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With the Kameleoon JavaScript SDK, you can run experiments and activate feature flags. Integrating our SDK into your web application is easy, and its footprint (memory and network usage) is low. Getting started: For help getting started, see the developer guide. Changelog: Details on the latest version of JavaScript / TypeScript SDK can be found in the changelog. SDK methods: For the full reference documentation of the JavaScript SDK, see the reference section.

Developer guide

This section will help you get started as well as introduce you to some of the more advanced concepts.

Getting started

Installation

The Kameleoon SDK Installation tool is the best method to install the SDK quickly. The SDK Installer helps you install the SDK of your choice, generate a basic code sample, and configure external dependencies if needed. To use the SDK Installation tool, install and run it globally:
Or run it directly with npx:
You can also inject the JavaScript SDK into your app as a single file using the <script> tag. You can then access all SDK methods using the global object KameleoonSDK.Example:
index.html
app.js
To always use the latest version of a major release, use the following script, where 4 is the current major version:
To always stay on a specific version, specify the full version number instead. For example, for version 4.24.0, which is the earliest version available as a static script, use the following:
Versions can be referenced on the release page.
By default, the static script uses the optimized SDK bundle, where INFO and DEBUG log messages are removed to reduce bundle size.If you use KameleoonLogger.setLogLevel(LogLevel.DEBUG) or KameleoonLogger.setLogLevel(LogLevel.INFO), use the full static script instead.

Initialize the Kameleoon Client

Here is a step-by-step guide for configuring the JavaScript SDK for your application.
To start, developers need to create an entry point for the JavaScript SDK by creating a new instance of Kameleoon Client. Use KameleoonClient to run feature experiments and retrieve the status of feature flags and their variations. KameleoonClient initialization is performed asynchronously to ensure that the Kameleoon API call was successful. For initialization, use the method initialize(). Use async/await, Promise.then() or any other method to handle asynchronous client initialization.
Parameters
Configuration Parameters
Option 1 (Recommended): Use JSON.stringify()
Option 2: Raw JSON string (escape special characters)
Do not use several client instances in one application, as it is not fully supported yet. Several client instances may lead to local storage configuration being overwritten and cause bugs.

Activating a feature flag

Assigning a unique ID to a user
To assign a unique ID to a user, you can use the getVisitorCode() method. If a visitor code doesn’t exist (from the request headers cookie), the method generates a random unique ID or uses a defaultVisitorCode that you would have generated. The ID is then set in a response headers cookie. If you are using Kameleoon in Hybrid mode, calling the getVisitorCode() method ensures that the unique ID (visitor code) is shared between the application file engine.js (previously named, kameleoon.js) and the SDK.
Retrieving a flag configuration
To implement a feature flag in your code, you must first create the feature flag in your Kameleoon account. To determine the status or variation of a feature flag for a specific user, you should use the getVariation() or isFeatureFlagActive() method to retrieve the configuration based on the featureKey. The getVariation() method handles both simple feature flags with ON/OFF states and more complex flags with multiple variations. The method retrieves the appropriate variation for the user by checking the feature rules, assigning the variation, and returning it based on the featureKey and visitorCode. The isFeatureFlagActive() method can be used if you want to retrieve the configuration of a simple feature flag that has only an ON or OFF state, as opposed to more complex feature flags with multiple variations or targeting options. If your feature flag has associated variables (such as specific behaviors tied to each variation) getVariation() also enables you to access the Variation object, which provides details about the assigned variation and its associated experiment. This method checks whether the user is targeted, finds the visitor’s assigned variation, and saves it to storage. When track=true, the SDK will send the exposure event to the specified experiment on the next tracking request, which is automatically triggered based on the SDK’s tracking_interval_millisecond. By default, this interval is set to 1000 milliseconds (1 second). The getVariation() method allows you to control whether tracking is done. If track=false, no exposure events will be sent by the SDK. This is useful if you prefer not to track data through the SDK and instead rely on client-side tracking managed by the Kameleoon engine, for example. Additionally, setting track=false is helpful when using the getVariations() method, where you might only need the variations for all flags without triggering any tracking events. If you want to know more about how tracking works, view this article
Adding data points to target a user or filter / breakdown visits in reports
To target a user, ensure you’ve added relevant data points to their profile before retrieving the feature variation or checking if the flag is active. Use the addData() method to add these data points to the user’s profile. To retrieve data points collected on other devices or to access past user data (collected client-side when using Kameleoon in Hybrid mode), use the getRemoteVisitorData() method. This method asynchronously fetches data from the servers. It is important to call getRemoteVisitorData() before retrieving the variation or checking if the feature flag is active, as this data might be required to assign a user to a given variation. To learn more about available targeting conditions, see the detailed article on the subject. Additionally, the data points you add to the visitor profile will be available when analyzing your experiments, allowing you to filter and break down your results by factors like device and browser. Kameleoon Hybrid mode automatically collects a variety of data points on the client-side, making it easy to break down your results based on these pre-collected data points. See the complete list here. If you need to track additional data points beyond what’s automatically collected, you can use Kameleoon’s Custom Data feature. Custom Data allows you to capture and analyze specific information relevant to your experiments. Don’t forget to call the flush() method to send the collected data to Kameleoon servers for analysis.
To ensure your results are accurate, it’s recommended to filter out bots by using the UserAgent data type.
Tracking goal conversions
When a user completes a desired action (such as making a purchase), it is recorded as a conversion. To track conversions, use the trackConversion() method and provide the required visitorCode and goalId parameters. The conversion tracking request will be sent along with the next scheduled tracking request, which the SDK sends at regular intervals (defined by tracking_interval_millisecond). If you prefer to send the request immediately, use the flush() method with the parameter instant=true.
Sending events to analytics solutions
To track conversions and send exposure events to your customer analytics solution, you must first implement Kameleoon in Hybrid mode. Then, use the getEngineTrackingCode() method. The getEngineTrackingCode() method retrieves the unique tracking code required to send exposure events to your analytics solution. Using this method allows you to record events and send them to your desired analytics platform.

