How to Link Google Ads to Google Analytics (Step by Step)

Do you use Google Ads and Google Analytics? If you use Google Ads to run ads and bring in more traffic and more leads, and you use Google Analytics to track that traffic and leads data, then you’ve got to learn how to connect the two tools and use them together.

Linking Google Ads to Google Analytics allows you to share information between the two accounts for better tracking of your ad campaigns. When you can track the traffic from your ad campaigns in more detail, you can do a better job of improving them and increasing your return on ad spend.

In this article, I’ll show you step-by-step how to link Google Ads to Google Analytics 4. Then, I’ll go over some tips on how to set up and track your ads effectively when your website is built with WordPress.

Let’s go!

Table of Contents

1. Video Walkthrough
2. Why link Google Ads to Google Analytics?
3. Tutorial: How to Link Google Ads to Google Analytics
4. Google Ads Conversion Tracking
   1. eCommerce Google Ads Conversion Tracking
   2. Tracking All Other Google Ads Conversions
5. Track ALL the Analytics You Need to Grow

Link Google Ads to Google Analytics: Video Walkthrough

Why link Google Ads to Google Analytics?

Google Ads, formerly known as Google AdWords, is an advertising platform by Google that allows you to show paid ads to Google users.

However, using Google Ads is only half the equation.

If you really want to grow your business and make the most of your ads, you need to track your campaigns in terms of cost and conversions once those users hit your website. Are you spending your advertising budget wisely, driving paid traffic to the right pages on your site so that you can get the most leads or conversions out of it?

To really get a good idea about whether your paid traffic is worth the amount you’re spending, you’ll want to keep track of metrics like:

• Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)
• Impressions and Clicks on Ads
• Cost per Click
• Key Events (Conversions)
• Engagement Rate
• Add to Carts & Abandoned Checkouts

The first three of those KPIs you can keep track of in Google Ads. The last three, though, are better to keep track of in Google Analytics.

Only then will you really be able to understand whether your Google Ads campaigns are really working.

That’s why linking your Google Analytics account to your Google Ads account can help you see how effective your advertising efforts are. You get to see the full customer journey, from how people interact with your ads to whether they complete the goal of your campaign and how they behave on your website.

Now, let’s take a look at how to connect Google Ads with Analytics.

Tutorial: Link Google Ads to Google Analytics

Just follow these steps to link both of Google’s tools in no time.

To link Google Ads and Google Analytics in GA4, start by choosing the correct property:

Then head to Admin:

In the middle column, select Google Ads Links:

Next, click the blue Link button:

Now, click the Choose Google Ads accounts text:

On the next screen, choose which account(s) to link with and click Confirm:

Now, verify you’ve got the right account and click Next:

Then, you’ll be asked if you want to leave personalized advertising on. This can be changed any time after setup.

Click Next, then Submit.

Congrats! Your accounts are now linked.

Tracking Google Ads Conversions in Google Analytics

Now, I’ll show you how to make sure you have Google Ads tracking set up on your WordPress site, so that your connection between Google Ads and Google Analytics provides you with important data about your visitors.

First, let’s take a look at the instructions for an eCommerce site.

WordPress eCommerce Google Ads Conversion Tracking

WordPress eCommerce website owners, do you want an easy way to track your Google Ads conversions? If you have a WooCommerce, Easy Digital Downloads, MemberPress, LifterLMS, or GiveWP store, you can easily and quickly set up Google Ads conversion tracking without messing with any code.

Step 1: Install MonsterInsights WordPress Plugin

The first thing you’ll need to do is install and activate MonsterInsights on your website. It’s the best Google Analytics plugin for WordPress.

With MonsterInsights, you can set up Google Analytics on your website without editing code. Plus, the plugin can set up advanced tracking features like eCommerce tracking, affiliate link click tracking, outbound link click tracking, form conversion tracking, and much more with just a couple of clicks.

Head to the Pricing page and choose the Pro license, then download and install MonsterInsights.

After the plugin is active, you’ll connect Google Analytics to your site. Using the MonsterInsights step-by-step wizard, there’s no need to hire a developer or touch a single line of code to set up Google Analytics on WordPress.

For the full MonsterInsights setup instructions, follow our guide on how to set up Google Analytics on your WordPress site.

Step 2: Install PPC Ads Tracking Addon and Connect Google Ads

The next step is to install the MonsterInsights PPC Ads Tracking add-on. To use the add-on, you’ll need a MonsterInsights Pro or higher plan.

To install the addon, go to Insights » Addons » PPC Tracking and click Download & Activate.

Once the plugin is active, you can enter the Google Ads Conversion ID and Conversion Label, and MonsterInsights will automatically track your Ads conversions. There is no need to insert any code on your website manually.

Just navigate to Insights » Settings » Conversions and go to PPC Ads Pixel Tracking. Enter your Google Ads ID under the Conversion ID and your Conversion Label for purchases in the Conversion Label field.

That’s it! You’ve got eCommerce Google Ads conversion tracking all setup and ready to go.

For a full tutorial on Google Ads conversion tracking, including where to find your Conversion ID and Conversion Label, read How to Use Google Analytics for Google Ads Conversion Tracking.

Tracking All Other Google Ads Conversions

Not every website that needs Google Ads conversion tracking is an eCommerce site. What do you do if you need to track, say, a form submission?

For that, you can still use MonsterInsights to insert your Conversion ID on all of your pages. However, you’ll need to insert your own conversion label on your conversion page (like a thank you page, for example). Luckily, there’s a free and easy way to do that: with WPCode.

WPCode is the best plugin for inserting code snippets on your site. Just set up a new snippet with your conversion label, then toggle the tab to enable conditional logic and choose which page the snippet should appear on:

For more instructions on using Smart Conditional Logic in WPCode, check out their conditional logic guide.

Get ALL the Analytics You Need to Grow

Want even more analytics to help you grow your business? That’s why we created MonsterInsights. Not only is it a powerful analytics tool that helps collect and interpret important data from your Google Analytics account, but it’s also incredibly simple to use.

To make the most of your paid and organic campaigns and use the results to grow your business, we recommend using MonsterInsights to help:

• Easily set up Google Analytics in WordPress and start tracking key metrics to help you make data-driven decisions
• Add eCommerce tracking to your eCommerce store to get eCommerce data delivered to your WordPress dashboard
• Track any WordPress form plugin using the MonsterInsights Forms Addon
• Take a step toward GDPR compliance by installing the EU Compliance Addon
• Get important reports right inside your WordPress dashboard, like Campaigns, Channels, Social Media, and much more
• Take notes about your campaigns right on your traffic graph in your dashboard with Site Notes
• And much more!

Get started with MonsterInsights now.

And that’s it!

You now know how to use Google Analytics with Google Ads, so you can maximize your advertisement efforts and convert more site visitors into customers.

We hope you liked our article on how to connect Google Analytics with Google Ads. You might also want to check out:

How to Track Link Clicks in Google Analytics 4 and WordPress
How to See Google Analytics Keywords for Your Website
10 Best Ways to Measure SEO Performance in Google Analytics

Not using MonsterInsights yet? What are you waiting for?

Finally, don’t forget to follow us on YouTube for more helpful reviews, tutorials, and Google Analytics tips.