Loop Path

A loop path is a route in which the user returns to a page or event they already visited, forming a loop instead of moving forward.

A loop is not always bad and its type must be identified: a natural loop, such as going back and forth between a category page and a product page, is part of normal browsing, while a confusion loop, such as repeatedly returning to search or a form page, signals that the user did not find what they wanted. That difference is read from the loop's share and repetition, not from its mere existence. Loops directly affect path metrics: they increase path length without increasing path depth, because the user does not advance and only circles; this is why average path length alone can be misleading. In a flow diagram loops usually hurt readability and most tools collapse or drop them, so the absence of loops in a diagram does not necessarily mean the absence of looping behavior — it may be a display choice.