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How to Setup GA4 for WordPress (Free and Paid) Methods

Sep 22, 2023

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If you've been wondering about how to install GA4 for WordPress for your company's website, then you're in the right spot. In this comprehensive guide, the Growth Manager Curt Noble shows you how to get it done quickly, easily even free.

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This isn't the typical GA4 blog post or guide. I'm not planning to take long explaining how GA4 is or why it sucks.

I'd like to tell you how to set up GA4 and provide you with all the details you require to get it done so that you can do it as fast as you can.

A lot has been said about migrating to Universal Analytics (UA) to GA4. In this article I'll show you how to do an fresh install of GA4 on your website company website.

In case you're beginning to learn about WordPress and need to track the number of visitors to your website and other the performance of your site, bookmark this post.

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Every website has different GA4 Tracking Needs

Every website has unique need for data tracking. It's not feasible to address all GA4 tracking scenario. So, I'm going to stay with the basics in the greatest extent possible.

This means that if you want to know how many tacos your customers have eaten just before they sign to sign up for the Taco Tuesday Premium Recipe Membership... you're at the wrong spot.

We probably won't be describing the solution to track data in this.

Keep reading, as you'll have to begin here in the end. First, you need to create an GA4 account with Google and configure your data stream.

Doesn't sound like fun, does it?

is the Best Membership Plugin When it Comes to GA4 reporting

Woman doing GA4 reporting

All the methods shown in this guide work on any WordPress site. However, let's admit it. There are some WordPress plugins and themes work better with GA4. This is especially the case with membership sites.

One of the main advantages of integrating with GA4 is the flexibility, available hooks, and API access. It's also the easiest membership plugin to integrate with.

That means all major Google Analytics plugins have integrated with . This guide will show the ways these integrations can make the life of users easier.

This is why I'm going to be honest and admit it. If you don't have GA4  Google Analytics, then you'll require the help of a Google Analytics specialist to completely set up GA4 on your WordPress website for membership.

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How do you set up Google Analytics GA4 on Your WordPress Membership Site

Follow these steps for how to set up GA4 on WordPress

This guide outlines four ways on how to setup GA4 using WordPressfor your membership site or online business. They range between straightforwardto cost-free with the simplemethod that requires a minimal extra cost.

I'm sure that any of these four methods will work for your situation. Each of them has the exact starting point. And you'll need to start there before doing anything else.

Create a Google Analytics Account

If you're still not in the process of signing up to any Google service (like Gmail or Google Drive) or if you'd like to create a new account for Google Analytics You'll have to sign up for a Google account.

So if you need to establish an account, you can register for one on the Google Analytics webpage.

Create a new GA4 property

After signing up for the Google Analytics account and logging in, you'll need to create your GA4 property.

As a Google Analytics account can be used to track and analyze different websites, you are able to create multiple properties here to keep the data separate.

If you are you're logged into Google Analytics, click to the Admin option in the lower left corner. Then click the button to Create Property.

Create Property in Google Analytics.

On the Create Property screen You'll need to fill in some essential information concerning your site. In the Business Objectives options you can select multiple objectives.

The settings you set will determine what reports you'll see out-of-the-box within GA4. Do not worry about it. There is always the option to modify your GA4 reports in the GUI at a later time.

Add property details in Google Analytics.

When you get to your Data Collection options, choose Webfrom the options. This is where you'll configure the GA4 Data Stream.

The Data stream is where GA4 collects all the events that happen on your website.

You must enter your website's URL. provide your data stream with the name. I suggest including "GA4" in the stream name. This will help you easily determine it is the GA4 data stream later in this article.

Configuring GA4 Events to be Collecting on WordPress

GA4 collects what are called default events. You can pick the ones that are most important to you.

I recommend selecting the Enhanced Measurement option. This will tell GA4 to record a handful of other events of a standard nature, including scroll depth, outbound clicks site search, and others.

When you click on the gear icon to the right, you'll be able to pick the events you want you want to monitor. Your best bet is to keep them all in check.

