Validate Pixel Installation

Emily Truong

October 21, 2025 00:05

Overview

Verifying your pixel installation is a crucial final step. This guide will walk you through how to confirm that your pixel is installed and firing correctly without any technical expertise.

While this article is written for Google Chrome (using Chrome DevTools), the process is similar in Firefox and Safari. Share this with your team or use it yourself.

Select the pixel you're verifying from the drop-down menus below.

GroundTruth Pixel | Web Engagement

Navigate to the page where the pixel has been placed
Right-click anywhere on the page and select Inspect. This will split the browser page into multiple panels where one is the webpage and another is showing the HTML source code.
In the panel showing the HTML source code, got to the Network tab.
Refresh/reload the page.
Once the page is fully loaded, use the filter function () and input pixel.v1.js in the Network tab’s search bar.
If pixel.v1.js populates as a result and returns the 200 status code (shown in the below screenshot) OR 304 status code, this indicates that the pixel is successfully firing.

Conversion Pixel & Site Retargeting Pixel

Navigate to the page where the pixel has been placed
Right-click anywhere on the page and select Inspect. This will split the browser page into multiple panels where one is the webpage and another is showing the HTML source code.
In the panel showing the HTML source code, click on the Network tab.
Refresh/reload the page.
Once the page is fully loaded, use the filter function ()and input xad in the Network tab’s search bar.
If xad populates as a result and returns the 200 status code (shown in the below screenshot) OR 304 status code, this indicates that the pixel is successfully firing.

FAQ

What's the difference between seeing a 200 (OK) and a 304 (Not Modified) status code? Both are good! They both mean the pixel is firing successfully. The code just tells you how it was loaded.
- 200 (OK): A "fresh" download. The browser successfully requested and downloaded the pixel from the server.
- 304 (Not Modified): A "fast" load. The browser asked the server if the pixel had changed since it last downloaded it. The server said "no," so the browser loaded the pixel instantly from its local cache (memory).
What happens if I use the "Search" function () instead of the "Filter" function () in the Network tab? While "Search" can find the text, it is not recommended because it can give you a false positive. It searches inside the content of all files, not just the file names. Therefore, it might find the word you're trying to check for (e.g. "pixel") in your website's main HTML, which doesn't prove that the pixel itself successfully fired as a separate request.
- Filter Bar (Correct, Recommended Function): Hides all requests that don't match your term. When you type in your key text and reload the page, you will see a short, clean list of only the pixel requests that match your key text, giving you a simple "yes" or "now" answer.
- Search (Not Recommended Function): Keeps all network requests visible and only highlights the searched key text. You'll then have to manually hunt for the highlighted text in a potentially massive list.

Not Seeing the Pixel?

Pixel Not Firing At All

Check GTM trigger configuration (regex syntax errors are common)
Confirm regex is anchored properly (^ at start, .* at end if needed)
If you see a blocked status instead of 200, this may be due to a security setting on the website preventing the pixel from loading correctly. To resolve this, update your site's security policy to include / whitelist *.groundtruth.com.

Pixel Firing Too Broadly

Narrow regex scope (e.g., target /thank-you instead of the entire domain)

Conversion Still Missing

Follow all above steps in an Incognito window.
Confirm no ad-blockers are preventing pixel firing
Cross-check conversion events in analytics platform vs. GTM logs
Review our in-depth pixel installation documentation to make sure each step was followed correctly.
Consult your web developer to help ensure the pixel code is correctly integrated with your website’s specific platform and code.

If using Google Tag Manager, here are a few additional steps you can take:

Always test using GTM's Preview/Debug Mode
Validate that the pixel fires on:
- The base URL
- The same URL with query parameters (e.g., ?rid=abc123)
For extra confidence, test with tools like Tag Assistant (Google Chrome extension)
Remember to Submit your Workspace changes to push everything live.

Still stuck? Please reach out to selfservehelp@groundtruth.com to be connected with a representative who can provide further troubleshooting assistance.