Frequently Asked Questions Modifying Your Flag Counter

Which websites can Flag Counter be used on?

You can put a Flag Counter on practically any site. All that is required is that the site supports images. Flag Counter is a simple image!
Do people have to click my Flag Counter for it to add a visitor?

No, anyone who views your Flag Counter image has already been counted.
What is the Flag Counter Management section and how do I get there?

The Flag Counter Management section allows you to control additional settings and features related to your counter. You will only have access if you chose to register your counter when you created it, by supplying your email address. To get there, simply click on your counter and follow the "Flag Counter Management" link in the top right corner. This link is specific to your counter, so there is not a general login page.
Will my own visits to my site be counted in my Flag Counter?

You can choose to set a cookie in your browser that will prevent your own visits from being counted. Otherwise, by default, a unique user will be counted once per day. You can also choose for a repeat visitor to be counted every 8 hours, every 3 days, or once a week.

To set a cookie so that your own visits won't be counted, visit the Flag Counter Management section for your counter. Or, if you did not register your counter, scroll to the very bottom of the first page reached after clicking on your counter image, and click the small "Ignore this browser" link at the very bottom of the page.
What is the difference between "visitors" and "pageviews"? When is someone a visitor?

It is your choice as to when someone is counted as a "visitor". Someone can add a visit one every 8 hours, every 24 hours, every 3 days, or once per week depending on your preferences. The default is once per 24 hours.

On the other hand, each and every time your counter is loaded it adds a pageview. Therefore, if someone "reloaded" the page after a few minutes, they would add a pageview but not be a new visitor (and not add a new flag). If they returned the next day, they would be a new visitor and add a flag (unless your repeat visitor preference is 3 days or 7 days).
I lost my Flag Counter code! What do I do?

If you registered your counter, search your email for your counter's information. Otherwise, if you happen to know the address of your statistics page, please follow our Modifying Your Flag Counter instructions to regenerate your HTML code.

If you do not have your Flag Counter code or the address of your statistics page, try checking the Internet for cached versions of your site that may contain your counter. A good place to start is CachedPages.com.
Can I remove the Flag Counter Logo from my Flag Counter?

We offer a Flag Counter Pro service that is very affordable. Not only will it remove the logo, but it will unlock many additional features. Just click on your Flag Counter and follow the "Upgrade" link for all the details.
How do I collect regional flags?

Free counters allow you to collect regional flags from the United States and Canada. You can collect even more regional flags with our Flag Counter Pro service. To upgrade, follow the "Upgrade" link on the top right of any of your statistics pages. Flag Counter Pro users have the ability to collect regional flags from dozens of additional countries, and your subscription will unlock several neat additional features.
How often is my Flag Counter updated?

Changes to your statistics page (the page someone reaches after they click on your counter) are in real time. In order to maximize our resources, the Flag Counter image that appears on your site, however, is delayed by approximately 5 minutes (except with Flag Counter Pro).
I know that someone from _________ visited my site, why aren't they showing on my counter?

Please ensure that you have added your counter code to every page of your site. It's likely this person visited a page where your counter isn't installed. We can only count a visitor who loads the Flag Counter image. If they can't see the image, we can't see them.

If you can see their visit after clicking on your counter, but not on your page, you likely want to increase your "maxflags" value. Learn more below.
How do you know what country a visitor is from?

We use an advanced geolocation technology with a regularly updated database, offering over 99% accuracy in the identification of countries.

This product includes GeoLite2 data created by MaxMind, available from http://www.maxmind.com.
Will you delete my counter if my website isn't very active?

We remove counters from our service that haven't logged a new visitor in over 30 days (unless you have Flag Counter Pro). This helps ensure that our resources are saved for customers who are using our service.
What are the "+" icons next to my country names?

The "+" icon allows you to expand your visitor details to show you what part of the country your visitors are coming from. Free Flag Counters allow you to collect regional flags from the United States and Canada. You can collect over 2,000 additional regions with an upgrade to Flag Counter Pro.
I chose 50 flags, why aren't there any showing on my counter?