Now, you might find a huge omission There's no purchasing event available! Weird, right?

Further details on that to come.

Set up data stream in Google Analytics.

Step One is completed!

That wasn't so hard did it?

Now, you've got a fully functioning GA4 Web property with a data stream. It's sitting just waiting for data to move (kind as my son in the dining room with a bowl waiting for somebody to pour out the Cap'n Crunch).

Next let's explore four possible methods to put cereal in the bowl. Oh, no... I'm trying to get the GA4 events in the stream of data.

Making GA4 available to any WordPress Site

It's all set. You've got your GA4 data stream in place and ready to receive web-based events. The next step is to include some code in WordPress to send data to the stream.

As I said earlier, there are many methods to accomplish this. It's up to you to figure out what is best depending upon your specific situation.

Here are a few things to consider when working out what is the optimal way to incorporate GA4 to your WordPress site:

  • How comfortable are you analysing data using the GA4 Reporting interface?
  • Do you offer classes, memberships, or downloads on your website?
  • Are you aware of Google Tag Manager?
  • Do you also have paid ads or social traffic you need to track?
  • Are you a member of an affiliate program? Do you have links you would like to share?

There are probably more things to consider here. However, this is an excellent list to start with. In each of the four approaches listed below, I'll provide scenarios showing when each method could be suitable.

Now let's move on!

METHOD #1 Method #1: Add GA4 plugin to WordPress for freewith Google Site Kit plugin

This solution is totally and cost-free. But it may not be the right choice for your WordPress site. This method works on WordPress membership sites that don't sell anything.

The reason is Google Site Kit has a important limitation with regards to tracking online sales - that is, it does not have it.

The only thing it does is configure Google instruments and services.

Do you think you'll want to keep track of affiliate links or the traffic of social media sites like Facebook and Twitter (X) later in the near future? You'll want to skip this cost-free technique.

When you are deciding to increase your size the size of your business, this will make the user with too little. That being said below are the steps to follow.

Install the Google Site Kit plugin

Install Google Site Kit plugin.

From the Add Plugins Page, simply browse for the words Site Kit using Google. Then install and enable the plugin.

Add plugins in WordPress.

Once the plugin is activated it is time to start the process of setting it up. The initial step is to sign in to the same Google account that you have used to register the GA4 property earlier.

Connect your GA4 data stream to WordPress using Google Site Kit

I mentioned earlier that Site Kit can be used Site Kit to connect to other Google products and services. This is however, an option.

Right now, let's just join Google Analytics by selecting it from the list to begin the setup.

Google Site Kit installation screen.

The next step is to choose your account, property, and data stream. Make sure to pick GA4 as the GA4 data stream you've previously made.

It is also possible to permit Google Site Kit to create a GA4 data stream for you if you don't have one. But the options are limited. This is why I recommend setting up the data stream in a separate manner.

Be sure to select the option to Place Google Analytics 4 code Here. This is how GA4 will record analytics events for your WordPress site.

Google Site Kit connect service.

That's all there is to it. Google Analytics 4 is now available on your WordPress website.

Take note of a minor delay in the data collection. So, you won't see the data you've requested in reports for your GA4 report for several hours.

Verify that GA4 Data is Flowing

It is possible to check sure your data is moving through the Real Time report in GA4.

Return into your Google Analytics account, and select Reportson in the navigation menu left. After that, click the Real-Time option..

If you do not see any information here there's a chance that nobody is browsing your website. That's okay. Just go to your website in another browser tab.

Sooner or later, you'll see your user session appear in the real time reports.

Method #2: Add GA4 to WordPress Membership site using Google Tag Manager for free (kind of)

The next option for adding GA4 to WordPress uses the free Google Tag Manager (GTM) solution.

While GTM is completely free however, it might need an expert in analytics to complete a full set-up. So this method works well for people who have previous experiences with GTM.

GTM lets you set up your own events. In GA4, you'll have to configure a lot of events within Tag Manager. So, buckle up.