Using a custom bucketing key

By default, Kameleoon uses a unique, anonymous visitor ID (visitorCode) to assign users to feature flag variations. This ID is typically generated and stored on the user’s device (in a browser cookie for client-side and server-side SDKs—in persistent storage for mobile SDKs). However, in certain scenarios you may need to ensure all users of the same organization see the same variant of a feature flag. The Custom Bucketing Key option allows you to override this default behavior by providing your own custom identifier for bucketing. This override ensures that Kameleoon’s assignment logic uses your specified key instead of the default visitorCode.

Use cases

Using a custom bucketing key is essential for maintaining consistency and accuracy in your feature flag assignments, particularly in these situations:
  • Account-level or organizational experiments: For B2B products or scenarios where you want to assign all users from the same organization to the same variation, you can use an identifier like an accountId. Custom bucketing keys are crucial for A/B testing features that impact an entire team or company.
By implementing a custom bucketing key, you ensure greater consistency and accuracy in your experiments, leading to more reliable results and a better user experience.

Technical details

When you configure a custom bucketing key for a feature flag, you provide Kameleoon with a specific identifier from your application’s data:
  • Providing the custom key: You provide your custom identifier to the Kameleoon SDK using the addData() method. In this method, you will pass your chosen custom bucketing key as a CustomData object. Here, newVisitorCode refers to the identifier you wish to use for your bucketing (for example, the new userId or accountId).
For the custom bucketing key to function correctly, it must also be defined and configured for the feature flag during the flag creation or editing process. Without this corresponding configuration, the SDK’s bucketing will not apply your custom key. For detailed instructions on how to set this up in Kameleoon, refer to this article.
  • Bucketing logic: Once a custom bucketing key is provided through the addData() method, all hash calculations for assigning users to variations will use this newVisitorCode (your custom key) instead of the default visitorCode. Using the newVisitorCode means that the bucketing decision is tied to your custom identifier, ensuring consistent assignments across various contexts where that identifier is present.
  • Data tracking and analytics: It’s crucial to note that while the newVisitorCode (your custom key) is used for bucketing decisions, all subsequent data (tracking events and conversions, for example) is sent and associated with the original visitorCode. This separation ensures that your analytics accurately reflect individual user journeys and interactions within your experiment’s broader context, even when bucketing is performed at a higher level (like an account) or across multiple devices/sessions. Your original visitor data remains intact for comprehensive reporting.

Technical requirements

To effectively use a custom bucketing key:
  • The key must be a string.
  • It must be unique for the entity you intend to bucket (for example, if using a userId, each user’s ID should be unique).
  • The key must be available to the SDK at the exact moment the feature flag decision is evaluated for that user or request.

Targeting conditions

The Kameleoon SDKs support a variety of predefined targeting conditions that you can use to target users in your campaigns. For the list of conditions supported by this SDK, see use visit history to target users. You can also use your own external data to target users.

Logging

The SDK generates logs to reflect various internal processes and issues.

Log levels

The SDK supports configuring limiting logging by a log level.

Custom handling of logs

The SDK writes its logs to the console output by default. This behaviour can be overridden.
Logging limiting by a log level is performed apart from the log handling logic.

Domain information

You provide a domain as the domain in the KameleoonClient configuration, which is used for storing Kameleoon visitor code in cookies. Domains are important when working with the getVisitorCode and setLegalConsent methods. The domain you provide is stored in the cookie as the Domain= key.

Setting the domain

The domain you provide indicates if the URL address can use the cookie. For example, if your domain is www.example.com. the cookie is only available from a www.example.com URL. This means pages with the app.example.com domain can’t use the cookie. For more fllexibility with subdomains, you can specify the domain with a period (.). For example, the domain .example.com allows the cookie to function on both app.example.com and login.example.com.
You can’t use regular expressions, special symbols, protocol, or port numbers in the domain. Additionally, a specific list of subdomains can’t be used with the prefix ..
Here’s a small domain cheat sheet:

Developing on localhost

localhost is always considered a bad domain, making testing the domain when developing on localhost difficult. There are two ways to avoid this issue:
  • Don’t specify the domain field in the SDK client while testing.
  • Create a local domain for localhost. For example:
    • Navigate to /etc/hosts on Linux or to c:\Windows\System32\Drivers\etc\hosts on Windows.
    • Open hosts with file super user or administrator rights.
    • Add a domain to the localhost port, for example: 127.0.0.1 app.com
    • Now you can run your app locally on app.com:{my_port} and specify .app.com as your domain

External dependencies

SDK external dependencies use the dependency injection pattern to give you the ability to provide your own implementations for certain parts of an SDK.
In the JavaScript SDK, all external dependencies have default implementations, which use a native browser API so there’s no need to provide them unless another API is required for specific use cases.
Here’s the list of available external dependencies: The following example implements external dependencies. To import an interface from an SDK, create a class that implements the interface and pass the instantiated class to the SDK.

