time to understand behavior patterns, retention, and engagement. Common use cases include:
  • User retention rates
  • Customer lifetime value
  • Feature adoption
  • Subscription retention

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Building Cohort Views

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Using Table Component

# views.py
from django.views.generic import TemplateView
from unfold.views import UnfoldModelAdminViewMixin
from django.db.models import Count, Q
from datetime import timedelta
import calendar

class CohortAnalysisView(UnfoldModelAdminViewMixin, TemplateView):
    title = "Cohort Analysis"
    template_name = "admin/cohort_analysis.html"
    
    def get_context_data(self, **kwargs):
        context = super().get_context_data(**kwargs)
        
        # Generate cohort data (simplified example)
        cohorts = self.generate_cohort_data()
        
        # Prepare table data
        headers = ['Cohort'] + [f'Month {i}' for i in range(6)]
        rows = []
        
        for cohort_date, retention in cohorts.items():
            row = [
                cohort_date.strftime('%B %Y'),
                *[self.format_retention_cell(r) for r in retention]
            ]
            rows.append(row)
        
        context['cohort_table'] = {
            'headers': headers,
            'rows': rows
        }
        
        return context
    
    def generate_cohort_data(self):
        from django.utils import timezone
        from dateutil.relativedelta import relativedelta
        
        cohorts = {}
        current_date = timezone.now().date()
        
        # Get last 6 months of cohorts
        for i in range(6):
            cohort_date = current_date - relativedelta(months=i)
            cohort_start = cohort_date.replace(day=1)
            
            # Get users who joined in this cohort
            cohort_users = User.objects.filter(
                date_joined__year=cohort_start.year,
                date_joined__month=cohort_start.month
            ).values_list('id', flat=True)
            
            total_users = len(cohort_users)
            retention = []
            
            # Calculate retention for each subsequent month
            for month_offset in range(6):
                period_start = cohort_start + relativedelta(months=month_offset)
                period_end = period_start + relativedelta(months=1)
                
                active_users = Activity.objects.filter(
                    user_id__in=cohort_users,
                    created_at__gte=period_start,
                    created_at__lt=period_end
                ).values('user_id').distinct().count()
                
                retention_rate = (active_users / total_users * 100) if total_users > 0 else 0
                retention.append(retention_rate)
            
            cohorts[cohort_start] = retention
        
        return cohorts
    
    def format_retention_cell(self, rate):
        from django.utils.html import format_html
        
        # Color code based on retention rate
        if rate >= 80:
            bg_class = 'bg-green-100 dark:bg-green-900'
            text_class = 'text-green-800 dark:text-green-200'
        elif rate >= 50:
            bg_class = 'bg-yellow-100 dark:bg-yellow-900'
            text_class = 'text-yellow-800 dark:text-yellow-200'
        else:
            bg_class = 'bg-red-100 dark:bg-red-900'
            text_class = 'text-red-800 dark:text-red-200'
        
        return format_html(
            '<div class="{} {} px-3 py-1 rounded text-center font-medium">{:.1f}%</div>',
            bg_class, text_class, rate
        )

{# templates/admin/cohort_analysis.html #}
{% extends "unfold/layouts/base.html" %}
{% load unfold %}

{% block content %}
<div class="container mx-auto">
  {% component "unfold/components/card.html" with title="User Retention by Cohort" %}
    {% component "unfold/components/table.html" with table=cohort_table card_included=1 %}
    {% endcomponent %}
    
    {% slot footer %}
      <p class="text-sm text-gray-600">Percentage of users active in each subsequent month</p>
    {% endslot %}
  {% endcomponent %}
</div>
{% endblock %}

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Cohort Heatmap

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Using Tracker for Visual Cohorts

class CohortHeatmapView(UnfoldModelAdminViewMixin, TemplateView):
    title = "Cohort Heatmap"
    template_name = "admin/cohort_heatmap.html"
    
    def get_context_data(self, **kwargs):
        context = super().get_context_data(**kwargs)
        
        # Generate cohort rows
        cohort_rows = []
        
        for cohort_date, retention in self.generate_cohort_data().items():
            tracker_data = []
            
            for rate in retention:
                # Map retention rate to color intensity
                if rate >= 80:
                    color = 'bg-green-700'
                elif rate >= 60:
                    color = 'bg-green-500'
                elif rate >= 40:
                    color = 'bg-green-300'
                elif rate >= 20:
                    color = 'bg-yellow-400'
                else:
                    color = 'bg-red-400'
                
                tracker_data.append({
                    'color': color,
                    'tooltip': f"{rate:.1f}% retention"
                })
            
            cohort_rows.append({
                'label': cohort_date.strftime('%B %Y'),
                'data': tracker_data
            })
        
        context['cohort_rows'] = cohort_rows
        return context

{# templates/admin/cohort_heatmap.html #}
{% extends "unfold/layouts/base.html" %}
{% load unfold %}