In order to implement the e-commerce tracking feature with GTM in a WordPress site for membership You'll likely require more programming. Particularly, you'll need a script that pushes your transaction information into the Google Analytics data layer.

Understanding the Data Layer

The layer of data is a central idea when it comes to working together with GTM and Google Analytics (GA4). It functions as a bridge between your website and GTM.

Additionally, it lets you send custom data directly to GA4, Google Ads, and various other third-party service providers.

The primary function of the data layer is to distinguish the information from the layer of presentation (your information). So, instead of hardcoding data directly in tags or scripts that you have on your website or scripts, you could push the data into your data layer.

From there, GTM can read the information and then use it to populate tags, triggers, and variables.

A Data Layer Can Make Your Life Easy

  • FlexibilityThe HTML0 flexibility allows you to easily add, modify, or erase data with no need to alter the website's code. This is especially useful for those who don't have access directly to the site's source code.
  • Consistency In centralizedizing your the data into one central location, you ensure consistent data gathering across various tools and platforms.
  • Enhanced Tracking The data layer allows for more advanced tracking applications, for example collecting data from dynamic web pages or single-page applications.
  • Security By regulating the data that is put to the data layer, and how that data is accessed, you can ensure that information you aren't knowingly transmitted to third-party software.

Now that you've got the notion of the data layer now let's install GTM installed!

Install an Google Tag Manager Plugin

There are many plugins which allow you to integrate GTM for your WordPress website. Because there's a standard GTM implementation that is used by most plugins, they accomplish the same task.

It turns out that the Site Kit from Google plugin will also set up the GTM container for you!

Scroll up to METHOD #1 to learn the procedure you can download Google Site Kit. Google Site Kit plugin. After that, you can select the option to install Google Tag Manager.

Configuring the GA4 Tag in Google Tag Manager

Once you have GTM set up and configured You're now ready to start deploying your first tag!

Note: Google recently migrated the older GA4 Configuration Tag into the global Google Tag. If you've noticed other tutorials mentioning a GA4 Configuration tag within GTM, it's not there any more.

When you log in to the GTM workspace Click to create an additional tag. You can then give the tag a title in the upper left.

It is suggested to use an example such as "Google Tag for GA4". This will help you keep track of the tag that is controlling your GA4 implementation.

Then, go to the Tag Configuration area to create a new type of tag. Then, you'll be presented with an option to add Google Analytics. And on the next screen you'll find a number of Google Analytics options. Make sure you pick Google Tag here.

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It will be possible to configure GA4 events in the future. The first step is to make sure that Google Analytics to start. Google Analytics code firing.

Once you've added the correct Google Tag, you'll need to enter the Google Analytics Measurement ID.

The tag ID will be how Google can determine where to transmit data from your site. Here's how you locate the GA4 measurement ID.

We now need to inform Google Tag Manager where you would like this tag to be displayed on your WordPress site. The GTM container appears on each page on your website. This means that you could select to include your GA4 tag on every page, too.

Within the Triggering Panel, choose the option for Initialization - Every Page.

Google tag for GA4 screenshot

The GA4 tag you publish to your WordPress Membership Website

The only thing left to do now is to back up your configuration for tags and then publish your changes to the container you have created.

You'll see an Submitbutton in the upper righthand corner of your GTM Workspace.

Now GA4 will be collecting the standard event information for your website.

All of the software is there to push default event data into the data layer.

The events that you set up prior to the GA4 option for data streams are tracked.

There's also no ecommerce tracking in place. So let's take care of this...

How to Track Your Membership sales revenue in GA4

Remember all that talk about the data layer? For tracking membership sales revenue or other ecommerce data, it is necessary to integrate that information into your data layer.

This requires some additional code. You'll also need to reference Google Documentation. Google Documentation.

There are two parts to this system.

