Understanding accounts vs. properties in Google Analytics
Google Analytics organizes data hierarchically. Here's how accounts and properties differ and how they relate to each other.
Google Analytics account
What it is: The top-level container for your analytics setup.
Purpose: Manages access, billing (for GA4 360), and high-level settings.
Key details:
One Google account (e.g., your@company.com) can own multiple GA accounts.
Each account has unique permissions - users can be granted access at this level.
Example: Your company might have one account for "Marketing" and another for "Product Team".
Google Analytics property
What it is: A sub-container under an account that collects data for a specific website, app, or digital asset.
Purpose: Tracks user interactions and stores data independently.
Key details:
Each property has its own tracking ID (e.g.
G-ABCDE12345
).You can have multiple properties under one account.
Reports and configurations are set at the property level.
Hierarchy visual
Google Account (e.g., your@company.com)
│
└── Google Analytics Account (e.g., "Marketing Team")
│
├── Property 1 (e.g., "Company Website" - GA4)
├── Property 2 (e.g., "Mobile App" - GA4)
└── Property 3 (e.g., "Landing Pages" - Universal Analytics)
Key differences between accounts and properties
Feature | Account | Property |
---|---|---|
Scope | Organization-wide | Specific website/app |
Access control | Manages user permissions | Inherits account permissions |
Data separation | N/A | Data is isolated per property |
Billing | Tied to GA4 360 subscriptions | N/A |
When to use each level
Account-level actions
Add/remove users across multiple properties
Manage billing for paid plans
Set organization-wide policies
Property-level actions
Set up tracking codes
Configure reports and conversions
Apply data filters and retention settings
Practical example
For a company with a website and app:
Account: "Acme Corp Analytics"
Property 1: "Acme Website" (tracks http://www.acme.com)
Property 2: "Acme Mobile App" (tracks iOS/Android app)
This structure keeps data separate while allowing centralized management.