MainWP Core + Pro Add-onThe MainWP Google Analytics Extension gives you valuable insights into your visitor’s search and traffic patterns, your marketing campaigns, and much more, allowing you to optimize your strategy and the online experience of your users.
Use this Extension To Track:
- Views
- Views by Page
- Users
- Users by Device
- Users by Country
- New Users
- Average Engagement Time
- Sessions by Source
NOTE: Due to the change in authentication method, users updating to version 4.1 of the extension will have to re-add their Google Analytics account by following the steps below.
Establishing a connection with Google Analytics
You can connect the Google Analytics account in two ways. Use whichever fits your setup (you can use both):
Option A: Sign in with Google (OAuth)
1. In your MainWP Dashboard, go to MainWP > Add‑ons > Google Analytics > Add Account.
2. Click Sign in with Google and follow the on-screen prompts to complete authorization.
3. Next, select the Google Analytics account you want to connect, then click Continue and then Confirm.
4. Selected Analytics account will appear under Manage Accounts
Option B: Connect a Service Account (JSON file)
First we will enable the 3 necessary APIs in Google Cloud Console.
- Go to your Google Cloud Console: https://console.cloud.google.com
- Create a new Project
- Navigate to APIs & Services > Enabled APIs & services
- Here we need to enable 3 APIs:
- Google Analytics Admin API,
- Google Analytics API, and
- Google Analytics Data API
Search for them one by one, and Enable them
Next, we will create a Service Account which will be added as a viewer later on to desired GA4 properties.
- In Google Cloud Console, Navigate to APIs & Services, click the + Create credentials button, select Service Account
- Give it a desired name, and click Done
- Now click on the newly created Service Account, then KEYS tab
- Then click on the Add Key button, then Create new key, select JSON and click Create
- JSON file will be downloaded automatically to your computer
Next, we will add the Service Account as a Viewer to desired properties.
The Service Account account can be added as a Viewer to the entire Google Analytics account in which case, it will have access to all properties within that account.
Or it can be added to individual GA4 properties which requires more upfront work but allows for more granular access.
- Navigate to your Google Analytics Dashboard and open the Admin settings
- Chose if you want to add the Service Account to the entire GA account or a single, currently selected, property
- Click on the Add users button
- The email address we want to add can be found on the Credentials page on the Google Cloud Console
- Enter it in the Email addresses field, set the role as Viewer, and click Add
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you decided to add the Service Account as a Viewer to a single property, repeat the steps above to all other desired single properties. - Now navigate to your MainWP Dashboard > Add-ons > Google Analytics > Add Account page, and upload the JSON file, which was downloaded automatically
- The account should now be visible in the Manage Accounts tab
NOTE: Multiple Google Accounts can be added by repeating the same process.
Important Notes:
The Google Analytics Extension doesn’t allow you to insert the Google Analytics tracking code on your child sites. To do that, you will need to add the code manually or use a 3rd party plugin.
Assigning sites from your Google Account to Child Sites in your MainWP Dashboard
The add-on will automatically assign properties to Child Sites based on the Child Site’s URL. However, you can still manually assign properties to child sites, by doing the following:
- Go to MainWP > Sites > Manage Sites.
- Locate the desired site, click on it’s name and then open its Settings page
- Find the Google Analytics section and select the matching Property
- Click Save Settings.
