Is device_id, user_id and distinct_id all tied to the same person?
Is device_id, user_id and distinct_id all tied to the same person?
Is device_id, user_id and distinct_id all tied to the same person?
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Short answer: they can be, if identity management is implemented correctly.- Before login, events use only $device_id (anonymous). After you identify a user (identify(<user_id> ) or by sending $user_id with $device_id), Mixpanel merges those IDs into one identity cluster. From then on, events sent with any of those IDs resolve to the same person in Mixpanel (i.e., $device_id, $user_id, and the canonical distinct_id all map to one user) (Identity Management Overview). - In Simplified ID Merge, when an event first contains both $device_id and $user_id, they’re merged, and distinct_id is set to $user_id; anonymous events with just $device_id use $device_id as distinct_id until identified (Identifying Users — Simplified, Understanding Simplified, Canonical distinct_id — Simplified). - In Original ID Merge, IDs are merged via identify/merge events, and Mixpanel may choose either the device ID or your user ID as the canonical distinct_id (not configurable), but all IDs in the cluster still represent the same user (Identifying Users — Original, FAQ). Important caveats: - If you don’t call identify/reset correctly (e.g., shared devices without reset), different people can be merged into one cluster; conversely, inconsistent IDs across sources can create duplicate users (Troubleshooting FAQ). - Always use a stable, unchanging user ID for $user_id (e.g., database ID) (Simplified FAQ).
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