What is the difference between the getRowCount method and the Approximate count distinct function?

getRowCount:

The getRowCount method retrieves the total number of rows returned by an API request (i.e., the number of lines matching the query).

You can use it in Data Query 3 by clicking Display number of rows in the bottom-right corner of the interface.

Use getRowCount when you need to know how many rows a query would return (for example, to estimate result size) rather than retrieving the full dataset.

You can also replace the getData function from your API call:

CODE

https://api.atinternet.io/v3/beta/data/getData?...

With the getRowCount function:

CODE

https://api.atinternet.io/v3/beta/data/getRowCount?...

Your call will then retrieve only one piece of information, indicating the number of lines in the request.

Approximate count distinct:

The Approximate count distinct function returns the approximate number of different non-null values for a property.

This function is based on an algorithm intended to make distinct counting feasible on large datasets, where exact distinct counts can be computationally expensive. The result has a typical 2% margin of error.

Applying Approximate count distinct produces a metric whose value is the result of the function (an estimated distinct count).

Use Approximate count distinct when you want to estimate how many unique values exist for a property (for example, unique users, unique IDs, unique page URLs) without computing an exact distinct count.