Where can you add this connector in Funnel? | Which subscription plan do you need? |
| A Business or Enterprise plan Note: This is a Beta feature. |
If you want to connect to a data source from Google Analytics in Funnel, you can use one of the following connectors:
Google Analytics connector
GA4 via BigQuery connector
While these connectors complement each other, they have different features. If you want to import aggregated and pre-processed data to Funnel, use the Google Analytics connector. If you want to connect to a data source from Google Analytics and import more than 9 dimensions in your reports, use the GA4 via Big Query connector to fetch this data. You can fetch the event-level data using this connector. Understand the differences between these two connectors before you decide to connect.
Difference between the Google Analytics connector and the GA4 via Big Query connector
Here are some of the important characteristics of the two connectors that Funnel supports:
Data aggregation and raw event-level data
The Google Analytics connector imports aggregated and pre-processed data using Google’s reporting API. This is best suited for straightforward use cases where you want summary reports and retrieve high-level metrics such as sessions and conversions.
The GA4 via Big Query connector imports raw, unsampled event-level and user-level data directly. This enables deep, customized analysis with full access to event parameters, user IDs, and custom dimensions.
Flexibility and custom use cases
The GA4 via BigQuery connector is designed for advanced, flexible reporting, such as:Creating unique event IDs
Grouping conversions by landing page or other custom parameters
Building audiences based on behavioral or event-driven rules
Running real-time analysis (based on the latest data dumps)
These capabilities support more tailored and powerful insights, particularly for users with complex analytics needs.
Dimensions and metrics limitations
Google Analytics connector:Limited to 9 dimensions per query
Returns only the predefined Google-reported metrics
May omit high-cardinality fields or niche parameters
Note: While these limitations apply to what can be requested from the Google API, Funnel also provides some derived metrics out of the box that are available through the GA4 connector.
GA4 via BigQuery connector:No limit on the number of dimensions
Supports all custom event parameters, regardless of cardinality
Enables querying of user-scoped and session-scoped fields that aren’t available via the API
Sampling and data completeness
The Google Analytics connector can be subject to sampling and quota limits, especially on high-traffic properties or large datasets.
The GA4 via BigQuery connector pulls directly from unsampled, complete BigQuery exports, ensuring all events are captured.
Note: Funnel limits daily file size to 5 GB to ensure performance and stability.
Availability of key fields
The User ID field, essential for analyzing user behavior across sessions and devices, is not available in the standard GA4 connector.
It is available in the GA4 via BigQuery connector, along with the Google Click ID (GCLID) tied to conversion events.
Which connector should I use to import my Google Analytics data?
Use this section to decide which connector will suit your use case best.
Features | GA4 via BigQuery connector | Google Analytics connector |
Data type | Raw, unsampled event-level data | Aggregated session-level data |
Sampling | Not applicable | Available |
Dimension limit | None | 9 per query |
Access to custom parameters | Supports the all parameters | Supports only limited parameters |
User ID and GCLID support | Available | Not supported |
Recommended scenarios | Suitable for advanced and custom analytics | Suitable for quick and standard reporting |
If you want to connect to a data source using the Google Analytics connector, refer to this article that describes the procedure to connect using the Google Analytics connector.
Overview of how the GA4 via Big Query connector imports data
The GA4 via Big Query connector in Funnel is built for advanced analytics use cases.
To import your data, you have to first link your Google Analytics property to BigQuery and include the User ID. This ensures to collect the user-provided data. After you stream this event data to BigQuery, use the GA4 via Big Query connector to import this data in Funnel. Funnel aggregates the event data by time period, making it easier to explore and analyze trends in the Google Analytics dataset. Since this connector doesn’t require you to use SQL or ETL, this is a less expensive solution when compared to other Business Intelligence (BI) tools.
Note: This article describes only the Standard report in the connector. If you are using the Measure feature, refer to the article that describes the procedure to use the Measurement report available for this connector.