In the beginning, you'll have to transfer the details of your transaction to the data layer upon a successful sale. Here's an example of code to use for the "purchase" instance:

window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; window.dataLayer.push( 'event': 'purchase', 'currency': 'USD', // use your currency 'value': 100.00, // total transaction value 'transaction_id': 'T12345', // unique transaction ID 'items': [ // array of purchased item objects  'item_id': 'SKU12345', 'item_name': 'Product Name', 'price': 50.00, 'quantity': 2  // ... other purchased items ] );

Second, you'll need create an event tag inside GTM to gather and transmit the transaction data in GA4 reports. The tags that are configured in GTM will look something like:

  • Create a new tag with the tag's type of 'GA4 Event'.
  • In the name of the event for the event, type "purchase".
  • The event's parameters are mapped as prior to:
  • currency to urrency|A|The} Data Layer Variable
  • value to alue|the|A} Data Layer Variable
  • Transaction ID to ransaction_id||A} Data Layer Variable
  • objects to be referred to as tems|A|the} Data Layer Variable
  • Set a trigger for this tag to fire on the page that confirms an order, or after the transaction is successful.

Doesn't there have to be a simpler way?

Utilizing GTM to incorporate GA4 tracking to the WordPress site can be very difficult.

This method will give you the basics of analysis tracking as well as the ecommerce report on revenue.

But consider that you'd need to set up every other piece of data you'd need to track. Then think about the danger of what might happen if Google "flips its script" on you.

As an example, the transition from GA3 (Universal Analytics) to GA4 resulted in quite a shake-up for owners of websites as well as marketers.

If you're in charge of the entire monitoring strategy using GTM, then you've got to pay close attention for any shifts. Many companies have this is a full time job.

So, is there an easier solution? It is indeed. There are actually two more options for doing this with premium plugins.

The Most Budget-Friendly Ways to Setup GA4 for WordPress Membership Sites and Online Business

Phew! We've made it to the difficult part. If you've read through the previous two options for setting GA4 on WordPress, you're in the right place. GA4 on WordPress, you might be thinking this is a bit above your pay grade. It's not. Two of the options above can be described as "stupid-easy".

More than 10 years have I spent in the field of web analytics.

I've worked on implementations ranging from free Google Analytics Legacy versions, to enterprise solutions like Web Trends and Omniture SiteCatalyst (both prior to and following that Adobe deal).

In fact, I've been working with Customer Data Platform solutions such as Tealium to implement analytics software. I worked on data layers prior to when they were cool.

Therefore, you are able to trust me when I say, these two plugins are the best option to use GA4 in WordPress.

METHOD #3 Method #3: The "almost free" method of adding GA4 to WordPress with WPCode Pro

When I was in college there was a discount card known as the "Starving Student Card." The card offered me discounts on Big Juan Burritos at Taco Time. There were other discounts too. But that's not important.

It's a good idea to call this"Starting Student" method "Starving Student" method to add GA4 to your site for membership.

This is a great option for budgeting, especially for a college student on a limited budget. This is how:

Sign Up For and Install WPCode Pro

WPCode homepage screenshot

There's a version for free as well, called WPCode Lite. Since you're installing GA4 for a membership website, you'll need some key features only available in premium.

In particular, you'll require the Conversion Pixels and Advanced Locations for eCommercefeatures.

Plus! There's also the option make use of WPCode Pro to add your social media tracking pixels.

There are millions of WordPress websites that use WPCode. And at 4.9 rating, this is probably the most highly rated plugin on the market.

WPCode customer rating screenshot

As a first step, go sign up for WPCode Pro. (If you're only looking to install it on one website, then the Basic Plan includes all the GA4 features you require.)

Next, follow the instructions to add and then activate the plugin on the WordPress website. WPCode Pro is integrated with, and will auto-detect your plugin. This is a major time saver.

Configuring WPCode Pro to enable GA4 in Your WordPress Membership Website

It is not necessary to include any additional scripts or code. WPCode Pro will set up the ecommerce layer and then push data into Data Layer.

And you won't need to configure anything in Google Tag Manager. Actually, WPCode completely eliminates the need to use Google Tag Manager on your WordPress website.