Storage

EventSource

VisitorCodeManager

Requester

Error Handling

Almost every KameleoonClient method may throw an error occassionaly. These errors are deliberately predefined KameleoonErrors that extend the native JavaScript Error class, providing useful messages and special type fields with a type KameleoonException. KameleoonException is an enum containing all possible error types. To know exactly what type of KameleoonException the method may throw, check the Throws section in the method description on this page, or hover over the method in your IDE to see the jsdocs description. Handling errors makes your application more stable and avoids technical issues.

Cross-device experimentation

To support visitors who access an app from multiple devices, Kameleoon allows the synchronization of previously collected visitor data across each of the visitor’s devices and reconciliation of their visit history across devices through cross-device experimentation. Case studies and detailed information on how Kameleoon handles data across devices are available in the article on cross-device experimentation.

Synchronizing custom data across devices

Although custom mapping synchronization is used to align visitor data across devices, it is not always necessary. Below are two scenarios where custom mapping sync is not required: Same user ID across devices If the same user ID is used consistently across all devices, synchronization is handled automatically without a custom mapping sync. It is enough to call the getRemoteVisitorData() method when you want to sync the data collected between multiple devices. Multi-server instances with consistent IDs In complex setups involving multiple servers (for example, distributed server instances), where the same user ID is available across servers, synchronization between servers (with getRemoteVisitorData()) is sufficient without additional custom mapping sync. Customers who need additional data can refer to the getRemoteVisitorData() method description for further guidance. In the below code, it is assumed that the same unique identifier (in this case, the visitorCode, which can also be referred to as userId) is used consistently between the two devices for accurate data retrieval.
If you want to sync collected data in real time, you need to choose the scope Visitor for your custom data.
Device One
Device Two

Using custom data for session merging

Cross-device experimentation allows for combining a visitor’s history across each of their devices (history reconciliation). History reconciliation allows merging different visitor sessions into one. To reconcile visit history, use CustomData to provide a unique identifier for the visitor. For more information, see the dedicated documentation.After cross-device reconciliation is enabled, calling getRemoteVisitorData() with the parameter userId retrieves all known data for a given user.Sessions with the same identifier will always be shown the same variation in an experiment. In the Visitor view of your experiment’s results pages, these sessions will appear as a single visitor.The SDK configuration ensures that associated sessions always see the same variation of the experiment. However, there are some limitations regarding cross-device variation allocation. These limitations are outlined here.Follow the activating cross-device history reconciliation guide to set up your custom data on the Kameleoon platform.Afterwards, you can use the SDK normally. The following methods that may be helpful in the context of session merging:
  • getRemoteVisitorData() with added UniqueIdentifier(true) - to retrieve data for all linked visitors.
  • trackConversion() or flush() with added UniqueIdentifier(true) data - to track some data for specific visitor that is associated with another visitor.
As the custom data you use as the identifier must be set to Visitor scope, you need to use cross-device custom data synchronization to retrieve the identifier with the getRemoteVisitorData() method on each device.
Here’s an example of how to use custom data for session merging.
Login Page
Application Page

Utilities

The SDK has a set of utility methods that you can use to simplify your development process. All methods are represented as static members of KameleoonUtils class.

simulateSuccessRequest

Use the simulateSuccessRequest method to simulate a successful request to the Kameleoon server. It can be useful for custom Requester implementations, when a developer needs to simulate a successful request (for example, disabling tracking).
Parameters
Data type SimulateRequestDataType is defined as follows:
  • RequestType.Tracking - null
  • RequestType.ClientConfiguration - ClientConfigurationDataType
  • RequestType.RemoteData - JSONType
Return value

getCookieValue

Use the getCookieValue method to parse a common cookie string (key_1=value_1; key_2=value_2; ...) and get the value of a specific cookie key. This method is useful when working with a custom implementation of VisitorCodeManager.
Parameters
Return value

Reference

This is the full reference documentation for the Kameleoon JavaScript SDK.

