See exactly what your users did
Replay any user session to see clicks, scrolls, and interactions. Privacy controls built in. Loaded async so it never slows down your site.
- Unlimited replays
- 30-day retention
- Privacy controls built in
- Async—zero bundle bloat
What is session replay?
Session replay lets you watch a structured recording of what a real user did during a visit to your site or app. You see every click, scroll, form interaction, and page navigation—played back in order.
Most analytics tools tell you what happened in aggregate: 40% of users dropped off at step 2. Session replay shows you why: you can watch someone struggle with a confusing form label, miss a button, or hit an error state you didn't know existed.
OpenPanel session replay is built on rrweb, an open-source recording library. It captures DOM mutations and user interactions as structured data—not video. This matters because:
- Privacy is easier to manage — you control exactly what gets recorded with CSS selectors, not hoping a video blur is accurate
- Storage is efficient — structured data compresses far better than video
- Playback is instant — no buffering or waiting for video to load
Session replay in OpenPanel is opt-in and off by default. When disabled, the replay script is never loaded and adds zero bytes to your page. When enabled, the recorder is fetched asynchronously as a separate script, so your main analytics bundle stays lean regardless.
Privacy controls are first-class:
- All inputs masked by default — form field values are never recorded
- Block any element with a data attribute or CSS selector
- Mask specific text without blocking the surrounding layout
- Ignore interactions on sensitive elements
Replays are linked to sessions, events, and user profiles. When a user reports a bug, you can pull up their session in seconds and see exactly what happened—no need to ask them to reproduce it.
What you get with session replay
Everything you need to understand real user behavior, with privacy controls built in from the start.
Full session playback
Replay any recorded session from start to finish. See clicks, scrolls, form interactions, and navigation in the exact order they happened.
Linked to events and profiles
Replays are tied to the user's session, event timeline, and profile. Jump from a funnel drop-off directly to the replay for context.
Input masking by default
All form field values are masked out of the box. You see that a user typed something—not what they typed. Disable per-field if needed.
Block and mask controls
Block entire elements from recording with a data attribute or CSS selector. Mask specific text. Ignore interactions on sensitive areas.
Async loading—zero bundle impact
The replay module loads as a separate async script. When replay is disabled it's never fetched. When enabled it doesn't block your main bundle.
Unlimited replays, 30-day retention
No cap on the number of sessions recorded. Every replay is stored for 30 days and available for playback at any time.
How session replay works
Enable it once and every qualifying session is recorded automatically.
Enable replay in your init config
Set `sessionReplay: { enabled: true }` in your OpenPanel init options. That's all the configuration required to start recording.
The replay script loads asynchronously
When a session starts, OpenPanel fetches the replay module (`op1-replay.js`) as a separate async script. It doesn't block page load or inflate your main bundle.
Interactions are captured and sent in chunks
The recorder captures DOM changes and user interactions and sends them to OpenPanel in small chunks every 10 seconds and on page unload.
Replay any session from the dashboard
Open any session in the dashboard and hit play. The replay reconstructs the user's exact experience. Jump to specific events from the timeline.
Who uses session replay
Teams that need to understand real user behavior beyond what metrics alone can show.
Product teams
When the data says users drop off at a specific step, session replay shows you exactly why. See confusion, missed CTAs, and error states you didn't know existed.
Support and success teams
When a user reports a bug or a confusing experience, pull up their session replay in seconds. You see what they saw—no need to ask them to reproduce it.
Privacy-conscious teams
Input masking is on by default. Block sensitive UI with a data attribute. You get the behavioral insight without recording personal data.
Related features
Explore more capabilities that work together with this feature.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about session replay with OpenPanel.
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