Guidelines and requirements
Before you begin connecting, ensure that you meet the following requirements:
Use BigQuery as your warehouse solution.
As part of this workflow, you have to link Google Analytics with BigQuery. Funnel does not download historical data from before this link is established.
Read the article on what data you can get when you connect using the Standard report to view the complete list of dimensions and metrics you can get.
For quicker connection, we recommend you specify the events you want to import during the configuration. The All events option is the default choice.
Use a comma-separated list to specify the events you need. Doing so will also reduce the amount of data that Funnel imports, enables quicker connection, and lowers the cost for you.
This connector imports data only up to 5 GB per day. If the data exceeds this limit, there will be delays in downloading the data. Contact Funnel’s support if you notice a delay for more than 24 hours.
The download time depends on the number of rows, size of the file, and the granularity of data in each row. If the download takes more than 5 hours, contact Funnel’s support.
Funnel downloads data only up to the last 90 days.
Funnel does not download data for the current day. It downloads data at the following frequencies:
Every hour for the previous day’s data
Every 24 hours for the data from the last 3 days
Ensure to have the necessary roles and permissions in Google Analytics and BigQuery.
You need an Editor or Administrator role for the Google Analytics account.
You need a BigQuery Data Editor role or BigQuery Admin role in the BigQuery account.
There may be additional costs associated with BigQuery. Read about BigQuery pricing for more details. An example cost is as follows:
If you have 1GiB of data per day, the initial backfill for this connection will consume 90GiB of your limit processed for that month. After the initial backfill, the connector will use 3GiB per day going forward. This means that the first month will use 180GiB and the following months will use 90GiB if you have 1GiB of data per day going forward.
Be mindful of the other instances that query your BigQuery data since it’s a shared cost pool.
Monitor query costs in the BigQuery console.
Monitor your monthly BigQuery usage in the Monitoring tab in Google Cloud Console. Ensure to select the correct project and location.
Collaborate with your data team to restructure large datasets where needed.
Procedure
Follow these steps to connect to a data source using the GA4 via BigQuery connector with the Standard report in Funnel:
In Funnel, go to Connect > Data sources, and click + Connect Data Source.
Search for GA4 via BigQuery in the search bar, and click Connect Now.
In the Select Credentials section, select your BigQuery account’s credentials so that you can authorize Funnel to download your data.
If you select an account that you already added, go to step 5. If you are adding a new account credential, follow these substeps.
You have the following two options to add your account’s credentials:
Continue with Google: If you click Continue with Google, you will be redirected to a screen to confirm the Google account you want to continue with.
Connect a service account: If you click Connect a service account, enter your Google’s service account JSON and click Next.
Note: In this procedure, we are going to connect to a Google account.
Click Continue to confirm the account.
Review the access permissions for the Funnel Connector, and click Allow.
Select a project that contains the data you want to import, and click Next.
Note: You can select multiple projects per connection.
Use a Template or Configure manually your data source, and click Next.
To configure a data source:(If you Use a Template): Select a saved template or create a new template. Enter a template name if you are creating a new template.
(Optional) (If you select multiple projects in step 5 and want to Configure manually): Toggle the Configure Data Sources individually selector if you want to configure the data sources individually for each data source.
Select the Standard report.
Read the article on what data you can get when you connect using the Standard report.
Note: If you use the Measure feature and want to select the Advanced Measurement report, read the article on how to connect to GA4 via BigQuery with the Advanced Measurement report.
Select the events you want Funnel to import from BigQuery in the What events do you want to collect? section.
Available options are All events and Subset of events.
(Optional) (If you selected the Subset of events option in step 6.d) Enter the events you want to collect in a comma separated list.
Specifying the events ensures to increase the speed of the data source connection and downloads, and minimizes BigQuery costs because of the reduced data transfer.
Specify if you want to extract data from the event_params_key column in BigQuery.
The available options are No and Yes. If you select Yes, enter the dimensions and metrics in comma separated lists in the corresponding fields.
Review the configuration summary, and click Connect Data Source.