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Moving from Google Analytics

Switching takes a few minutes. Importing your history from Google Analytics is a handful of clicks, and after that the old figures sit in Metrimato alongside the new ones.

Nothing here asks you to remove Google Analytics first. Run both for a while and decide with two dashboards open side by side.

  1. 01

    Add the site

    Give the domain and the time zone. You get a tracking key of your own straight away.

    • The time zone is per site, so a Finnish site and an export site can each be counted in their own day
    • The key is on the site's install page and can be copied at any time
  2. 02

    Install the script

    One script line in the page template, the same on every page. On WordPress, install the plugin and paste the key instead.

    • The script is served from metrimato.com, so most sites need no security policy changes
    • The first visit appears within seconds, so you know immediately whether it worked
  3. 03

    Bring the history along

    Import the old figures so the comparison does not start from zero. Metrimato reads Google Analytics 4 directly, or takes a CSV file.

    • The direct import asks Google only for read access to the property you choose, and reads aggregate reports
    • Up to 730 days and 100,000 pageviews at a time, and imported rows are marked so an import can be undone in one click
  4. 04

    Set up what you actually watch

    Goals, funnels, alerts and a weekly email report take a few minutes and replace most of what a hand-built report was for.

    • A goal is a page path or an event name, and there is nothing else to configure
    • A scheduled report sends a finished period to a list of addresses, each in the recipient's own language
  5. 05

    Follow and compare at your own pace

    There is no hurry. Look at the figures when it suits you and set them against the old ones, and you will see how the two tools differ on your own site.

    • Compare the same period in both, not today against yesterday
    • Metrimato usually shows more visitors, and the next section explains why
  6. 06

    When you are happy with it

    Take the old Google Analytics tags out. If Metrimato was the only thing on the site that needed consent, the banner can go with them.

    • Check what else sets cookies first: embedded video, chat, advertising pixels and fonts loaded from another company all count
    • Update the cookie policy and the privacy policy at the same time

The same thing under a different name

Most of the difficulty in switching is vocabulary rather than work. Here is what the words map to.

Google Analytics 4 Metrimato What differs
Property Site One site is one key. There is no data stream layer in between.
User Visitor Here a visitor is per site and per day. Over a longer period the two are not comparable.
Session Visit A visit ends after 30 minutes of quiet, the same rule as the Google Analytics default.
Event Event The same idea: pageviews and events of your own, with properties.
Key event or conversion Goal A page path or an event name. The conversion rate is computed for you.
Exploration, funnel Funnel Its own page, two to eight steps, counted within a single visit.
Exploration, path User paths Its own page, forwards from an entry page or backwards from a page you choose.
Audience or segment Saved segment A named set of dashboard filters. It selects visits, not people.
Annotation Annotation A note on one day for the site, drawn onto the chart.
Custom report Filters and export Every row on the dashboard is a filter, and the view exports as CSV or JSON.
BigQuery export Read API Aggregate figures over HTTP with a key. There is no visitor-level export, because there is no visitor-level data.
Google Signals and demographics Nothing Age, gender and interests are not collected. Country and language are.

The numbers will not match, and here is why

Two tools that count differently will not agree. Knowing which direction each difference pushes turns the comparison from alarming into useful.

Metrimato usually shows more visitors
Everyone who ignored or declined the banner is missing from Google Analytics and present here. On many sites this is the single largest difference.
Ad blockers hit the two differently
Blocking lists know Google's script by name. Metrimato's comes from our own domain and matches none of the known patterns.
Unique visitors over a month are not comparable
The identifier changes every day, so somebody visiting on five days is five visitors in a monthly total. Daily figures compare fine, monthly unique visitors do not.
Part of the Google figure may be estimated
With consent mode, Google models the behaviour of visitors who declined, if the property is large enough to qualify. Metrimato reports only what was measured.
Bounce rate is defined differently
Google Analytics derives it from engaged sessions. Metrimato counts a visit with one pageview and no further interaction. Read the trend rather than the absolute number.
Referrers are shorter here
Metrimato stores the referring domain, not the full address. Campaign detail comes from UTM parameters, which are kept in full.

The checklist

Ten minutes here saves a month of data with a hole in it. Go through this before the old tags come out.

  • The tracking script is on every page template, including the checkout and the thank-you pages
  • The dashboard shows the visits you made yourself from a browser
  • The missing-page template reports itself, and the site's own search shows up if you use it
  • The history is imported and the totals look sensible against the old reports
  • The goals you actually follow are set up, and at least one of them has fired
  • A weekly or monthly email report goes to the people who used to read the old one
  • Everyone who needs access has been invited, with the right role
  • The cookie policy and the privacy policy have been updated
  • You have checked what else on the site still needs consent before the banner goes

Frequently asked

Can I run both at the same time?

Yes, and we recommend it. The two scripts do not know about each other, and a fortnight of overlap is the only way to see how they differ on your own site.

Will I lose my history?

No. Import it, either straight from Google Analytics 4 with read-only access to the property, or as a CSV file. Imported rows are marked, so an import can be undone.

How far back can I import?

Up to 730 days and 100,000 pageviews per import, ending yesterday at the latest. You can run several imports one after another.

What does the direct import bring along?

Visits and pageviews with their sources, devices, countries and languages, built from Google's aggregate reports. Events of your own, scroll depth and site search do not come across, because they are not in those reports in the same form.

Do I have to remove the consent banner?

No, and it may not be yours to remove. Metrimato needs no consent, but if anything else on the site stores things on the visitor's device, the banner stays for that.

What if I want to leave?

Export everything as CSV or JSON from the account settings and delete the account. Note that deleted data cannot be restored.

Switch to a measure that respects the visitor

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