"There's decent traffic, but I can't tell which channel is actually generating revenue." If you run an EC store, this is a familiar problem.
Your cart's admin shows visitor counts and PV, but how much revenue that traffic became is often invisible. Often what should have come from ads gets labelled as "direct traffic," so you can't identify the source. When the source disappears, you misjudge which channel deserves budget.
This article compares four EC carts widely used in Japan — BASE, STORES, Shopify, and Color Me Shop — on "how far you can see, by default, where your sales come from," based on each company's official information.
Contents
TL;DR#
The conclusion first.
- Many carts show "traffic counts" but not "revenue by channel"
- When a checkout moves to another domain, the referrer is lost and shows up as "Direct" in analytics — which throws off channel judgment
- Even among EC carts, how far you can see revenue efficiency by channel varies a lot: BASE shows only traffic shares, Shopify shows revenue by referrer in standard reports, Color Me Shop tracks into the cart, and STORES requires a paid plan
1. Why carts struggle to show revenue by channel#
Conclusion: many carts handle "traffic" and "revenue" on separate screens, so revenue by channel is hard to connect.
There are two main reasons.
First, traffic analysis and revenue analysis are split. Access analytics shows "how many came from where"; revenue analysis shows "what sold for how much." When these live on separate screens, "which channel generated how much revenue" isn't visible at a glance.
Second, loss of the referrer at checkout (turning into Direct). When moving from the cart to payment, some carts switch to a different domain. The original source (search or ads) isn't carried over, and analytics records it as "Direct." Conversions fall into direct because the referral params get dropped.
When these two combine, this happens: ad-driven sales turn into Direct, so a channel that is actually working looks like it produced nothing. Meanwhile a channel that merely got the last click is overvalued. The result is budget sent to the wrong channel. Causes and fixes for rising Direct are covered in The 5 causes of rising GA4 "Direct/(none)" and how to fix them.
2. Comparing 4 Japanese EC carts on channel analytics#
Conclusion: three lenses make the differences clear.
The three lenses to check:
- Does it show traffic channels by default (and at what granularity)?
- Is it resistant to turning into Direct at checkout?
- Can you see revenue efficiency by channel?
Lining up the four carts on these lenses:
| Cart | Traffic channel visibility | Direct-resistance at checkout | Revenue by channel |
|---|---|---|---|
| BASE | Search/Direct/SNS — 3 buckets, share only [1] | Splits easily unless configured | Not shown (sales channel split only) [1] |
| STORES | Source-level analysis (paid plan required) [2] | Splits easily unless configured | Revenue analysis on a paid plan [2] |
| Shopify | Referrer source + the specific domain [3] | Tends to turn into Direct with GA4 | Revenue by referrer in standard reports [4] |
| Color Me Shop | Source + search keyword (standard on paid plans) [5] | Strong — captures even in-cart logs itself [5] | Revenue by source [5] |
There is no universal "best" — it's about fit with what you want to see. Whether "traffic counts are enough" or "I want revenue by channel" changes which cart, or which add-on tool, you need.
3. Reading each of the 4 carts#
Conclusion: even with "analytics included," whether it reaches revenue varies widely.
BASE: The "Data" screen shows traffic sources as a share across three buckets — search engine / direct / SNS. But it doesn't break referrers down finely, and it doesn't show revenue by channel. Revenue is split only by sales channel ("Web / PAY ID app") [1]. To see revenue by channel, you need another route.
STORES: "Data analysis (shop analytics)" lets you see traffic-source-level visits and orders, but that's a feature included in the Standard (paid) plan. The free plan can't use it [2]. Note that visibility changes by plan.
Shopify: Its strength is standard reports. Beyond "sessions by referrer," it shows sales by referrer by default. Sources split into Direct / Search / Email / Social and down to the specific domain [3][4]. One caveat, though: the docs state that the acquisition report shows visitors only — not sales or order counts [3], so misreading the report means mistaking traffic for revenue. And when you add GA4, the checkout runs through a different domain and conversions easily turn into Direct — a pitfall many operators hit. "Visible in the cart admin" and "lost in GA4" coexist, so treat them separately.
