Tracking outbound clicks in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is essential for understanding user engagement and the effectiveness of your website's external links. Outbound clicks refer to any link clicks that lead to an external URL, including any external websites or platforms that are not your own. By setting up GA4 events related to outbound clicks, you will be able to see the data related to how many people navigate to a certain external link through your website in your GA4 reports. This guide will show you how to track outbound clicks in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) quickly and easily!
How to Track Outbound Clicks in Google Analytics 4
Step 1: Ensure Google Tag Manager is installed on all website pages
Step 2: Navigate to Variables, click on Configure, and enable all Click Variables
Step 3: Set up a Tag, select Google Analytics: GA4 Event
1. Create a new tag
2. Name the tag accordingly
3. Under tag configuration, select the option Google Analytics: GA4 Event
4. Under Configuration Tag, insert your GA4 Measurement ID
If this is the first time you're setting up a tag, you need to input your Measurement ID which you can find in Google Analytics under Admin > Data Streams. If this is the second time you're setting up events, the system will have a record of your Measurement ID.
Step 4: Name the event accordingly
Note that the event name will be the name displayed in the Google Analytics 4 reports. For instance, if you name an event "browse_courses_clicks", this will be the name that appears in your GA4 reports under the event count column. To add, don't leave any spaces in your event name and use underscore instead. This will be helpful for you to work with these events in custom metrics and custom dimensions.
Step 5: Create a new Trigger
Trigger defines the exact event that we want to track. For instance, in our website, we can have numerous outbound clicks to various websites. We want to create an event that is relevant to a specific outbound click to track. Create a new trigger and name it accordingly.
Step 6: Click on Trigger configuration and select the Just Links option
Step 7: Select "Some Link Clicks"
In this case, we want to track specific links so we don't want to track ALL link clicks, we want to only track SOME link clicks.
Step 8: Select Click URL from the dropdown menu
Set the condition to Click URL and also 'contains'. We use 'contains' since it allows a small margin of error as it covers slightly more options. However, if you want to track a really specific URL, then you can use 'equals' condition instead.
Step 9: Paste the Link Address (Outbound URL)
Step 10: Save the Tag Configuration
Step 11: Preview your Tag Manager and open the Tag Assistant for the page you want to work on
Two tabs will automatically open: your website with the debugger connected and Google Tag Assistant.
Step 12: Click on the outbound link (event) you want to track
Step 13: Navigate to Tag Assistant and select the Link Click instance relevant to your outbound click
You'll find details on why the Tag is fired (when the conditions we set above are fulfilled i.e. a user clicked on an element where it contains the set external URL).
Step 14: Check if your Tag is firing correctly
Under Tags Fired, you should see the event that you've created is fired normally. If you didn't set it up correctly, you'll find it under Tags Not Fired. If you want to know the issue with the Tag, then you can click on the Tag and see the reason for the Tag not fired due to certain conditions not being met.
Step 15: Publish your Tag Manager
Once you set up your event, keep in mind that it will take up to 24 hours for the event to register and for Google Analytics to start showing data.
Frequently Asked Questions on Tracking Outbound Clicks in Google Analytics 4
What are outbound clicks in GA4?
Outbound clicks are interactions where users click on links that lead them away from your website to external domains. In GA4, these are automatically tracked as events named "click" with additional parameters that specify the link's destination.
How does GA4 track outbound clicks by default?
GA4 automatically tracks outbound clicks when enhanced measurement is enabled. The system identifies clicks on links where the hostname differs from your website's domain and records them as events.
How do I enable outbound click tracking in GA4?
Navigate to Admin → Data Streams
Select your web data stream
Click on "Enhanced Measurement"
Ensure the master toggle is enabled
Verify that "Outbound Clicks" is enabled in the measurement settings
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