Initialization

initialize()

An asynchronous method for KameleoonClient initialization by fetching Kameleoon SDK related data from server or by retrieving data from local source if data is up-to-date or update interval has not been reached.
  • If the SDK configuration could not be retrieved but there is an older configuration available in SDK storage, the SDK uses the older configuration as a fallback and the initialize does not throw an error.
  • SDK supports an offline mode.
In offline mode if tracking requests from any of the following methods fail due to internet connectivity issues, the SDK automatically resends the request as soon as it detects that the internet connection has been re-established:
Return value
Exceptions thrown

Feature flags and variations

getVariation()

  • 📨 Sends Tracking Data to Kameleoon (depending on the track parameter)
Retrieves the Variation assigned to a given visitor for a specific feature flag. This method takes featureKey as a mandatory argument and track as an optional argument. The track argument is optional and defaults to true. It returns the assigned Variation for the visitor. If the visitor is not associated with any feature flag rules, the method returns the default Variation for the given feature flag. Ensure that proper error handling is implemented in your code to manage potential exceptions.
The default variation refers to the variation assigned to a visitor when they do not match any predefined delivery rules for a feature flag. In other words, it is the fallback variation applied to all users who are not targeted by specific rules. It’s represented as the variation in the “Then, for everyone else…” section in a management interface.
Parameters
An object of type GetVariationParamsType with the following properties:
Return value
Exceptions thrown

getVariations()

  • 📨 Sends Tracking Data to Kameleoon (depending on the track parameter)
  • 🎯 Events: EventType.Evaluation
Retrieves a map of Variation objects assigned to a given visitor across all feature flags. This method iterates over all available feature flags and returns the assigned Variation for each flag associated with the specified visitor. It takes visitorCode as a mandatory argument, while onlyActive and track are optional.
  • If onlyActive is set to true, the method getVariations() will return feature flags variations provided the user is not bucketed with the off variation.
  • The track parameter controls whether or not the method will track the variation assignments. By default, it is set to true. If set to false, the tracking will be disabled.
The returned map consists of feature flag keys as keys and their corresponding Variation as values. If no variation is assigned for a feature flag, the method returns the default Variation for that flag. Proper error handling should be implemented to manage potential exceptions.
The default variation refers to the variation assigned to a visitor when they do not match any predefined delivery rules for a feature flag. In other words, it is the fallback variation applied to all users who are not targeted by specific rules. It’s represented as the variation in the “Then, for everyone else…” section in a management interface.
Parameters
An object of type GetVariationParamsType with the following properties:
Return value
Exceptions thrown

isFeatureFlagActive()

  • 📨 Sends Tracking Data to Kameleoon (depending on the track parameter)
  • 🎯 Events: EventType.Evaluation
The method isFeatureFlagActive() returns a boolean value indicating whether the visitor identified by visitorCode has the specified featureKey active. This method checks for targeting, determines the variation for the visitor, and saves this information to storage. Additionally, it sends a tracking request. There is also an overload of this method that allows you to pass a track parameter, which you can use to disable tracking of the feature evaluation.
Only visitors with an active feature flag must be targetted.
Kameleoon uses tracking to count sessions and visitors when you call certain methods, such as isFeatureFlagActive(), getVariation() or getVariations().Use the default true value for the track parameter when you expose visitors to a variation and need to count them. Set the track parameter to false only if you call these methods before you expose visitors.For example, if you call getVariations() to retrieve all variations before you expose visitors, set the track parameter to false. This setting prevents Kameleoon from prematurely counting a session. You can then trigger tracking later when you explicitly expose the visitor.Kameleoon sends tracking data every second by default. You can configure this interval up to five seconds using the tracking interval configuration option. Kameleoon groups tracking events into a single session as long as the interval between events is less than 30 minutes. If more than 30 minutes elapse between tracking events, Kameleoon counts the events as separate sessions. A visit appears in your reports 30 minutes after the last recorded event in the session.
The isFeatureFlagActive() method evaluates the served variant, not the master flag state. If you exclude rules, the method uses the Then, for everyone else serve default state. If you select Off for this default state, the method always returns false even when the master feature flag is On.
Parameters
There are two overloads available for this method:
  1. Two parameters overload:
This overload is deprecated and will be removed in the next major update. Please use the new overload with an object parameter.
  1. Object parameter overload of type IsFeatureFlagActiveParamsType:
Return value
Exceptions thrown

setForcedVariation()

The method allows you to programmatically assign a specific Variation to a user, bypassing the standard evaluation process. This is especially valuable for controlled experiments where the usual evaluation logic is not required or must be skipped. It can also be helpful in scenarios like debugging or custom testing. When a forced variation is set, it overrides Kameleoon’s real-time evaluation logic. Processes like segmentation, targeting conditions, and algorithmic calculations are skipped. To preserve segmentation and targeting conditions during an experiment, set forceTargeting=false instead.
Simulated variations always take precedence in the execution order. If a simulated variation calculation is triggered, it will be fully processed and completed first.
A forced variation is treated the same as an evaluated variation. It is tracked in analytics and stored in the user context like any standard evaluated variation, ensuring consistency in reporting. The method may throw exceptions under certain conditions (e.g., invalid parameters, user context, or internal issues). Proper exception handling is essential to ensure that your application remains stable and resilient.
It’s important to distinguish forced variations from simulated variations:
  • Forced variations: Are specific to an individual experiment.
  • Simulated variations: Affect the overall feature flag result.
Parameters
An object of type SetForcedVariationParametersType with the following properties:
Exceptions thrown
In most cases, only the basic error, KameleoonException, needs to be handled, as demonstrated in the example. However, if different types of errors require a response, handle each one separately based on specific requirements. Additionally, for enhanced reliability, general language errors can be handled by including Error.

