Audience analysis

“Audience analysis” answers questions about the channel's subscribers: how many there are and how fast the number grows, how many people come and go, where they come from, whether growth is honest, how many subscribers actually read the posts and when. The tab is useful both for an advertiser (is the audience alive) and for the owner (what keeps people around).

Where to find it

Open the channel page and click the “Audience analysis” tab (the tab address is …/channels/<channel name>/#audience). The tab is calculated when you open it — for large channels this can take a few seconds. All blocks with made-up data are on the demo page https://max.datool.ru/demo/#audience.

At the top is the period row 7 days · 30 days · 90 days · Year · All time · Custom dates; the tab opens on 7 days. A guest can use “7 days”, after free sign-up “30 days” is added, the channel owner and subscribers get all periods; “Custom dates” requires a “Premium” or “Business” subscription. Chart steps: up to 31 days — by day, 90 days — by week, year and all time — by month. The change is versus the same previous period (All time has no comparison). More in How the channel page works.

Two kinds of data: for all channels and for verified ones

We know the end-of-day subscriber count for every channel. But who exactly subscribed and unsubscribed, when each subscriber joined and when they last opened MAX is reported by MAX only to the channel's admin bot. So this data exists only for channels whose owner verified the channel through the datool.ru bot (and that have no more than 100,000 subscribers). We store only the subscriber's MAX number and timestamps — no names.

What this means on the page:

• The “Retention of new subscribers”, “Subscriber tenure” and “Active and dormant subscribers” blocks and the “Subscribed”, “Unsubscribed”, “Left vs. joined” and “Online in MAX in the last day” tiles are shown for an unverified channel as a blurred example with an “Available once the channel is verified via the bot” badge. A subscription will not unlock them — nobody has this data.
• The “Subscribes and unsubscribes by day” and “Subscribes, unsubscribes and what happened on those days” blocks are built for an unverified channel from the daily change in the subscriber count and look the same, but show the difference in counts instead of people. Under the chart there is an explanation and an “I own this channel” button.
• Separate subscribes and unsubscribes are counted from the day the channel was verified.

Key audience figures

Eight tiles with the essentials about subscribers for the period. Each has the number, a change badge versus the previous period, a line next to it and a mini chart by period point (hover to see a point's number).

How to read it. “≈ as before” means the number changed by less than 1%. For “Left vs. joined” growth is bad (the badge is red). If there is no same previous period, the tiles are followed by “There is no same previous period — nothing to compare with.”

Example. “Left vs. joined 49%” means 49 old subscribers left for every 100 new ones. The channel is growing, but it has to keep attracting new people. Above 60%, growth relies entirely on constant acquisition.

Subscriber growth

What it shows. A row of numbers: subscribers now, the net for the period and growth in percent, the daily average, the best and worst day (a week for 90 days, a month for a year). Below is a filled line of subscribers at the end of each point. Circles with a number mark the points with the largest gain (green) and the largest loss (red). The gray dashed line shows where the channel would be if it had grown as in the same previous period.

How to read it. The line above the dashed one means the channel grows faster than before; below it — slower. If no point had a loss, there is a phrase saying there were no days with losses instead of a mark.

How it is calculated. From the end-of-day subscriber count. An incomplete week or month at the end of the period (shorter than half of a full one) is not picked as best or worst. If the channel is verified, the point's tip also shows how many subscribed and unsubscribed.

Who can see it: everyone.

Subscribes and unsubscribes by day

What it shows. At the top are the totals: subscribed, unsubscribed, net for the period and “left vs. joined”. On the chart a green bar up is how many subscribed, a red bar down is how many unsubscribed, and the dark line with dots is the net (change in the subscriber count). The tallest green and the deepest red bars are labeled.

For an unverified channel the chart looks the same, but the green and red bars are “subscribers gained” and “subscribers lost” per day (the difference between end-of-day counts, not the number of people), and there is no “left vs. joined” share. Under the chart is an explanation and an “I own this channel” button. If the channel was verified inside the period, days before verification are pale change bars and days after are separate subscribes and unsubscribes.

Example. Even green bars and equally even red ones are a channel's normal life. A tall green bar is an inflow after an ad or a mention; a tall red one is an outflow — check what the channel posted that day.

Who can see it: after signing in (free).

