Set up Microsoft Clarity (free website heatmaps)
Organizational setupTools · about 15 min · Charity owners and the volunteer maintaining the website
Microsoft Clarity is free for everyone (no nonprofit gate, no traffic limits) and shows heatmaps and session recordings — where people click, scroll, and get stuck on the charity’s site.
It answers “how are people using the site,” complementing Google Analytics, which answers “how many and from where.”
See what visitors actually do
Clarity records anonymized sessions and aggregates them into heatmaps, so you can see real behavior — the donate button no one finds, the page everyone abandons — and fix it. It’s free and lightweight, so there’s no reason not to run it.
- 1
Create a Clarity project
Go to clarity.microsoft.com, sign in with the charity’s Microsoft account, and create a project for the website (enter the site name and URL).
- 2
Add the tracking code to the site
Clarity gives you a small tracking snippet. Add it to the charity’s site — FFC can install it for you, or follow the prompt if your site supports a direct integration.
- 3
Read heatmaps and recordings
After traffic comes in, review heatmaps and a few session recordings to spot friction, then make small improvements and watch the effect.
Common questions
Is Microsoft Clarity really free?
Yes — Clarity is completely free with no traffic limits, for any organization. There’s no nonprofit application needed.
How is Clarity different from Google Analytics?
They’re complementary. Clarity shows behavior (heatmaps, recordings — the “how”); Google Analytics shows traffic and sources (the “how many” and “where from”). Run both for the full picture.
Next setup guides
Stuck on any step? Text Clarke Moyer at (520) 222-8104 — every step is meant to be simple, so if something doesn't match what you see, ask.