evaluateAudiences()

  • 📨 Sends Tracking Data to Kameleoon
This method evaluates visitors against all available Audiences Explorer segments and tracks those who match. evaluateAudiences() should be called after all relevant visitor data has been set or updated, and just before getting a feature variation or checking a feature flag. This approach ensures that the visitor is evaluated against the most current data available, allowing for accurate audience assignment based on all criteria. After calling this method, you can perform a detailed analysis of segment performance in Audiences Explorer.
Parameters
Exceptions thrown
In most cases, only the basic error, KameleoonException, needs to be handled, as demonstrated in the example. However, if different types of errors require a response, handle each one separately based on specific requirements. Additionally, for enhanced reliability, general language errors can be handled by including Error.

getDataFile()

To evaluate all feature flags, use getVariations(). This method is more efficient than calling DataFile and iterating through flags with getVariation().
Returns the current SDK configuration as a DataFile object.
Return value

Visitor data

getVisitorCode()

The getVisitorCode() method obtains a visitor code from the browser cookie. If the visitor code doesn’t exist, the method generates a random visitor code (or uses the defaultVisitorCode value if you provided one) and sets the new visitor code in a cookie.
The getVisitorCode() method allows you to set simulated variations for a visitor. When cookies (from a request or document) contain the key kameleoonSimulationFFData, the standard evaluation process is bypassed. Instead, the method directly returns a Variation based on the provided data.You can apply simulations in two ways:
  • Automatically (recommended): If using Kameleoon Web Experimentation or the SDK in Hybrid mode, the cookie is created automatically when simulating a variant’s display using the Simulation Panel.
  • Manually: Set the kameleoonSimulationFFData cookie manually.
It’s important to distinguish simulated variations from forced variations:
  • Simulated variations: Affect the overall feature flag result.
  • Forced variations: Are specific to an individual experiment.
⚙️ Manual setupPlease ensure the kameleoonSimulationFFData cookie follows this format:
  • kameleoonSimulationFFData={"featureKey":{"expId":10,"varId":20}}: Simulates the variation with varId of experiment expId for the given featureKey.
  • kameleoonSimulationFFData={"featureKey":{"expId":0}}: Simulates the default variation (defined in the Then, for everyone else in Production, serve section) for the given featureKey.
⚠️ To ensure proper functionality, the cookie value must be encoded as a URI component using a method such as encodeURIComponent.
Parameters
If you don’t provide a defaultVisitorCode and there is no visitor code stored in a cookie, the visitor code will be randomly generated.
Return value
Exceptions thrown

addData()

The addData() method adds targeting data to storage so other methods can use the data to decide whether to target the current visitor. The addData() method does not return any value and does not interact with Kameleoon back-end servers on its own. Instead, all the declared data is saved for future transmission using the flush method. This approach reduces the number of server calls made, as the data is typically grouped into a single server call. Note that the trackConversion method also sends out any previously associated data, just like the flush method. The same is true for the getFeatureFlagVariationKey and getFeatureFlagVariable methods, if an experimentation rule is triggered.
Each visitor can only have one instance of associated data for most data types. However, CustomData is an exception. Visitors can have one instance of associated CustomData per customDataIndex.
  • userAgent data will not be stored in storage like other data, and it will be sent with every tracking request for bot filtration.
  • For the data types you can use for targeting, see the supported targeting conditions.
Parameters
  • kameleoonData is a variadic argument. It can be passed as one or several arguments (see the example).
  • The index or ID of the custom data can be found in your Kameleoon account. Note that this index starts at 0, which means that the first custom data you create for a given site will be assigned 0 as its ID, not 1.
Exceptions thrown
Check the Data Types reference for more details on how to manage different data types.

flush()

flush() takes the Kameleoon data associated with a visitor and schedules the data to be sent in the next tracking request. The time of the next tracking request is defined by the SDK Configuration trackingInterval parameter. Visitor data can be added using the addData and getRemoteVisitorData methods.If you don’t specify a visitorCode, the SDK flushes all of its stored data to the remote Kameleoon servers. If any previously failed tracking requests were stored locally in offline mode, the SDK attempts to send the stored requests before executing the latest request.
If you need to send tracking requests immediately, use flushInstant() — the asynchronous version of flush that returns Promise<void>. You can await it when you need delivery guarantees (for example, before page navigation/unload), or call it without await as a fire-and-forget request:
  • await client.flushInstant(visitorCode) sends tracking requests immediately for a specific visitor and waits for completion
  • await client.flushInstant() sends tracking requests immediately for all visitors and waits for completion
Parameters
Or an object with the type FlushParamsType, containing:
Exceptions thrown

getRemoteData()