Our service only adds a new flag after someone from that country has visited you. You will start out with no flags, but the first time you view your counter, your own country's flag will be added. Want to spread the word about your new Flag Counter? The "Request Flags" section of the Flag Counter Forum is a great place to start your collection of flags by posting a link to your site.
I added my Flag Counter to two different sites, but they both say the same thing now. What is wrong?

You must be sure to generate a second Flag Counter code if you want your second site to have its own count. If you add the same code to multiple locations, the visitors will all be added together.
Why am I being limited to 12 flags on my counter?

When you generated your Flag Counter, you chose a maximum number of flags to be shown. Many people prefer to only show several of their top countries. However, this can be increased at any time. The simplest way is to examine your Flag Counter code, and change "maxflags_12" to "maxflags_100" (or whatever number you would like it to be, up to 255). Please refer to the Modifying Your Flag Counter section for further details.
I have an SSL encrypted page, can I use Flag Counter without a warning message from my browser?

Yes, we support SSL. You may need to use your counter's Regenerate HTML tool to take advantage of this if you have an older counter code, or you can manually change the "http" in your code to "https".
How do I upgrade to Flag Counter Pro?

Flag Counter Pro offers many features that are not available on our free counters. To view the complete details and upgrade now, follow the "Upgrade" link in the top right corner of your statistics page (the page reached after clicking on your Flag Counter). Our affordable $29.99 annual fee is payable via Paypal or any major credit card, and both will instantly upgrade your counter.
How do I cancel my Flag Counter Pro subscription?

We're sorry you want to cancel. If there's anything we can help you with, please get in touch! If you used a credit card, you can cancel at any time in the Flag Counter Management section. If you used Paypal, log in to your Paypal account. Click the History link under the "My Account" tab at the top of the page. If you do not see your subscription below, expand the dates to include when you first subscribed, and then under More filters choose Subscriptions. Click the Details link next to your subscription payment, and then the Cancel Subscription button.
How can I close my Flag Counter account?

You don't have to do a thing. All that you have to do is remove the code that you added to your site. Eventually, your counter will be terminated for inactivity. We're sorry to see you go!

Please note that Flag Counter Pro accounts are not subject to termination for inactivity, and remain active as long as your subscription is in good standing.

Modifying Your Flag Counter

We've made it very simple to make changes to your Flag Counter. You can change your counter's colors, add columns, and much more, at any time. If you have an unregistered Flag Counter, on the bottom of any of your statistics pages (reached after clicking on your counter) there is a "Regenerate HTML" link. If you've registered your Flag Counter, log in to the Flag Counter Management section to find the "Regenerate Flag Counter" link. Just follow that link and you'll be modifying your existing Flag Counter, and can update all of your colors and settings choices, or even switch between Flag Counter versions. When you're finished, just swap out your old HTML code with the new code and you'll be all set!

Manual Code Modifications

Advanced Users Only

We have designed our service so that you can change any of your settings instantly, by making simple changes to your Flag Counter code.

Modifying your "Top Countries" Flag Counter

There are currently 9 different variables that can be modified in your code.

When you first created your Flag Counter, we provided you a simple HTML code, with a section similar to what appears below. The part in red is your randomly assigned username, and is specific to your Flag Counter only. Do not change the part in red, and do not use the code below, but use the code you generated on our site.

To proceed, please make a backup copy of your Flag Counter code that you can revert to in case you make a mistake. We will be focusing on the highlighted sections of code. The variables that can be adjusted, and their respective allowed values are included next.

