Data & analytics Free course · Certificate included
Web Analytics with Google Analytics 4
Plan, tag, analyze and report with GA4, Tag Manager, BigQuery and Data Studio, accurately, with consent built in and AI used safely
- Intermediate
- 6 h 55 min
- 20 lessons in 7 modules
- 2 h 44 min of video lectures
- Updated Sep 2026
About this course
Most analytics setups fail long before anyone opens a report: nobody agreed what to measure, events were named at random, campaign links were untagged and consent was an afterthought. This course fixes that from the ground up, current to September 2026.
You will build a measurement plan tied to business goals, master the GA4 event model (events, parameters, key events and custom definitions), implement tracking with Google Tag Manager and a data layer, enforce UTM discipline, and understand consent mode and its real effect on reports, modeling and exports. Then you will turn data into decisions with reports, explorations, attribution and incrementality tests, Data Studio dashboards, the BigQuery export with reusable SQL, and AI-assisted analysis (Ask Advisor, Gemini, MCP) verified with a repeatable ladder.
Built for marketers, freelancers, agency analysts and founders who want analytics they can trust and explain.
Tools you’ll use
- Google Analytics 4
- Google Tag Manager
- BigQuery
- Data Studio
- Google Analytics Data API
- Google Analytics MCP server
- Consent mode
- Google Sheets
- Python
- Claude
- ChatGPT
- Gemini
Skills
- Google Analytics 4
- Measurement planning
- Google Tag Manager
- Consent mode
- BigQuery SQL
- Marketing attribution
- Dashboard design
- AI-assisted analytics
What you’ll be able to do
- Write a measurement plan that links business objectives to KPIs, events, targets and decisions
- Design and lint a GA4 tracking plan with consistent names, parameters and key events
- Implement and QA GA4 through Google Tag Manager, a data layer and automated contract tests
- Keep channel data clean with an enforced UTM taxonomy and leak-detection queries
- Explain consent mode, modeling thresholds and privacy duties, and quantify consent effects
- Answer business questions with reports, explorations, BigQuery SQL and incrementality tests
- Build decision-focused Data Studio dashboards and verify AI-assisted analysis before sharing
Curriculum
Syllabus
- Modules
- 7
- Lessons
- 20
- Reading time
- 3.5 h
- Assessment questions
- 25
Start with the business, not the tag. Build a measurement plan and set up a GA4 property that reflects it.
- From business goals to KPIsVideo lecture, 9′Video · 10 min
- Designing a tracking plan and naming conventionsVideo lecture, 8′11 min
- Setting up a GA4 property the right wayVideo lecture, 8′10 min
Understand events, parameters, key events, e-commerce data and custom definitions — the building blocks of every GA4 report.
- Events, parameters and user propertiesVideo lecture, 8′11 min
- Key events and e-commerce trackingVideo lecture, 8′12 min
- Custom definitions, scopes and core metricsVideo lecture, 8′10 min
Implement GA4 reliably using a tag manager, a data layer and a rigorous QA process.
- Tag manager fundamentals: tags, triggers and variablesVideo lecture, 9′11 min
- The data layer and custom eventsVideo lecture, 8′12 min
- QA, debugging and release disciplineVideo lecture, 8′10 min
Keep acquisition data clean with UTM discipline, and collect data lawfully with consent mode and privacy-by-design.
- UTM discipline and channel groupingsVideo lecture, 8′11 min
- Consent and consent mode conceptsVideo lecture, 9′11 min
- Privacy by design and data governanceVideo lecture, 8′10 min
Navigate GA4's standard reports confidently and use explorations to answer specific business questions.
- Reading standard reports with confidenceVideo lecture, 8′11 min
- Explorations: funnels, paths, segments and cohortsVideo lecture, 8′12 min
- From data to insight: an analysis workflowVideo lecture, 8′10 min
Understand attribution honestly, build decision-focused dashboards and run analytics as an ongoing practice.
- Attribution concepts and their limitsVideo lecture, 8′12 min
- Dashboards that drive decisionsVideo lecture, 8′11 min
- Running analytics as an ongoing practiceVideo lecture, 8′10 min
Use the raw GA4 export with reusable SQL, and bring AI (Ask Advisor, Gemini, general assistants and MCP) into analysis with a verification ladder.
- The GA4 BigQuery export: setup, schema and SQL you will reuseVideo lecture, 8′8 min
- AI-assisted GA4 analysis: Ask Advisor, Gemini, MCP and a verification ladderVideo lecture, 9′8 min
- Final assessment
Your certificate
Finish with a credential anyone can check
Earn the Certified GA4 Web Analyst badge: The holder can plan, implement and interpret Google Analytics 4 measurement: translating goals into KPIs and tracking plans, implementing events through Tag Manager and a data layer, keeping campaign data clean, respecting consent and privacy, querying the BigQuery export, and turning reports, experiments, dashboards and verified AI analysis into defensible recommendations.
Completed all lessons and scored at least 80% on the final assessment.
- A public verification page
- A PDF certificate to download
- An Open Badge you can share
- One click to your LinkedIn profile
Final assessment
- 25questions drawn from a larger pool
- 40 mintime limit
- 80%pass mark
- 3attempts per 24 hours
Start learning today. It’s free.
Every lesson is free to read. A free account saves your progress, unlocks the final assessment and issues your certificate.