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Writer's pictureSotirios Seridis

How to Track Email Link Clicks in Google Analytics 4 (GA4)

If your business is one that heavily relies on Email leads, setting up tracking for Email Link Clicks would certainly be a good idea. You should be able to know how many people come to your website and click on a link that opens up to your Email address. In this guide, we will show you a step-by-step tutorial on how to track Email Link Clicks in Google Analytics 4!





How to Track Email Link Clicks in Google Analytics 4 (GA4):


⚠️ Disclaimer: This guide will help you to set up a GA4 Event to track the number of people who click an Email button on your website. If your objective is to track the number on Email CAMPAIGN clicks INSIDE your emails, please scroll down and advise to the next section.



Before You Start (Prerequisites):


  1. Ensure GA4 is installed on all your website pages

  2. Ensure Google Tag Manager (GTM) is installed on all your website pages

  3. Navigate to your Google Tag Manager container → Navigate to Variables

  4. Click Configure (top-right-hand-side)

  5. Enable ALL variables (including everything under "Clicks")

  6. Save and publish your Google Tag Manager container




Setup your GA4 Event via Google Tag Manager:


  1. Navigate to Google Tag Manager

  2. Create a New Tag

  3. Give your tag a descriptive name

  4. Choose Google Analytics → Google Analytics: GA4 Event

  5. Paste your GA4 Measurement ID - how to find your measurement ID:

    • Go to GA4 → Admin → Data Streams

    • Select your Data Stream

    • Copy the Measurement ID


  6. Choose a name for your event (Example: "email_link_clicks"). This is how your event will show up in GA4 (avoid using spaces or special characters for your event name)

  7. Click "Triggering"

  8. Create a new trigger

  9. Choose "Just Links" as the trigger type

  10. Select "Some Link Clicks" (this lets you track specific email links)

  11. Select "Click URL" from the dropdown

  12. Choose either:

  13. Save your Tag

  14. Submit and Publish your Google Tag Manager container




Test if your GA4 Event is working as expected:


  1. Click Preview in Google Tag Manager (top-right-hand-side)

  2. Visit your website through Tag Assistant

  3. Click the email link you want to track

  4. Check Tag Assistant to verify if:

    • Your tag appears under "Tags Fired"

    • The event details are correct

  5. Allow up to 24 hours for data to appear in GA4






How to Track Email Campaign Clicks in Google Analytics 4, Traffic Acquisition Report:


📝 Important Note: This guide will help you to track the number on clicks INSIDE your emails - the number of people who opened your email and clicked on a link.


  1. ➡️ BEFORE your send your email → Navigate to Campaign URL Builder and set up UTM Tags for ALL the links inside your email, as per the following instrunctions:

  2. Copy each link (one at a time) and paste it under the "website URL" box

  3. Under either the campaign source or campiagn medium boxes, paste the word "email" (without the "")

  4. Scroll down and copy your generated URL, it should look like the below example: https://xyzlab.com?utm_source=email&utm_medium=test


  5. This is the URL you should use as the destination URL in your Email - you need to set it up BEFORE you send the email. Repeat the above proccess for all the links in your Email



Where to Find Email Campaign Data in GA4:


Navigate through these steps in your GA4 reports:

  1. Open Traffic Acquisition Report

  2. Check Session Default Channel Group

    • Look for "Email" category

  3. View Session Source/Medium

    • Find: "email / [your medium name]"

    • Note: The medium name is what you set in Campaign Builder

  4. Analyze Specific Sources

    • Under "Session source"

    • Will show "email" or your custom source name

  5. Review Session Medium

    • Shows "email" or your custom medium name

    • These names come from your Campaign Builder settings

💡 Quick Tip: Your source/medium names will match what you set up in the Campaign URL Builder when creating your email links.




Frequently Asked Questions on Tracking Email Link Clicks in Google Analytics 4 (GA4)


What's the difference between tracking website email buttons and email campaign clicks?


  • Website email button tracking: Tracks when visitors click email links/buttons on your website using GA4 Events and GTM

  • Email campaign tracking: Tracks when people click links INSIDE your emails using UTM parameters




Do I need both GA4 and GTM to track email clicks on my website?


Yes, you need both tools:

  • GA4 to collect and display the data

  • GTM to set up and manage the tracking event

  • Both must be installed on all website pages




How do I name my GA4 events for email tracking?


  • Use simple, descriptive names

  • Always use underscores instead of spaces (e.g., "email_link_clicks")

  • Avoid special characters

  • Be consistent with your naming convention




How can I verify if my email click tracking is working?


  • Use Preview mode in GTM

  • Visit your website through Tag Assistant

  • Click the email link you want to track

  • Check Tag Assistant to verify:

    • Your tag shows under "Tags Fired"

    • Event details are correct




How do I track clicks inside my email campaigns?


  • Use Campaign URL Builder before sending emails

  • Add UTM tags to all links in your email

  • In GA4, you can check track traffic coming from your email campaigns under the Traffic Acquisition Report: Session default channel group, under Email Session source/medium, under email / (name you gave for medium) Session source, under email or the name you assigned via the Campaign Builder

    Session medium, under email or the name you assigned via the Campaign Builder




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