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How to set up Google Analytics 4 and confirm it is collecting data

Pastel Brands, a Digital Architects company

Who is this guide for?

Owners of a small business website who do not have Google Analytics yet, or who are not sure theirs is working. Steps that need access to the website's code say so, so you can hand that part to whoever builds your site. By the end, you will have a Google Analytics account, a property, a web data stream and the Google tag on your site, and you will have checked the Realtime report to see that data is arriving.

How do you open Google Analytics?

  1. Go to https://analytics.google.com. If this is your first time using Google Analytics, click Start Measuring. If you already have an account, go to the next step. You must be signed in to a Google Account. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.

How do you create an account?

  1. Create an account if you need one. In Admin, click Create, then select Account. Provide an account name and set the data sharing settings to control which data you share with Google. Click Next to add the first property. (Google notes you might want a separate account if the site belongs to a separate business.) Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.

How do you create a property?

  1. Create a property. If you are not continuing from the account step, go to Admin, click Create, then select Property. You need the Editor role to add properties, and if you created the account you automatically have it. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.
  2. Enter a name for the property, for example "My Business, Inc website". Select the reporting time zone and currency. Google explains that a visit on Tuesday in a visitor's time zone but Monday in yours is recorded as Monday. Changing the time zone only affects data going forward, and Google says not to change it more than once per day. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.
  3. Click Next. Select your industry category and business size. Click Next. Select how you intend to use Google Analytics. Google uses your answer to tailor the default reports. Then click Create and, if you are setting up a new account, accept the Analytics Terms of Service and the Data Processing Amendment. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.

How do you add a web data stream?

  1. Add a web data stream. In Admin, under Data collection and modification, click Data Streams. Click Add stream, then click Web. You must be an Editor or above at the property level. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.
  2. Enter the URL of your primary website, for example "example.com", and a Stream name, for example "Example, Inc. (web stream)". Enhanced measurement automatically collects page views and other events. Google recommends enabling it at this point. Click Create stream. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.

How do you add the Google tag to your site?

  1. Get the tag onto your site. Pick the option that matches how your site is built. If your site builder or CMS has a field for a Google tag ID, find the ID first: in Admin, under Data collection and modification, click Data streams, click the data stream, and under Stream Details copy the Measurement ID (starts with "G-" or "AW-"). Then paste it into the field your CMS provides. Google's page lists instructions for many platforms, including Wix, Squarespace, Shopify, GoDaddy, HubSpot and WordPress plugins such as Site Kit. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.
  2. If your CMS has no field for the ID, use its custom HTML feature. In Admin, under Data collection and modification, click Data streams, then Web, then the data stream for your website. Under Google tag, click View tag instructions. On the Installation instructions page, select Install manually. Copy the whole Google tag, which starts with "<!-- Google tag (gtag.js) -->" and ends with "</script>", and paste it into your site using your CMS's custom HTML feature. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.
  3. If you can edit your site's HTML directly, paste the same Google tag immediately after the head tag on each page. Google says to ask your web developer to do this if you cannot. If someone else builds or manages your site, send them this step and the source link under it. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.
  4. If you use Google Tag Manager, follow the Google Tag Manager help instructions to add the Google Analytics: Google Analytics Configuration tag. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.

What if you do not see Data Streams?

  1. If you do not see a Data Streams option in the Property column, you are in a Universal Analytics property instead of the one you just created. Use the property selector or Admin to move to your new Google Analytics property. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.

How do you check that data is arriving?

  1. Wait. Data collection may take up to 30 minutes to begin. Source: Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.
  2. Check that data is arriving. Sign in to Google Analytics, select Reports from the left menu, then click Realtime. Anyone with access to the property can view this report. It shows the number of active users during the last 5 and 30 minutes, and Google lists "verify that the measurement code is working on your site or app" as one use of it. If the Realtime report shows no data, Google says it is possible there are no active users at that moment. Source: Realtime report, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.
  3. Be patient with the other reports. Many reports and explorations can take 24 to 48 hours to process data from your website or app, so use Realtime and DebugView to confirm collection. DebugView is often used by developers and shows activity for longer than 30 minutes when debug mode is on. Source: Confirm that you're collecting data, Analytics Help. Checked October 24, 2026.

How we checked this guide

Each step on this page comes from the Google Analytics Help page linked beside it. We opened each page and compared our wording, and every button and menu name, against that page on October 24, 2026. The check date sits beside each step. These pages change from time to time, so if a screen looks different from these steps, follow the official page.

What if you want someone else to do it?

If you would rather have this done for you, Pastel Brands offers GA4 Key Events and Conversion Tracking Setup, a one-time project that sets up your GA4 property and Google Tag Manager, or audits your existing setup, and tracks form submissions, phone clicks, sign-ups and bookings as key events.

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