Connect Google Ads to a GA4 property

Connect one Google Ads account to Google Analytics for measurement and check the saved link, tagging and access settings.

• Outcome: Tracking & measurement
• Tools: Google Analytics 4, Google Ads
• Responsible: People connecting a website’s measurement tools so the team can use their reports together
• Estimated time: 20 minutes

Scope

This SOP covers:

• Link one individual Google Ads account to a matching GA4 property
• Enable auto-tagging after checking the website accepts its URL parameter; turn personalized advertising off
• Check saved link settings, Analytics feature access and linked-user permissions, and where Ads reporting appears

This does not cover:

• Link a manager account or multiple advertisers at once
• Import conversions, add remarketing audiences, enable Google signals or launch campaigns
• Repair website redirects, design consent policies or prove that conversions are attributed correctly

Requirements

• One Google account with Administrator access to the individual Google Ads account and Administrator access to the GA4 property, including permission to review linked-user access.
• The individual Google Ads account name and 10-digit Customer ID, the GA4 property name and Property ID, and the website the advertiser wants to measure.
• A GA4 web stream and working website tracking for the advertiser’s landing pages. The website owner can confirm which stream collects those visits.
• The intended advertising landing-page addresses. Use one representative address for each distinct website or redirect setup.

Related SOPs

• SOP 010: Create a GA4 property and website data stream
• SOP 012: Install GA4 through Google Tag Manager
• SOP 013: Grant an agency Editor access to a GA4 property
• SOP 096: Create a Google Ads account without launching a campaign
• SOP 016: Grant an agency user access to a Google Ads account
• SOP 027: Choose Google Ads, GA4, and Tag Manager access for an agency teammate

01. Confirm the advertiser and website

Connect the advertiser’s own account to the property collecting its website visits. An Ads manager account groups advertisers and shares more broadly.

1. Open Google Ads. Select the individual advertiser account. Check its displayed name and Customer ID against your inputs. Open Admin > Access and security and confirm your Google account has Admin access.

   • Warning: Use the individual advertiser account, not a manager account that groups several businesses. Linking a manager can make Analytics data available to its client accounts.

2. Open Google Analytics. Select the agreed account and property. In Admin > Property > Property details, check the Property ID. In Data collection and modification > Data streams, open the intended Web stream and confirm its website matches the advertiser’s landing pages.

3. Create a note called “Google Ads connection” with fields for Website, GA4 property name and ID, Google Ads account name and Customer ID, Landing-page check, Personalized advertising, Auto-tagging, Analytics feature access, Linked-user access, Link checked on, and Report location. Enter the website and the two account identities.

4. Check each representative landing page before enabling auto-tagging. This feature adds a click identifier to the page address so Analytics can identify Google Ads traffic.

   1. Paste a landing-page address into a new browser tab. Before opening it, append ?gclid=TeSter-123. If the address already contains ?, append &gclid=TeSter-123 instead. Put the parameter before any # section. Open this address directly; a real ad click is unnecessary.

   2. After the page loads, confirm that it displays the intended content and that gclid=TeSter-123 remains unchanged in the address bar, including capitals. Record each tested URL and “Loads; parameter retained” under Landing-page check. If the page errors or removes or changes the value, stop and give the failing address to the website developer before enabling auto-tagging.

02. Create the measurement link

Use measurement settings that connect reporting without turning on personalized advertising. Conversion imports and remarketing are separate tasks.

1. In the intended GA4 property, open Admin > Product links > Google Ads links. Check for a row with the advertiser’s Customer ID. If it already exists, open it and continue with the same settings and final checks below. Otherwise click Link.

2. If creating the link, click Choose Google Ads accounts. Select only the advertiser whose Customer ID matches your Google Ads connection note. Click Confirm and Next. If the account is missing, ask its administrator to give the same Google identity Admin access, then return.

