/google-analytics

name: google-analytics
description: >
  Pull GA4 reports, traffic data, and insights from the Google Analytics Data API.
  Use when asked about website traffic, user behavior, acquisition channels,
  conversions, or audience segments. Trigger phrases: "google analytics", "GA4",
  "traffic report", "analytics data", "user acquisition", "engagement metrics",
  "conversion tracking", "audience segments", "page views", "sessions".

Google Analytics (GA4)

Pull reports and insights from GA4 using the Google Analytics Data API.

Prerequisites

Requires Google OAuth credentials:

• `GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID`
• `GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET`
• A valid OAuth access token (refreshed as needed)

Set credentials in `.env`, `.env.local`, or `~/.claude/.env.global`.

Getting an Access Token

# Step 1: Get authorization code (user must visit this URL in browser)
echo "https://accounts.google.com/o/oauth2/v2/auth?client_id=${GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID}&redirect_uri=urn:ietf:wg:oauth:2.0:oob&scope=https://www.googleapis.com/auth/analytics.readonly&response_type=code&access_type=offline"

# Step 2: Exchange code for tokens
curl -s -X POST "https://oauth2.googleapis.com/token" \
  -d "code={AUTH_CODE}" \
  -d "client_id=${GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID}" \
  -d "client_secret=${GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET}" \
  -d "redirect_uri=urn:ietf:wg:oauth:2.0:oob" \
  -d "grant_type=authorization_code"

# Step 3: Refresh an expired token
curl -s -X POST "https://oauth2.googleapis.com/token" \
  -d "refresh_token={REFRESH_TOKEN}" \
  -d "client_id=${GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID}" \
  -d "client_secret=${GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET}" \
  -d "grant_type=refresh_token"

Store the refresh token securely. The access token expires after 1 hour.

Finding Your GA4 Property ID

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer ${GA_ACCESS_TOKEN}" \
  "https://analyticsadmin.googleapis.com/v1beta/accountSummaries" \
  | python3 -c "
import json, sys
data = json.load(sys.stdin)
for acct in data.get('accountSummaries', []):
    for prop in acct.get('propertySummaries', []):
        print(f\"{prop['property']}  |  {prop.get('displayName','')}  |  Account: {acct.get('displayName','')}\")
"

The property ID format is `properties/XXXXXXXXX`.

---

API Base

POST https://analyticsdata.googleapis.com/v1beta/{property_id}:runReport

All report requests use POST with a JSON body. Always include `Authorization: Bearer {ACCESS_TOKEN}`.

---

1. Traffic Overview Report

Get sessions, users, page views, and engagement rate over a date range.

Example curl

curl -s -X POST \
  "https://analyticsdata.googleapis.com/v1beta/properties/{PROPERTY_ID}:runReport" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${GA_ACCESS_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "dateRanges": [{"startDate": "30daysAgo", "endDate": "today"}],
    "metrics": [
      {"name": "sessions"},
      {"name": "totalUsers"},
      {"name": "newUsers"},
      {"name": "screenPageViews"},
      {"name": "engagementRate"},
      {"name": "averageSessionDuration"},
      {"name": "bounceRate"}
    ]
  }'

Date Range Shortcuts

• `today`, `yesterday`
• `7daysAgo`, `14daysAgo`, `28daysAgo`, `30daysAgo`, `90daysAgo`
• Specific dates: `2024-01-01`
• Compare periods by passing two dateRanges

---

2. User Acquisition Report

See where users come from (channels, sources, campaigns).

curl -s -X POST \
  "https://analyticsdata.googleapis.com/v1beta/properties/{PROPERTY_ID}:runReport" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${GA_ACCESS_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "dateRanges": [{"startDate": "30daysAgo", "endDate": "today"}],
    "dimensions": [
      {"name": "sessionDefaultChannelGroup"}
    ],
    "metrics": [
      {"name": "sessions"},
      {"name": "totalUsers"},
      {"name": "engagementRate"},
      {"name": "conversions"}
    ],
    "orderBys": [{"metric": {"metricName": "sessions"}, "desc": true}],
    "limit": 20
  }'

Useful Acquisition Dimensions

| Dimension | Description | |-----------|-------------| | `sessionDefaultChannelGroup` | Channel grouping (Organic, Paid, Social, etc.) | | `sessionSource` | Traffic source (google, facebook, etc.) | | `sessionMedium` | Medium (organic, cpc, referral, etc.) | | `sessionCampaignName` | UTM campaign name | | `firstUserSource` | First-touch attribution source |

---

3. Top Pages Report

Find the highest-traffic pages on the site.

curl -s -X POST \
  "https://analyticsdata.googleapis.com/v1beta/properties/{PROPERTY_ID}:runReport" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${GA_ACCESS_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "dateRanges": [{"startDate": "30daysAgo", "endDate": "today"}],
    "dimensions": [
      {"name": "pagePath"}
    ],
    "metrics": [
      {"name": "screenPageViews"},
      {"name": "totalUsers"},
      {"name": "engagementRate"},
      {"name": "averageSessionDuration"}
    ],
    "orderBys": [{"metric": {"metricName": "screenPageViews"}, "desc": true}],
    "limit": 25
  }'

---

4. Engagement Metrics

Understand how users interact with your content.

curl -s -X POST \
  "https://analyticsdata.googleapis.com/v1beta/properties/{PROPERTY_ID}:runReport" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${GA_ACCESS_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "dateRanges": [{"startDate": "30daysAgo", "endDate": "today"}],
    "dimensions": [
      {"name": "pagePath"}
    ],
    "metrics": [
      {"name": "engagedSessions"},
      {"name": "engagementRate"},
      {"name": "averageSessionDuration"},
      {"name": "screenPageViewsPerSession"},
      {"name": "eventCount"}
    ],
    "orderBys": [{"metric": {"metricName": "engagedSessions"}, "desc": true}],
    "limit": 20
  }'

Key Engagement Metrics

| Metric | What It Measures | |--------|-----------------| | `engagementRate` | % of sessions that were engaged (>10s, 2+ pages, or conversion) | | `averageSessionDuration` | Mean session length in seconds | | `screenPageViewsPerSes