{% block content %}
<div class="container mx-auto">
  {% component "unfold/components/card.html" with title="Cohort Retention Heatmap" %}
    <div class="space-y-2">
      {% for cohort in cohort_rows %}
        <div class="flex items-center gap-4">
          <div class="w-32 text-sm font-medium">
            {{ cohort.label }}
          </div>
          {% component "unfold/components/tracker.html" with data=cohort.data class="flex-1" %}
          {% endcomponent %}
        </div>
      {% endfor %}
    </div>
    
    {# Legend #}
    <div class="mt-6 flex items-center gap-4 text-sm">
      <span class="text-gray-600">Retention:</span>
      <div class="flex items-center gap-2">
        <div class="w-4 h-4 bg-red-400 rounded"></div>
        <span>0-20%</span>
      </div>
      <div class="flex items-center gap-2">
        <div class="w-4 h-4 bg-yellow-400 rounded"></div>
        <span>20-40%</span>
      </div>
      <div class="flex items-center gap-2">
        <div class="w-4 h-4 bg-green-300 rounded"></div>
        <span>40-60%</span>
      </div>
      <div class="flex items-center gap-2">
        <div class="w-4 h-4 bg-green-500 rounded"></div>
        <span>60-80%</span>
      </div>
      <div class="flex items-center gap-2">
        <div class="w-4 h-4 bg-green-700 rounded"></div>
        <span>80-100%</span>
      </div>
    </div>
  {% endcomponent %}
</div>
{% endblock %}

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Advanced Example: Multi-Metric Cohorts

class MultiMetricCohortView(UnfoldModelAdminViewMixin, TemplateView):
    title = "Advanced Cohort Analysis"
    template_name = "admin/multi_metric_cohort.html"
    
    def get_context_data(self, **kwargs):
        context = super().get_context_data(**kwargs)
        
        cohorts = self.generate_advanced_cohorts()
        
        # Retention table
        context['retention_table'] = self.format_cohort_table(
            cohorts, 'retention', 'User Retention'
        )
        
        # Revenue per user table
        context['revenue_table'] = self.format_cohort_table(
            cohorts, 'revenue', 'Revenue per User'
        )
        
        return context
    
    def generate_advanced_cohorts(self):
        # Complex cohort calculation with multiple metrics
        # Returns dict with retention, revenue, engagement, etc.
        pass
    
    def format_cohort_table(self, cohorts, metric, title):
        headers = ['Cohort'] + [f'Month {i}' for i in range(6)]
        rows = []
        
        for cohort_date, data in cohorts.items():
            row = [cohort_date.strftime('%b %Y')]
            
            for value in data[metric]:
                if metric == 'retention':
                    cell = self.format_retention_cell(value)
                elif metric == 'revenue':
                    cell = self.format_revenue_cell(value)
                else:
                    cell = str(value)
                
                row.append(cell)
            
            rows.append(row)
        
        return {
            'title': title,
            'headers': headers,
            'rows': rows
        }
    
    def format_revenue_cell(self, amount):
        from django.utils.html import format_html
        return format_html(
            '<span class="font-mono">${:,.2f}</span>',
            amount
        )

​
Integration with Admin

# admin.py
from django.contrib import admin
from unfold.admin import ModelAdmin

@admin.register(User)
class UserAdmin(ModelAdmin):
    def get_urls(self):
        from django.urls import path
        urls = super().get_urls()
        custom_urls = [
            path(
                'cohort-analysis/',
                self.admin_site.admin_view(
                    CohortAnalysisView.as_view(model_admin=self)
                ),
                name='user_cohort_analysis',
            ),
            path(
                'cohort-heatmap/',
                self.admin_site.admin_view(
                    CohortHeatmapView.as_view(model_admin=self)
                ),
                name='user_cohort_heatmap',
            ),
        ]
        return custom_urls + urls

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Best Practices

  1. Date Granularity: Choose appropriate cohort periods (daily, weekly, monthly)
  2. Time Windows: Limit cohort analysis to relevant time periods
  3. Color Coding: Use consistent color schemes for metrics
  4. Performance: Cache cohort calculations for large datasets
  5. Context: Provide clear legends and explanations

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Optimization Tips

from django.core.cache import cache
from django.views.decorators.cache import cache_page

class CohortAnalysisView(UnfoldModelAdminViewMixin, TemplateView):
    # Cache cohort data for 1 hour
    
    def get_context_data(self, **kwargs):
        cache_key = 'cohort_analysis_data'
        cohort_data = cache.get(cache_key)
        
        if cohort_data is None:
            cohort_data = self.generate_cohort_data()
            cache.set(cache_key, cohort_data, 3600)  # 1 hour
        
        # Use cached data
        # ...
  • Table - Display cohort data in tables
  • Tracker - Visualize retention as heatmaps
  • Chart - Line charts for retention curves
  • Card - Organize cohort views

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External Resources

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