Marketing & SEO

Google Analytics 4 for Beginners: How to Start Measuring

GA4 can be overwhelming. In this beginner's guide, we explain how to install, configure GA4, and get your first insights.

8 januari 202510 min read timeBy Robuust Marketing

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is the new standard for website analytics. It completely replaces Universal Analytics and works fundamentally differently. In this beginner's guide, we help you get started.

What is Google Analytics 4?

GA4 is Google's latest analytics platform. It differs from the old Universal Analytics in important ways:

Event-based tracking: Everything is an event, no longer based on pageviews
Cross-platform: Track users across website and app
Privacy-first: Better prepared for a world without cookies
Machine learning: Automatic insights and predictions
New interface: Completely redesigned reports

Step 1: Create a GA4 Account

New Account

Go to analytics.google.com
Click "Start measuring"
Enter your account name (usually your company name)
Configure data-sharing settings
Click "Next"

Create Property

Enter a property name (usually your website name)
Select your timezone and currency
Click "Next"
Fill in business information
Accept the terms

Set Up Data Stream

Choose "Web" as platform
Enter your website URL
Enter a stream name
Enhanced Measurement is on by default (leave it on)
Click "Create stream"

You'll now receive a Measurement ID (starts with G-). You'll need this for installation.

Step 2: Install GA4 on Your Website

There are different ways to install GA4:

Option A: Google Tag Manager (recommended)

Create a Google Tag Manager account
Install the GTM container code on your website
In GTM: create a new tag
Choose "Google Analytics: GA4 Configuration"
Enter your Measurement ID
Trigger: All Pages
Publish the container

Option B: Directly on Your Website

Add this code in the <head> of every page:

<script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-XXXXXXXXXX"></script>
<script>
  window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
  function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}
  gtag('js', new Date());
  gtag('config', 'G-XXXXXXXXXX');
</script>

Replace G-XXXXXXXXXX with your Measurement ID.

Option C: WordPress Plugins

Site Kit by Google: Official Google plugin
MonsterInsights: Popular analytics plugin
GA Google Analytics: Lightweight option

Verify Installation

Install the Chrome extension "Google Tag Assistant"
Visit your website
Check if your GA4 tag fires correctly
Or: check in GA4 under Realtime if your visit is visible

Step 3: Basic Configuration

Enhanced Measurement

GA4 automatically measures by default:

Pageviews
Scrolls (90% of page)
Outbound clicks
Site search
Video engagement
File downloads

You can toggle these on/off via Admin > Data Streams > your stream > Enhanced measurement.

Set Data Retention

By default, GA4 stores data for 2 months. Change this:

Go to Admin
Click on "Data Settings" > "Data Retention"
Choose 14 months
Turn on "Reset user data on new activity"
Save

Filter Internal Traffic

Prevent your own visits from polluting the data:

Admin > Data Streams > your stream
Configure tag settings > Define internal traffic
Add your IP address(es)
Admin > Data Settings > Data Filters
Activate the "Internal Traffic" filter

Link Google Search Console

Admin > Property Settings > Product Links
Click "Search Console Links"
Click "Link"
Select your Search Console property
Confirm the link

Now you'll see Search Console data in your GA4 reports.

Step 4: Set Up Conversions

What is a Conversion?

A conversion is an important action you want to measure. Examples:

Contact form submitted
Quote requested
Purchase made
Newsletter signup
Phone number clicked

Create a Conversion

Go to Admin > Events
Find the event you want to mark as a conversion
Toggle "Mark as conversion" on

Or create a new event:

Admin > Events > Create event
Give the event a name
Set the conditions
Mark as conversion

Example: Contact Form Tracking

If your form has a thank you page:

Create event
Name: "contact_form_submitted"
Condition: page_location contains "/thank-you"
Mark as conversion

Step 5: Understanding the Interface

Home

Dashboard with quick overview:

Users in the past 7 days
Recent conversions
Automatic insights

Reports

Realtime

What's happening on your website now? Useful for:

Checking if tracking works
Campaign monitoring
Following live events

Acquisition

How do visitors reach your site?

Traffic acquisition: by channel
User acquisition: new vs. returning
Google Ads: if linked

Engagement

What do visitors do on your site?

Pages and screens: popular pages
Events: all measured events
Conversions: your conversion goals

Monetization

For e-commerce:

Purchase journey
Product performance

Retention

Do visitors return?

User retention over time
Cohort analysis

Explore

Here you create your own custom reports:

Free form explorations
Funnel analysis
Path analysis
Segment overlap

Advertising

If you link Google Ads:

Campaign performance
Attribution modeling

Key Metrics Explained

Users vs Sessions

Users: Unique visitors (based on cookies/device)
Sessions: Visit sessions (ends after 30 min inactivity)
New users: First visit ever

Engagement Metrics

Engaged sessions: Sessions longer than 10 seconds, with conversion, or with 2+ pageviews
Engagement rate: % engaged sessions
Average engagement time: Average time the page was in focus

Event Count

Number of times a specific event was triggered.

Tips for Beginners

Start Simple

You don't need to measure everything right away. Start with:

Understanding traffic sources
Identifying popular pages
Measuring 1-2 important conversions

Check Regularly

Look at your analytics at least weekly:

Are there major changes in traffic?
Are your conversions still working?
Are there notable trends?

Make Annotations

Use the annotation feature to mark important moments:

Campaign launch
Website change
External events

Compare Periods

Always view data compared to a previous period to recognize trends.

Create scheduled reports to automatically send updates to team members.

Common Mistakes

No conversions set up: You measure traffic but not what matters
Own traffic not filtered: Your data gets polluted
Only looking at totals: Segment by source, device, etc.
Drawing conclusions with little data: Wait for sufficient volume
Data retention at 2 months: Change this to 14 months

GA4 requires visitor consent in the EU:

Implement a cookie consent banner
Only load GA4 after consent
Anonymize IP addresses (default in GA4)
Document your data processing in your privacy policy

Next Steps

Once you master the basics:

Learn to work with Explorations
Set up audiences for remarketing
Link Google Ads for full funnel insight
Experiment with custom events
Build a custom dashboard

Need Help?

GA4 can be complex. We're happy to help with:

Correct installation and configuration
Setting up conversion tracking
Training for you and your team
Monthly analytics reports

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