Where new subscribers came from

What it shows. How many people came in the period (with the change versus the previous one) and a share bar of three sources:

• Found on their own — MAX search, catalogs, links outside MAX;
• Reposts and links — other channels shared a post or a link to the channel;
• Ads in other channels — the channel was mentioned in another channel's ad post.

At the bottom: “Through other channels — N%, of which via ads — M”. A verified channel also has a line showing how many people from each source are still there after 30 days.

How it is calculated. MAX does not report where each subscriber came from, so the split is probable. First we calculate a “usual day” — how many people come on days without mentions of the channel. On the day the channel is mentioned by another channel and the following day, the inflow above a usual day is split between that day's mentions (ad, or repost and link). The rest is “found on their own”. For an unverified channel the net gain is used instead of subscribes (labeled as based on net growth).

Example. If 70% found the channel on their own while ads brought almost nothing, the channel has good organic discovery, and ads should be placed in other channels.

Who can see it: “Premium” and “Business” subscribers.

Growth integrity

What it shows. Five checks from the “Growth integrity” group of the quality index over the last 30 days (they do not depend on the selected period) and an overall traffic light: green — “Growth looks natural” (all checks fine), yellow — “Something to look at” (one check needs attention), red — “Growth is worth checking” (two or more).

Each check shows its value on the right (for example, the largest daily gain).

How to read it. “Attention” is a reason to look at the day more closely, not an accusation of fake subscribers. If there are fewer than 7 days of subscriber history, the block says how many more days the checks need instead.

Who can see it: after signing in (free).

Subscribes, unsubscribes and what happened on those days

What it shows. The green line is subscribed, the red line is unsubscribed, by period point. Numbered circles are inflow waves: days when twice as many people subscribed as on a usual day (and at least 5 more). Dots under the axis are days with the channel's own ad posts. Under the chart is a list of waves: the date, “+N” subscribes and what happened that day and the day before — an “Ad in another channel” or “Repost or link” chip, the name of the channel that mentioned it, its subscribers and what exactly it was (an ad post, a repost, a link). Up to 8 of the largest waves are shown.

How it is calculated. The precision is one day: the subscriber list is updated once a day, so the link between a wave and a post or mention is probable. For an unverified channel “subscribers gained / lost” from the daily count change are shown instead of people.

Example. A wave on September 22 with “+587”, and RIA Novosti reposted the channel that day — a repost by a large channel brought almost 600 people.

Who can see it: the channel owner and “Premium” and “Business” subscribers.

Retention of new subscribers

What it shows. Four tiles:

• Still here after a week and after a month — the share of people who joined after the channel was verified and are still in the channel after 7 and 30 days. The mini line shows how the share changes day by day. Only people whose period has already passed are counted; if there are fewer than 20 of them, a dash is shown instead of the number.
• Those who left stayed on average — how long people who unsubscribed in the period had been in the channel.
• Came back after unsubscribing — how many people subscribed again after leaving.

Example. “Still here after a week 85%, after a month 69%, then almost nobody leaves” — people who have stayed a month stay for a long time; the main loss is in the first days.

Who can see it: only for channels with a verified owner — the channel owner and “Premium” and “Business” subscribers. An unverified channel shows the “Available once the channel is verified via the bot” badge.

Subscriber tenure

What it shows. How long current subscribers have been with the channel:

• Half of subscribers have stayed — the median tenure: half joined no later than the given month;
• Joined in the last 30 days — how many current subscribers are new, and their share;
• Old-timers — over a year;
• Most still here joined in — the month of joining from which the most people are still in the channel.

How it is calculated. From the join time of each current subscriber — MAX gives it to the bot for all time, even before verification. The block does not depend on the selected period. At the bottom is when the subscriber list was last updated.

Example. If more than 20% are old-timers, the channel has a loyal core. If almost everyone joined in the last month, the channel recently grew sharply (check Growth integrity).

Who can see it: only for channels with a verified owner; after signing in (free).

Active and dormant subscribers

What it shows. When current subscribers last opened MAX:

• Active — opened it within the last week;
• Fading — last time between a week and a month ago;
• Dormant — have not opened it for more than a month;
• Unknown — the person hid their “online” status in MAX settings.

Each group has a share and a number of people, plus a badge comparing it with the median of similar channels with a verified owner: green — in the good direction, red — in the bad one.