The getRemoteData() method returns data that is stored for a specified site code in a remote Kameleoon server. You can use this method to retrieve user preferences, historical data, or any other data relevant to your application’s logic. By storing this data on our highly scalable servers using our Data API, you can efficiently manage massive amounts of data and retrieve it for each of your visitors or users.
Parameters
Return value
Exceptions thrown

getRemoteVisitorData()

getRemoteVisitorData() is an asynchronous method for retrieving Kameleoon Visits Data for the visitorCode from the Kameleoon Data API. The method adds data to storage for other methods to use when making targeting decisions.Data obtained using this is important when you want to:
  • use data collected from other devices.
  • access a user’s history, such as previously visited pages during past visits.
  • use data that is only accessible on the client-side, like datalayer variables and goals that only convert on the front-end.
Read this article for a better understanding of possible use cases.
By default, getRemoteVisitorData() automatically retrieves the latest stored custom data with scope=Visitor and attaches them to the visitor without the need to call the method addData(). It is particularly useful for synchronizing custom data between multiple devices.
Parameters
An object with the type RemoteVisitorDataParamsType containing:
Return value
Exceptions thrown
Using parameters in getRemoteVisitorData()
The getRemoteVisitorData() method offers flexibility, allowing you to define various parameters when retrieving data on visitors. Whether you’re targeting based on goals, experiments, or variations, the same approach applies across all data types.For example, if you want to retrieve data on visitors who completed a goal “Order transaction”, you can specify parameters within the getRemoteVisitorData() method to refine your targeting. For instance, if you want to target only users who converted on the goal in their last five visits, you can set the previousVisitAmount parameter to 5 and conversions to true.The flexibility shown in this example is not limited to goal data. You can use parameters within the getRemoteVisitorData() method to retrieve data on a variety of visitor behaviors.
Here is the list of available VisitorDataFiltersType filters:

getVisitorWarehouseAudience()

getVisitorWarehouseAudience is an asynchronous method that retrieves all audience data associated with the visitor in your data warehouse using the specified visitorCode and warehouseKey. The warehouseKey is typically your internal user ID. The customDataIndex parameter corresponds to the Kameleoon custom data that Kameleoon uses to target your visitors. Refer to the warehouse targeting documentation for additional details.
Parameters
Parameters object consisting of:
Return value
Exceptions thrown

setLegalConsent()

Consent information is synchronized between the Kameleoon Engine (application file engine.js) and the JS SDK. This synchronization means that once consent is set on either the Engine or the SDK, it’s automatically set for both. This feature eliminates the need for manual consent handling and ensures that SDKs operate in compliance with user preferences.If you use Kameleoon in Hybrid mode, we recommend reading the consent section in our Hybrid experimentation article
When handling legal consent, it’s important to use the getVisitorCode method from KameleoonClient, not the deprecated method from KameleoonUtils. Additionally, this method does not accept domain as an argument. Instead, pass it to the KameleoonClient constructor. Refer to the above example. The setLegalConsent method specifies whether the visitor has given legal consent to use personal data. Setting the legalConsent parameter to false limits the types of data that you can include in tracking requests. This method helps you adhere to legal and regulatory requirements while responsibly managing visitor data. You can find more information on personal data in the consent management policy.
Parameters
Exceptions thrown
Consent revocation behavior
When you call setLegalConsent() with consent=false, the SDK does not delete the kameleoonVisitorCode cookie. Instead, it stops extending the cookie’s expiration date, allowing the cookie to persist until it naturally expires. If your compliance requirements demand the immediate removal of the cookie file upon opt-out, you must delete it manually using your framework’s native cookie management methods. The SDK will not remove the file automatically.

Goals and third-party analytics

trackConversion()

  • 📨 Sends Tracking Data to Kameleoon
Use this method to track a conversion for a specific goal and user. This method requires visitorCode and goalId. In addition, this method also accepts an optional revenue, negative and metadata arguments. The visitorCode is usually identical to the one that was used when triggering the experiment.The trackConversion() method doesn’t return any value. This method is non-blocking as the server call is made asynchronously.
Parameters
Parameters object consisting of:
metadata values are accessible through raw data exports and the results page.If the metadata parameter is provided, Kameleoon will use these specified values for the current conversion instead of what was previously collected using the addData() method. If the parameter is omitted, Kameleoon will use the last tracked values for those CustomData prior to the conversion and within the same visit.Kameleoon will only consider the metadata values that are explicitly passed as parameters to the trackConversion() method.In the example below, Kameleoon will associate the conversion only with the custom data value explicitly provided as a parameter (here: index 5 with the value ‘Amex Credit Card’).
Exceptions thrown

getEngineTrackingCode()

Kameleoon integrates with several analytics solutions, including Mixpanel, Google Analytics 4, and Segment. To track server-side experiments correctly, call the getEngineTrackingCode() method after the visitor triggers an experiment. The SDK returns JavaScript queue commands for the experiments that the visitor triggered during the previous five seconds. When you insert this code into the page, Engine.js processes the commands and sends the exposure events through the active analytics integration. Refer to hybrid experimentation for more information on implementing this method.
  • To use this feature, implement both the JavaScript SDK and Kameleoon Engine.js. Because Engine.js is used only for tracking in this flow, you can install the asynchronous tag before the closing </body> tag.
  • You can insert the returned tracking code directly into an HTML <script> tag.
In this example, 123456 and 234567 are experiment IDs, and 7890 and 8901 are variation IDs. In your implementation, the SDK generates these values in the returned tracking code.
Parameters
Return value
Exceptions thrown

Events

onEvent()