The only thing you need to tell WPCode Pro your GA4 measurement ID (in the blurred-out field below). The plugin handles the rest. Be sure to select which event you wish to keep track of. I recommend tracking all the available events.

GA4 set up in WPCode

It's that simple. Then you can add GA4 to your membership site. Every single signup for your membership is being monitored, and data is sent to the GA4 reports.

After this post, I'll show you where to find the data on your conversion to a member from GA4 reports. However, before that, I have another simple and stupid solution for your needs!

METHOD #4 The most efficient and cheapest method to include robust GA4 tracking capabilities to WordPress Membership sites is using MonsterInsights

The only drawback to using WPCode (above) has to do with the fact that it sends all the data to the GA4 account. So, to see your data, you have to log in to your GA4 account, then figure out the user interface.

And initial reports are in. The new GA4 user interface looks, well... garbage, according to people who have used it.

That's why MonsterInsights is my first choice for a full-scale, complete GA4 installation. With MonsterInsights you'll have the ability to do the following, easily:

  • Large-scale GA4 tracking that includes eCommerce and no FOMO about not tracking or tagging an idea you'll imagine in the future.
  • See all your data within your WordPress Administration This means you don't have to fumble around the terrible GA4 user interface to find important insights within your data
  • Outbound link tracking It will be clear the number of people who are using the links on your blog posts
  • Tracking affiliate links Check out what affiliate links get the most attention
  • EU conformance included So you can sleep all night long without the worry of paying a huge fine from the EU for violating privacy legislation
  • Tracking of registered users Find out how your paid members use your website differently than the general public
  • Author tracking - - Report on every blog author's performance
  • Zero-Code implementation There are no additional costs to set up your tracking code and to set up your event

It's a short review. There are many options that make MonsterInsights an easy and cost-effective choice.

The zero-code aspect pays for itself instantly. It doesn't require an analytics engineer or specialist with MonsterInsights.

Join and install MonsterInsights Pro for Less Than Chipotle Burrito Each Month

And the setup wizard helps make the process of installation quick and painless.

MonsterInsights setup wizard in WordPress

The wizard is comprehensive and extremely intuitive. This is why I don't go through every step here.

There's also a detailed tutorial for the complete setup process, if you're in need of it. When you get to the Addons section, make sure you download the MonsterInsights eCommerce extension.

MonsterInsights recommended addons screen

This is really all there is to it.

Your WordPress Membership site should now have been set up using GA4 tracking. MonsterInsights has built your data layer as well as all the GA4 events that you selected to track during the setup process.

Like I said, you don't even need access to your GA4 account to see your data. MonsterInsights displays your information right in the admin area of WordPress.

Viewing Your GA4 Data within the WordPress Administration

For access to the GA4 details to access your GA4 data in MonsterInsights, you'll see an overview of the data in the dashboard widget.

MonsterInsights WordPress admin data screen

In addition, you can access the complete suite of reports by navigating to Insights. Insights link on your left navigation.

The Viewing of Your Data in Google Analytics

Out of all the options, of all the options, only MonsterInsights will display the analytics information directly within WordPress. For the other options, you'll need to login to the Google Analytics account and navigate to the GA4 website.

This screenshot is the result from the sandbox that I've been playing with in this guide. So, there's not much data to display. If you'd like to dive in GA4 and poke around for a while, I suggest visiting the GA4 Test Account.

Final Thoughts

Congrats! Congratulations! You've now got Google Google Analytics set up on your WordPress membership site for your business on the internet.

You can now gain a greater understanding of your audience, how they're interacting with your content, and how effective your site is in converting users into members.

If you're looking to learn more details regarding Google Analytics, we've published an article that explains ways to utilize Google Analytics to improve the performance of your membership site.

There's also an online course for free at Google Analytics. Google Analytics website for those looking to maximize the benefits of the service.

 Are you having any concerns concerning the use of Google Analytics with your membership website? If so, you can leave a comment below.