Color Me Shop: Its proprietary "Access Plus" tool (standard on paid plans) is the strength. You can see revenue by source (referring site) and cart progression rates. Because it captures even in-cart (SSL page) access logs itself — which others struggle to collect — it's resistant to turning into Direct at checkout [5].
In short: revenue efficiency by channel reaches you by default with Shopify and Color Me Shop; BASE shows traffic shares; STORES requires a paid plan.
4. See revenue efficiency by channel in one view#
Conclusion: what you really want is "how much revenue each channel generates per visit."
When comparing channels, looking only at total revenue favors high-traffic channels. That's where RPS (revenue per session) helps.
RPS = Revenue / Sessions
RPS rolls order value and purchase rate into one number. A high order value with a low purchase rate lowers RPS; a mid order value with a high purchase rate raises it. So "more traffic" doesn't mean "a better channel." For the basics of RPS, see What is RPS: the metric, formula, and how to get it in GA4.
With a cart's standard features alone, seeing this across channels — on a single, consistent yardstick — takes effort. That's exactly why "revenue efficiency by channel in one view" decides your speed of judgment.
RevenueScope's solution
Carts differ in what they show, and the referrer can disappear at checkout. For someone who wants to know "which channel generates revenue" right now, it's a detour. When channels are recorded inconsistently, budget decisions get made off fragmented data rather than actual channel performance. Untangle it, and you often surface the channel that was really working — and can shift budget accordingly.
RevenueScope is a lightweight, revenue-focused dashboard you can use by adding a single tag to GA4. Regardless of the cart, it lines up the four core metrics by channel — Revenue, AOV (average order value), RPS (revenue per session), and CVR (purchase rate) — on one consistent yardstick. Add Sessions, and five KPIs let you decide "which channel to fund next" simply.
RevenueScope's dashboard (demo data shown). Revenue, RPS, AOV, and CVR by channel on one screen.
In the screen above, Google search has the highest order value (AOV 5,000 yen) yet a lower RPS of 125 yen. Email, with a mid order value (AOV 4,600 yen) but a high purchase rate, tops RPS at 345 yen. The reversal — "the highest-AOV channel isn't necessarily the most efficient" — is visible at a glance. Even without expertise, you can decide "fund email next."
That said, RevenueScope doesn't replace your cart's analytics or GA4. Detailed user-behavior analysis is GA4's job; daily revenue-by-channel decisions are RevenueScope's — a complementary fit.
5. FAQ#
Q. Aren't a cart's standard analytics enough?
Often they're enough for traffic counts. But if you want "revenue by channel," some carts require another route.
Q. Why do ad-driven sales become "Direct"?
Because when the checkout moves to a different domain, the original source isn't carried over. Settings (cross-domain measurement and referral exclusions) can improve it, but it takes effort.
Q. If I'm choosing a cart now, which is best?
If you want to see revenue by channel yourself, Shopify and Color Me Shop have strong standard reports; if you want to start simply, BASE and STORES. Ultimately, choose on the assumption that you'll fill any gaps with another tool.
Conclusion#
At a glance EC cart channel analytics all look like "analytics included," but the substance differs a lot. Three points:
- Many carts show "traffic counts" but not "revenue by channel"
- When the referrer is lost to Direct at checkout, channel judgment goes wrong
- Whether you can see revenue efficiency by channel on one consistent yardstick decides your speed of judgment
Do the cart's standard features suffice, or do you fill the gaps with another tool? Coming back to "what do I want to know" is the shortcut.
Related articles#
- Moving budget on last click alone costs you: the right way to read attribution
- The 5 causes of rising GA4 "Direct/(none)" and how to fix them
- What is RPS: the metric, formula, and how to get it in GA4
- Choosing an EC analytics tool: GA4 and free trackers vs a revenue dashboard
References#
- [1] BASE Help "How each number in 'Data' is counted" help.thebase.in 2026
- [2] STORES "Online shop data analysis (features by plan)" stores.fun 2026
- [3] Shopify Help "Acquisition reports" help.shopify.com 2026
- [4] Shopify Help "Sales reports (sales by referrer)" help.shopify.com 2026
- [5] Color Me Shop "Analyze with Access Plus" colorme-shop.com 2026
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