# Why do websites have a "Click here to continue reading" button? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 14, 2021, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465 "2021-07-14T12:53:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/1 "2021-07-14T12:53:27Z")
The entire text has apparently already loaded. Is this just to prove that I’m a human? ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/2 "2021-07-14T12:55:53Z")
Maybe also to confirm how much time you’re spending there, and how far down you scroll (to verify whether the ads further down the page are being seen)? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/3 "2021-07-14T13:08:11Z")
Because for revenue-generating purposes a click is a click. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/4 "2021-07-14T13:41:15Z")
^This. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/5 "2021-07-14T14:09:04Z")
To be able to ask you to pay for a subscription once they have drawn you in. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/6 "2021-07-14T17:00:32Z")
Pay-per-click. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/7 "2021-07-14T17:13:09Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Because for revenue-generating purposes a click is a click. I read that as “Because for **revenge** -generating purposes a click is a click.” That would explain a lot… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![anson2995](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@anson2995](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anson2995)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2021, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/8 "2021-07-15T15:08:45Z")
It’s so they can tell whether you read past the first paragraph or just clicked a link, glanced at the page for 2 seconds and then left. It helps sites (and advertisers) better understand user behavior. Source: I work for a newspaper site that uses this. ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2021, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/9 "2021-07-15T15:20:10Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Because for revenue-generating purposes a click is a click. Only if the click is on an ad, which the “continue reading” button is not. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2021, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-websites-have-a-click-here-to-continue-reading-button/946465/10 "2021-07-16T08:16:53Z")
There seem to be several mechanisms for implementing this. Some sites do load the entire text but only show the rest of when you click that. I usually run my browser with JavaScript disabled, and that usually disables that button too. Some browsers have a separate setting to disable page formatting (basically, it disables CSS) and for some sites, doing that will display the entire text. (Yahoo News works like this.) Some other sites seem to NOT load the rest of the text until you click the button.