Method onEvent() fires a callback when a specific event is triggered. The callback function can access the data associated with the event. The SDK methods in this documentation note which event types they trigger, if any.
You can only assign one callback to each EventType.
Events
Events are defined in the EventType enum. Depending on the event type, the eventData parameter will have a different type.
Parameters
Exceptions thrown

Sending exposure events to external tools
Kameleoon offers built-in integrations with various analytics and CDP solutions, such as Mixpanel, Google Analytics 4, Segment…. To ensure that you can track and analyze your server-side experiments, Kameleoon provides a method, getEngineTrackingCode(), that returns the JavasScript code to be inserted in your page. The code automatically sends the exposure events to your analytics solution. The SDK builds a tracking code for your active analytics solution based on the experiments that the visitor has triggered in the last five seconds. For more information about hybrid experimentation, please refer to this article.The getEngineTrackingCode() method returns the Kameleoon tracking code for the current visitor. The tracking code is based on the experiments that were triggered during the last five seconds.
To benefit from this feature, you will need to implement both the JavaScript SDK and our Kameleoon JavaScript tag. We recommend you implement the Kameleoon asynchronous tag, which you can install before closing the <body> tag in your HTML page, as it will only be used for tracking purposes.

Data types

Kameleoon Data types are helper classes used to store data in storage in predefined forms. During the flush execution, the SDK collects all data and sends it with the tracking request. Data available in the SDK is not available for targeting and reporting in the Kameleoon app until you add the data (for example, by using the addData() methodt). See use visit history to target users for more information.
If you are using hybrid mode, call getRemoteVisitorData() to automatically fill all data that Kameleoon has previously collected.

Browser

Since JavaScript SDK 4.10.0, Browser is automatically detected based on the User-Agent string. However, you can still manually override it if needed.
Browser contains browser information.
Each visitor can only have one Browser. Adding second a Browser overwrites the first one.

UniqueIdentifier

UniqueIdentifier data is used as marker for unique visitor identification. If you add UniqueIdentifier for a visitor, visitorCode is used as the unique visitor identifier, which is useful for Cross-device experimentation. Associating a UniqueIdentifier with a visitor notifies the SDK that the visitor is linked to another visitor. The isUniqueIdentifier can be helpful in unique situations; for example, if you cannot access the anonymous visitorCode given to a visitor, but you can use an internal ID linked to that visitor through session merging.
Each visitor can only have one UniqueIdentifier. Adding another UniqueIdentifier overwrites the first one.

Conversion

The Conversion data set stored here can be used to filter experiment and personalization reports by any goal associated with it.
  • Each visitor can have multiple Conversion objects.
  • You can find the goalId in the Kameleoon app.
ConversionParametersType conversionParameters - an object with conversion parameters described below
Cookie contains information about the cookie stored on the visitor’s device.
  • Generally, the JavaScript SDK will attempt to use a localStorage cookie for the conditions. If localStorage is not possible, the SDK can use Cookie data as an alternative.
  • Each visitor can only have one Cookie. Adding a second Cookie overwrites the first one.
Methods
Cookie data has a static utility method, fromString, that you can use to create a cookie by parsing a string that contains valid cookie data. The method accepts string as a parameter and returns an initialized Cookie instance.

GeolocationData

GeolocationData contains the visitor’s geolocation details.
Each visitor can only have one GeolocationData. Adding a second GeolocationData overwrites the first one.
An object parameter with the type GeolocationInfoType contains the following fields:

CustomData

CustomData allows any type of data to be easily associated with each visitor. It can then be used as a targeting condition in segments or as a filter/breakdown in experiment reports. To learn more about custom data, please refer to this article.
  • Each visitor is allowed only one CustomData for each unique index. Adding another CustomData with the same index will replace the existing one.
  • The custom data ‘index’ can be found in the Custom Data dashboard under the “INDEX” column.
  • To prevent the SDK from sending data with the selected index to Kameleoon servers for privacy reasons, enable the option: Use this data only locally for targeting purposes when creating custom data.
  • Adding a CustomData instance created with a name when the SDK instance is not initialized or the name is not registered, will result in the data being ignored.

Device

Since JavaScript SDK 4.10.0, Device is automatically detected based on the User-Agent string. However, you can still manually override it if needed.
Device contains information about your device.
Each visitor can have only one Device. Adding a second Device overwrites the first one.

OperatingSystem

Since JavaScript SDK 4.10.0, OperatingSystem is automatically detected based on the User-Agent string. However, you can still manually override it if needed.
OperatingSystem contains information about the operating system on the visitor’s device.
Each visitor can only have one OperatingSystem. Adding a second OperatingSystem overwrites the first one.

PageView

Since JavaScript SDK 4.10.0, PageView is automatically detected based on the window.location?.href and document.title. However, you can still manually override it if needed.
PageView contains information about your web page.
Each visitor can have one PageView per unique URL. Adding a second PageView with the same URL notifies the SDK that the visitor re-visited the page.
PageViewParametersType pageViewParameters - an object with page view parameters described below
You can find the index or referrer ID in your Kameleoon account. Note that this index starts at 0, meaning the first acquisition channel you create for a given site will be assigned 0 as its ID, not 1.

