> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.noxus.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Best Practices

> Guidelines for reading analytics well and finding the cause behind a change

Follow these practices to read the numbers correctly, find what is behind a change, and share what you found.

## Reading the Numbers

| Practice | What to Do | Why It Matters |
| :- | :- | :- |
| **Match the period to the question** | Use **Current billing cycle** for anything about limits and charges, and a rolling period such as **Past 30 days** for trends | Billing cycles are what your plan counts; rolling periods compare like with like |
| **Read the badge with its tooltip** | Hover over a change badge to see the period it compares with | A partial day or cycle is compared with the same part of the one before, not the whole of it |
| **Check for estimates** | Look for an asterisk on a cost, and hover over it | Calls still running or without a usage report are counted at their expected cost until their tokens are known |
| **Expect a gap with your invoice** | Compare totals with your provider's bill as a guide, not to the cent | Costs are the reported tokens at catalogue rates, not what the provider charged you |
| **Watch the time zone on short periods** | Pick your time zone for **Today** and **Yesterday** | Days start at that zone's midnight; longer periods are always UTC days |
| **Look at failures, not only volume** | Read **Success rate** and **Failed replies** beside runs and conversations | A busy flow that fails often costs more than it seems |

## Finding the Cause

| Practice | What to Do | Why It Matters |
| :- | :- | :- |
| **Start wide, then narrow** | Begin on **All analytics** or **Usage and cost**, then open the board that moved | Each card tells you which area changed before you dig |
| **Click to filter** | Click the flow, agent, user or model at the top of a breakdown | Every widget then answers for that one value |
| **Zoom into a spike** | Click a tall bar, or drag across several, in an over-time chart | The page narrows to that hour or day, with finer grouping |
| **Go to the source** | Right click a value and open its own analytics, then a single run's **Metrics** tab | The cost of one run, node by node, shows what to change |
| **Compare versions** | Filter a flow's or agent's Analytics tab by **Version** | Shows whether a change made it faster, cheaper or more reliable |

## Sharing and Exporting

| Practice | What to Do | Why It Matters |
| :- | :- | :- |
| **Share the link** | Copy the page's address after setting the period and filters | The link opens on the same view for whoever has access |
| **Export what you show** | Use **Export** for the whole board, or a widget's menu for one | The CSV has the same period and filters as the page |

## Common Issues and Solutions

> [accordion] A board is empty or shows zeros
>
> * **Wrong workspace**: boards read the workspace you are in. Switch workspace, or use **Settings › Analytics** for every workspace.
> * **Period too short**: widen it, for example to **Past 30 days**.
> * **A filter is active**: remove the chips above the widgets.
> * **Just ran**: numbers update within a minute.

> [accordion] A number doesn't match another page
>
> * **Billing**: Settings › Billing always shows the current billing cycle; analytics shows the period you pick. See [Why a figure can differ](https://docs.noxus.ai/platform/analytics/billing.md#why-a-figure-can-differ-from-the-billing-page).
> * **Recorded overage** always covers the whole organization, whatever workspace is selected.
> * **Deleted runs and conversations** are not counted.

> [accordion] A widget says not applicable
>
> * The widget's number can't be narrowed by one of the active filters, for example a knowledge base number filtered by flow. Remove that filter to see it.

> [accordion] I only see My usage
>
> * Your role doesn't include **View workspace analytics**. Ask a workspace admin to add it.

> [accordion] The time zone can't be changed
>
> * The period is longer than two days, so it is read in UTC. Pick two days or less to choose a zone.


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