3. Set Enable Personalized Advertising to Off. This guide connects reporting without enabling use of Analytics audiences and events for personalized ads through this link. If opening an existing link, save the changed setting. Enter “Off” under Personalized advertising in your connection note.

4. When creating a new link, turn Allow access to Analytics features from within Google Ads Off. This setting can let Ads users create or change Analytics audiences inside Google Ads. Turn it off for this reporting-only connection, then enter “Off in link wizard” under Analytics feature access in your Google Ads connection note. An existing saved link is checked through its linked-user roles in the next milestone.

5. For a new link, expand Enable Auto-Tagging and select the option that enables it on the selected account. The landing-page checks must have passed first. For an existing link, open Google Ads > Admin > Account settings > Auto-tagging, select “Tag the URL that people click through from my ad,” and save. Enter “On” under Auto-tagging in your note.

6. If creating a link, click Next. Review the Customer ID, Personalized Advertising Off, Analytics feature access Off and the auto-tagging choice together. Click Submit.

03. Check the saved settings and access

Reopen the connection after saving. Linking also gives Ads user groups access to Analytics features inside Ads; review that access explicitly.

1. Refresh Admin > Product links > Google Ads links. Open the row for the intended Customer ID. Check the account identity and confirm Personalized Advertising remains Off or Disabled. Add today’s date under Link checked on in your note.

2. Return to that Google Ads account. Open Admin > Account settings > Auto-tagging. Confirm “Tag the URL that people click through from my ad” is checked.

3. In GA4, reopen the Google Ads link and expand User access. Review the five groups representing Google Ads administrators, standard users, read-only users, billing users and email-only users. For each group, record the “Roles and data restrictions” entry under Linked-user access in your Google Ads connection note. Viewer means viewing reports; Editor or Marketer can allow changes or audience creation. Record any No Cost Metrics or No Revenue Metrics restriction shown beside the role; these hide the corresponding reporting amounts. If an entry is unclear, open that group’s details to check its Effective role and restriction choices. These groups allow Analytics features inside Google Ads; the link alone does not give everyone access to the Analytics website.

4. Check that each linked-user group shows Viewer. If it already shows Viewer, retain it without saving it again. If it has greater access, open its details, select Viewer and save, preserving its existing No Cost Metrics and No Revenue Metrics choices; reopen that group to confirm its Effective role and restrictions. Update Linked-user access in your note with the final displayed roles and restrictions, and enter “Five linked-user groups checked as Viewer” under Analytics feature access.

   • Warning: Changing a group affects everyone in that Ads access group. On an existing link, agree this reporting-only access with the property owner first; a team already using Analytics audience creation may need its existing roles.

04. Find the reports and hand off the connection

A saved connection establishes the route between products. Real ad clicks and collected website visits determine which reporting rows can appear.

1. Make the acquisition reports available, then find the Google Ads sessions report. A report collection changes the menu for people who already have access to this Analytics property; publishing it does not make your data public.

   1. Open Reports. If Acquisition > Overview is missing, open Library and find the Life cycle collection card. If it is unpublished, open that card’s three-dot collection menu and choose Publish. If the collection itself is missing, choose Create new collection > Life cycle, save the supplied collection, then publish it from its card. Return to Reports.

   2. Open Reports > Acquisition > Overview. Confirm the selected Analytics property still matches your Google Ads connection note. Enter “Reports > Acquisition > Overview” under Report location.

   3. Find the “Sessions by Session Google Ads campaign” card. If it is available, click View Google Ads campaigns and add that report to Report location in your note. If the card is not yet available, write “Acquisition overview; Ads card not available yet.” Eligible campaign data determines which Ads rows can appear. The separate Advertising > Key event performance report also needs a configured key event.

2. Give the Google Ads connection note to the reporting owner. Google advises allowing up to 48 hours for Ads data to appear. A new or inactive account may have no campaign rows. Ask the owner to check a period with real ad activity during their normal reporting routine. Conversion imports for bidding and remarketing audiences require their own setup; the saved link does not prove that conversions or audiences work.