UserAgent

UserAgent lets you store information on the visitor’s user-agent. Server-side experiments are more likely to be affected by bot traffic than client-side experiments. Kameleoon uses the IAB/ABC International Spiders and Bots List to tackle this issue and recognize known bots and spiders. Kameleoon also uses the UserAgent field to filter out bots and other unwanted traffic that might distort your conversion metrics. For more details, see our help article on bot filtering. If you use internal bots, we suggest that you pass the value curl/8.0 of the userAgent to exclude them from our analytics.
Visitor can only have one UserAgent. Adding a second UserAgent overwrites the first one.
If you run Kameleoon in an hybrid mode, your feature experiments are automatically protected against bot traffic. This protection occurs because Kameleoon collects the user-agent automatically on the front-end. Therefore, you don’t need to pass the user-agent or any other parameter to filter bots and spiders.If you use internal bots, we suggest that you pass the value curl/8.0 of the userAgent to exclude them from our analytics.

ApplicationVersion

ApplicationVersion represents the semantic version number of your application.
A visitor can have only one ApplicationVersion. Adding a second instance will overwrite the first one.

Returned Types

DataFile

The DataFile contains the SDK configuration details. It can be extended with additional information if required by clients. If you need more details, please contact your Customer Success Manager.

FeatureFlag

The FeatureFlag represents a set of properties that define a feature flag itself — for example, its Variations, Rules, environment status, and other related details. It can be extended with additional information if required by clients. If you need more details, please contact your Customer Success Manager.

Rule

The Rule represents a set of properties that define a rule itself — for example, its Variations. It can be extended with additional information if required by clients. If you need more details, please contact your Customer Success Manager.

Variation

Variation contains information about the assigned variation to the visitor (or the default variation, if no specific assignment exists).
  • Ensure that your code handles the case where id or experimentId is null, indicating a default variation.
  • The variables map might be empty if no variables are associated with the variation.

Variable

Variable contains information about a variable associated with the assigned variation.

Deprecated methods

These methods are deprecated and will be removed in the next major update.

getFeatureFlagVariationKey()

Use the getVariation method instead
The getFeatureFlagVariationKey() method retrieves the variation key for a visitor identified by a visitorCode. This method includes a targeting check that identifies the appropriate variation exposed to the visitor, saves it to storage, and sends a tracking request.
When a user is not associated with a feature flag, the SDK randomly returns a variation key according to the feature flag rules. If the user has already been registered with the feature flag, the SDK will detect this association and return the user’s previous variation key value. However, if the user does not meet any of the defined rules, the SDK will return the default value specified in Kameleoon’s feature flag delivery rules. It’s important to note that the default value can be a variation key, a boolean value, or another data type, depending on the feature flag’s configuration.
Parameters
Return value
Exceptions thrown

getVisitorFeatureFlags()

  • 🚫 Doesn’t send Tracking Data to Kameleoon
  • 🎯 Events: EventType.Evaluation (for each feature flag)
Use the getVariations method instead.
The getVisitorFeatureFlags() method returns a list of feature flags that target a visitor identified by their visitorCode and the feature flags that are active for the specified visitor.
This method only collects the visitor’s active feature flags, meaning the result excludes all feature flags for which the visitor is assigned the off (default or control) variation. When you need all of the visitor’s feature flags, use getFeatureFlags instead.For example:
For cases where you need all of the visitor’s feature flags, use getFeatureFlags instead:
Parameters
Return value
Exceptions thrown

getActiveFeatureFlags()

  • 🚫 Doesn’t send Tracking Data to Kameleoon
  • 🎯 Events: EventType.Evaluation (for each feature flag)
Use the getVariations method instead.
The getActiveFeatureFlags() method returns a Map, where key is featurekey and value is detailed information about the visitor’s variation and it’s variables
This method only collects the visitor’s active feature flags. This means the result excludes all the feature flags for which the visitor is assigned to the off (default or control) variation. When you need all of the visitor’s feature flags to iterate, use getFeatureFlags instead.See the getVisitorFeatureFlags CAUTION section method for more details.
Parameters
Return value
Exceptions thrown

getFeatureFlagVariable()

Use the getVariation method.
The getFeatureFlagVariable() method returns a variable for a visitor identified by a visitorCode. This method includes a targeting check that identifies the appropriate variation exposed to the visitor, saves it to storage, and sends a tracking request.
Parameters
Parameters object of type GetFeatureFlagVariableParamsType containing the following fields:
Return value
Exceptions thrown

getFeatureFlagVariables()

Use the getVariation method.
The getFeatureFlagVariables() method returns a variable for a visitor identified by a visitorCode. This method includes a targeting check that identifies the appropriate variation exposed to the visitor, saves it to storage, and sends a tracking request.
Parameters
Return value
Exceptions thrown

onConfigurationUpdate()

Use the onEvent method with EventType.ConfigurationUpdate instead.
The onConfigurationUpdate() method fires a callback on client configuration update.
This method is applicable only for server-sent events used in real-time updates.
Parameters
Exceptions thrown

getFeatureFlags()

Use the getDataFile() method instead.
🚫 Doesn’t send Tracking Data to Kameleoon The getFeatureFlags() method returns a list of feature flags stored in the client configuration.
Return value
Exceptions thrown