NOTE: In March 2022, Google announced that Universal Analytics (UA) will stop processing new hits on July 1, 2023. If your site is not already using Google Analytics 4 (GA4), we strongly recommend adding a GA4 property as soon as possible so that you have a significant amount of GA4 data tracked prior to the retirement of UA, as Site Kit will no longer display historical UA data beyond this date. If you do not currently have GA4 set up, Site Kit will help you to set it up in a few simple steps from the dashboard and Settings pages beginning with Site Kit version 1.86.0 released on October 24th 2022. More details on the differences between GA4 and Universal Analytics (UA) are available here.

GA4 Activation Banner

Beginning with Site Kit version 1.86.0 released on October 24th 2022, Site Kit will begin prompting you to connect GA4 with an activation banner on the dashboard if:

  • You have connected Analytics through Site Kit in the past without adding GA4
  • You have deleted a previously connected GA4 property
The GA4 Activation Banner

You can choose Set up now to go through the GA4 setup process or Remind me later if you don’t wish to set up GA4 at this time.

If you do not have an existing GA4 property in your connected Google account, Site Kit can create a new property for you. 

No existing GA4 Property

If you already have existing GA4 property/ies in your Google account, they will be listed in the Google Analytics 4 Property dropdown menu, where you can choose to use an existing GA4 property or create a new one.

Google Analytics 4 Property dropdown to select existing GA4 property or create new property

Once you select a property or set up a new one,  your GA4 property will be connected and you will see the below message.

Congratulations message after GA4 setup

Statistics and Reporting

At this time, GA4 statistics are not reported within the Site Kit’s dashboard. GA4 statistics can be viewed in your Analytics account. However, the addition of GA4 data to Site Kit’s dashboard and reporting is in Site Kit’s roadmap. For more details, follow this GitHub issue.

Setup

In the initial Analytics setup workflow, you will be prompted to connect an Analytics account and associated GA4 and UA properties. If one of these items does not exist, Site Kit will create it on your behalf.

To go through the initial setup process:

  • Ensure that the Site Kit plugin has been installed and activated on your site and you have completed the initial Site Kit setup steps
  • Go to Site Kit > Dashboard and click the prompt to Set Up Google Analytics
  • Approve the connection to your Google account
  • If an Analytics account, UA property, and/or GA4 property are not associated with this Google account, they will be created
Create Analytics Account
  • If an Analytics account, UA property, and/or GA4 property are associated with this Google account, you will be prompted to select the Account, UA Property, and/or GA4 property that you wish to connect. If a GA4 property and associated web data stream are not yet available, they will be created.
Selecting your Analytics account
  • Click Configure Analytics to proceed
  • You will be returned to the dashboard with a notice that Analytics setup is complete
  • To verify the creation and connection of the new GA4 property, go to Site Kit > Settings > Connected Services > Analytics. The GA4 property will now be listed.
The current status of your Analytics configurations

Settings

If you have connected Analytics through Site Kit in the past without adding GA4 or you have deleted a previously connected GA4 property, the Connect Google Analytics 4 button will display in Site Kit > Settings > Connected Services > Analytics beginning with Site Kit beginning with Site Kit version 1.86.0 released on October 24th 2022.

Clicking on Connect Google Analytics 4 button will open the Analytics tab.

Connect GA4 Settings Button

If you do not have an existing GA4 property in your connected Google account, Site Kit can create a new property for you. 

Help to show where to set up or connect GA4 property

If you already have existing GA4 property/ies in your Google account, they will be listed in the Google Analytics 4 Property  dropdown menu, where you can choose to use an existing GA4 property or create a new one.

Google Analytics 4 Property dropdown to select existing GA4 property or create new property from Settings

Once you select a property or set up a new one, click Confirm Changes to save your settings with your newly connected GA4 property.

FAQs

Will my traffic from Universal Analytics be included if I change from UA to GA4?

Google’s recommended best practice is to not remove Universal Analytics from your site at this time, but to instead have both UA and GA4 properties on your site. GA4 is a completely separate property from UA and a UA property cannot be migrated or converted to GA4. When you add a GA4 property to your site, data will be collected for both the UA and GA4 properties.

Does Site Kit recognise manually inserted GA4 tracking code?

No, you cannot manage a GA4 property that has been set up manually (by inserting code into your site’s <head>) in the Site Kit settings. You will be prompted to set up or connect a GA4 property in Site Kit settings if GA4 has been inserted manually.

Can I use both GA4 and UA properties using only Site Kit?

Yes! GA4 and UA properties can be used simultaneously on one site using Site Kit. Both properties can be managed in Settings > Connected Services > Analytics.

I have an AMP site in transitional mode. If I connect a GA4 property using Site Kit, will my AMP URLs be tracked?

At this time, GA4 is not compatible with AMP pages. Please subscribe to this GitHub issue for ongoing updates.

I’m using paired AMP with the official AMP plugin. Can I use a Google Analytics 4 property for my canonical (non-AMP) URLs and a Universal Tracking property for my AMP URLs?

Site Kit will insert the UA property on both the canonical and AMP versions of a property if you allow Site Kit to insert the Analytics snippet. Currently, Site Kit will only insert the GA4 snippet on the canonical version of your site while using paired AMP. Once GA4 is supported in AMP, this may change. Please subscribe to this GitHub issue for ongoing updates.

How do I track events in GA4?

GA4 includes several common events (for example, scroll tracking) by default. For more information about events, check out Google’s Events reference guides and guide on automatically collected events.

I’m using both a UA and a GA4 property on my site. Which one will Site Kit use?

When both UA and GA4 properties have been configured via Site Kit, stats will be tracked for both properties. However, in the Site Kit dashboard, stats will only be displayed for the UA property. GA4 stats can be viewed in your Analytics account.

Is there eCommerce tracking in GA4?

Yes, GA4 can be used to track eCommerce events. See this guide from Google for more information.

I’ve implemented GA4 via Site Kit but I don’t see any real time reports on Analytics. Why?

At this time, GA4 statistics are not shown in Site Kit and can only be viewed in your Analytics account. The addition of GA4 data to Site Kit’s dashboard and reporting is in our roadmap. For more details, follow this GitHub issue.