Be very careful not to make any changes to your Flag Counter that do not follow the requirements below, or you will get an error image and your Flag Counter will no longer function correctly! You may only change the parts after the underscore (_) and before the forward slash (/), and it must be done according to the strict requirements that follow.

bg_FFFFFF This is your Flag Counter's background color. This can be any valid 6 digit hex number. For instance, if the background color on your website is #191970 (Midnight blue) and you want it to match, you'll change this part to be "bg_191970"
txt_000000 This is your Flag Counter's text color. This is adjusted in the same manner as the background color.
border_CCCCCC This is your Flag Counter's border color. This is also adjusted in the same manner as the background color.
columns_2 This is the number of columns in your Flag Counter. This can be any number between 1 and 9.
maxflags_12 This is the maximum number of flags shown on your Flag Counter. This can be any number between 1 and 255.
viewers_0 This is the text label on top of your counter. "0" is the default, which will say "Visitors" on the top of your counter. "3" will remove the label entirely. Any other value which includes letters (a-z) or numbers (0-9) is acceptable, as well as plus signs (+) which are converted to spaces, exclamations (!), periods (.), and commas (,). For instance, if you'd like this to say "My Flag Counter!", you'd change this to be "viewers_My+Flag+Counter!".
labels_0 This setting adjusts whether the flags are labeled by their country code, and can be either 0 (off) or 1 (on). When set to 1, each flag is followed by its 2 letter country code.
pageviews_0 This setting adjusts whether a pageview counter is included on your Flag Counter and be be either 0 (off) or 1 (on). When set to 1, a non-unique counter that counts every time the Flag Counter image is displayed to an end user is included on the counter.
flags_0 This setting adjusts whether the number of flags you have collected are shown on your Flag Counter image, and be be either 0 (off) or 1 (on).
percent_0 This setting changes whether you would like the flags of your visitors on your counter to be represented as a percentage, instead of the actual number. This option can be either 0 (off) or 1 (on).

Modifying your "Flag Map" Flag Counter

There are currently 5 different variables that can be modified in your code.

When you first created your Flag Counter, we provided you a simple HTML code, with a section similar to what appears below. The part in red is your randomly assigned username, and is specific to your Flag Counter only. Do not change the part in red, and do not use the code below, but use the code you generated on our site.

size_s This is the size of your Flag Counter image. It is "s" by default (small) but can also be "t", "m", "l" or "xl". (tiny, medium, large, or extra large)
txt_000000 This is your Flag Counter's text color. This can be any valid 6 digit hex number. For instance, if the text color on your website is #191970 (Midnight blue) and you want it to match, you'll change this part to be "txt_191970"
border_CCCCCC This is your Flag Counter's border color. This is also adjusted in the same manner as the text color.
pageviews_0 This setting adjusts whether a pageview counter is included on your Flag Counter and be be either 0 (off) or 1 (on). When set to 1, a non-unique counter that counts every time the Flag Counter image is displayed to an end user is included on the counter.
viewers_0 This is the text label on top of your counter. "0" is the default, which will say "Visitors" on the top of your counter. "3" will remove the label entirely. Any other value which includes letters (a-z) or numbers (0-9) is acceptable, as well as plus signs (+) which are converted to spaces, exclamations (!), periods (.), and commas (,). For instance, if you'd like this to say "My Flag Counter!", you'd change this to be "viewers_My+Flag+Counter!".
flags_0 This setting adjusts whether the number of flags you have collected are shown on your Flag Counter image, and be be either 0 (off) or 1 (on).

Modifying your "Mini" Flag Counter

There are currently 4 different variables that can be modified in your code.

When you first created your Flag Counter, we provided you a simple HTML code, with a section similar to what appears below. The part in red is your randomly assigned username, and is specific to your Flag Counter only. Do not change the part in red, and do not use the code below, but use the code you generated on our site.

bg_FFFFFF This is your Flag Counter's background color. This can be any valid 6 digit hex number. For instance, if the background color on your website is #191970 (Midnight blue) and you want it to match, you'll change this part to be "bg_191970"
txt_000000 This is your Flag Counter's text color. This can be any valid 6 digit hex number. This is adjusted in the same manner as the background color.
border_CCCCCC This is your Flag Counter's border color. This is also adjusted in the same manner as the text color.
flags_0 This setting adjusts whether the number of pageviews is shown on your mini counter (0) or whether the number of flags you have collected should be shown instead (1).