How to read it. This is opening MAX in general, not reading this particular channel. Many dormant subscribers (over 20%) means part of the audience has not used MAX for a long time, and real reach will be lower than the subscriber count.

Who can see it: only for channels with a verified owner; after signing in (free).

Live audience share

What it shows. The big number is the live share (ERR) for the period with the change in percentage points. A phrase says a regular post is seen by about N out of 100 subscribers and whether that is higher or lower than X of Y similar channels. On the scale, gray dots are similar channels, the dashed line is their median, and the highlighted dot is this channel.

How it is calculated. Live share = average post reach ÷ subscribers × 100%, from posts older than two days. The scale and the comparison cover the last 30 days (similar channels come from the Similar channels tab) so that the comparison is fair. More about ERR: Key metrics.

Example. “About 27 out of 100, higher than 10 of 10 similar channels” — the channel has one of the liveliest audiences in its group.

Who can see it: after signing in (free). The block exists for all channels.

Posts by reach

What it shows. A histogram: horizontally — post reach as a percentage of subscribers on the publication day, vertically — how many posts reached it. Three dashed marks and tiles under the chart:

• Core — 9 posts out of 10 reach this: this many people see even a weak post;
• Regular post — the median;
• Strong post — only every tenth post reaches this.

Each mark shows a share and an approximate number of people.

How it is calculated. Posts of the period older than two days, excluding ads. Post reach = views ÷ the channel's subscribers on the publication day × 100%. With fewer than 10 posts the block says there is too little data.

Example. A core of 14% for a channel with 48,000 subscribers means about 6,700 people see any post. An advertiser can count on at least that number.

Who can see it: the channel owner and “Premium” and “Business” subscribers. The block exists for all channels.

Where the channel stands among similar ones

What it shows. The channel and up to ten most similar channels on five measures over the last 30 days: subscriber growth, live share, churn, “online in MAX in the last day” and the quality index. Each measure has a bar: the worst value on the left, the best on the right (for churn too — lower is better, so “better” is always on the right). Ticks are similar channels, the dashed line is their median, the dot is this channel. Above the bar are the channel's value, the median and the rank (“4th of 11”).

How it is calculated. Similar channels come from the Similar channels tab. Churn and “online in the last day” exist only for channels with a verified owner; for an unverified channel these measures show “no data — the channel owner is not verified”.

Example. The channel is first by live share but fifth of six by churn — it is read well, but new subscribers leave more often than at competitors.

Who can see it: “Premium” and “Business” subscribers.

When the audience reads

What it shows. A “weekday × hour” heat map (Moscow time): the number in a cell is the average reach of posts published on that weekday and hour, as a percentage of subscribers. The more saturated the color, the higher the reach. The three best times are outlined in green and named under the map, together with the average share of subscribers who see a post.

How it is calculated. Posts from the last 90 days older than two days, excluding ads — the selected period does not affect the map. A cell with a single post is not colored (a “·” dot) — one post is not enough to draw conclusions. The best times are chosen among cells with at least two posts. With fewer than 10 posts the block says there is too little data.

Example. “Posts published on Thursday at 05:00 are read best” — an early morning post is first in the feed and collects more views.

Who can see it: “Premium” and “Business” subscribers.

Channel records

What it shows. Records for the whole observation period (they do not depend on the selected period): best day (the largest gain and who mentioned the channel that day), most subscriptions in a day (verified channels only, from the verification day), best week (7 days in a row), best month (a full calendar month, with growth in percent), longest growth streak (from 3 days) and worst day.

Who can see it: after signing in (free).

What it means for you

What it shows. Conclusions in words on three tabs: “For subscribers” (is the channel alive and is its growth honest), “For advertisers” (how many people really read it, when and who), “For the owner” (what to fix). Each has up to five phrases by importance: a green check mark “Good”, an orange “!” — something to look at, a blue “i” — for reference.

How it is calculated. The phrases are built by rules from this tab's numbers, without AI, and only from blocks open to you: if a block is locked, its conclusion is not shown. A conclusion with too little data is not shown.

Who can see it: after signing in (free).

Who sees what

Locked blocks are shown as a blurred example on made-up data — more in How the channel page works.

What's next

• Ownership verification — how to unlock separate subscribes and unsubscribes for your channel.
• Mentions — who brings subscribers.
• Similar channels — who the channel is compared with.
• Quality index — where the Growth integrity checks come from.