Almost a year ago, in March 2022, Google announced it would sunset Google Analytics V3 (Universal Analytics) by July 2023. Google Analytics Version 3 was launched in 2012, and Version 4 (GA4) was first released in 2020. GA4 offers new features and capabilities not available in previous versions, such as enhanced cross-device tracking, advanced machine learning capabilities, and more granular data controls. Meanwhile, GA3 is centric on users, sessions, and page views, GA4 focuses on users, events, and engagement.
Some differences between GA3 and GA4
- Data collection: Google Analytics v3 uses cookies and tracking codes, while Google Analytics v4 uses an event-based model to collect data. This means that v4 is more flexible and can track a broader range of user interactions.
- User-centric data: Google Analytics v4 focuses on user-centric data, providing more insights into user behavior and engagement across multiple devices and platforms.
- Advanced machine learning: Google Analytics v4 includes advanced machine learning capabilities, such as predictive analytics, anomaly detection, and more intelligent insights. This helps marketers to identify patterns and trends in user behavior that may not be immediately apparent from the data.
- Data privacy: Google Analytics v4 includes enhanced data privacy features, such as controlling data retention periods and deleting user data upon request. This helps ensure that user data is handled responsibly and ethically.
- Simplified data model: Google Analytics v4 has a simplified data model that makes it easier to organize and analyze data. This includes a streamlined event model that allows marketers to track and analyze more complex user interactions.
- Customizable reporting: Google Analytics v4 offers more advanced reporting options than v3, including customizable reports and more granular data controls. This allows marketers to analyze data more detail and better understand user behavior.
- Enhanced measurement: Google Analytics v4 provides a more precise and accurate measurement of user behavior and engagement, including cross-platform and cross-device tracking.
- Automatic event tracking: Google Analytics v4 includes automatic event tracking, meaning marketers can track user behavior without manually setting up tracking codes.
- Improved integration: Google Analytics v4 integrates more seamlessly with other Google products and services, such as Google Ads, Firebase, and Google Tag Manager.
Can I keep using GA3 (Universal Analytics)?
At this moment, no. As a matter of fact, if you don’t back up your historical data, you will lose all your information, and you won’t be able to migrate any data to GA4, at least at the moment I’m writing this article. So it is good idea to start implementing Google Analytics V4 and making backups of your historical data.
Google Analytics V4 uses different names from V3. So here you are, some equivalents.
Sessions vs. Engagement
In Google Analytics v4, “sessions” have been replaced with “engagement”. Engagement is a more flexible and customizable metric that allows you to track user interactions and behavior on your website or app.
Engagement is based on a set of customizable parameters you define, including things like scroll depth, video views, clicks on specific buttons or links, and other types of user engagement. By defining these parameters, you can track and analyze different types of user behavior and engagement on your website or app, and gain more detailed insights into how users interact with your content.
Page Views vs. Screen Views
In Google Analytics v4, “page views” are equivalent to “screen views.”
Google Analytics v4 introduces a new “App + Web properties” feature that combines data from mobile apps and websites. In this context, “screen views” refer to the number of times a screen within a mobile app or a web page on a website is viewed by a user.
So, if you are tracking data for a mobile app using Google Analytics v4, you would use “screen views” instead of “page views” to measure the number of times a user views a screen.
Bounce Rate vs. Engagement Rate
In Google Analytics V4, the equivalent of “Bounce Rate” is “Engagement Rate.”The Engagement Rate is a new metric in Google Analytics V4 that measures users’ engagement with your content. It is defined as the number of engaged sessions (sessions where users interacted with your content) divided by the total number of sessions.
While Bounce Rate only looks at whether a user viewed a single page and left, Engagement Rate considers other types of engagement, such as scrolling, clicks, and interactions with videos or other media.
Conversions vs. Conversions
Even though both versions use the same name, the difference is how conversions are set up and calculated in GA4.
In GA3 you track conversions using Goals and Ecommerce. In GA4 you can track conversions using events, which is more flexible than Goals. In GA4 you can track any event happening on the page. Also, the attribution model in GA4 and machine learning analyze multiple touchpoints across a user’s journey and assign credit to each touchpoint. Another exciting concept is the user-centric approach of GA4. In other words, conversion tracking is tied to users, not sessions like GA3.
Is there an alternative to Google Analytics V4 ?
