Understanding Data Retention Settings in GA4
Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is the latest iteration of Google’s web analytics platform. It brings a host of new features and capabilities compared to the previous version, Universal Analytics (UA). One important aspect of GA4 is its data retention settings, which determine how long user and event data is stored before being automatically deleted. Understanding and properly configuring these settings is crucial for businesses to ensure compliance with data privacy regulations while still being able to leverage the insights provided by GA4.
Key Takeaways
- GA4 has four data retention options: 2 months, and 14 months
- The default setting is 2 months but can be changed based on business needs.
- Shorter retention periods provide less historical data but better privacy compliance.
- Longer retention allows more in-depth analysis but increases privacy obligations.
- Retention settings apply to user-level data, while aggregated data is kept indefinitely.
Understanding GA4 Data Retention Options
GA4 provides four different data retention options for businesses to choose from:
- 2 months: User and event data is deleted after 2 months. This is the default setting.
- 14 months: Data is retained for 14 months before automatic deletion, which provides a balance between data retention and privacy.
The data retention period starts from the date of data collection. For example, with the 14-month setting, an event captured on January 1st would be deleted on March 1st of the following year.
It’s important to note that these retention settings only apply to user and event data stored at the user level. Aggregated data, such as the total number of users or sessions, is retained indefinitely regardless of the selected retention period.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Retention Period
Deciding on the appropriate data retention period for your GA4 property depends on several key factors:
Business Requirements
Consider how much historical data your business needs access to for reporting and analysis purposes. Do you need to analyze user behavior and trends over several years, or is a shorter time frame sufficient? Startups and new products may not need as much historical data compared to established businesses.
Industry Benchmarks
Look at data retention practices within your industry for guidance. Some fields, like healthcare and finance, may have specific regulatory requirements that dictate how long certain types of data can be stored.
Privacy Regulations
Familiarize yourself with the privacy laws applicable to your business, such as GDPR, CCPA, or LGPD. These regulations often have specific provisions around data retention periods. The longer you retain personal data, the greater your obligations are in terms of data subject rights, such as the ability to delete data upon request.
Consent Management
If your data collection and retention practices require user consent, consider how long that consent reasonably extends. Retaining data for longer periods may necessitate periodic re-consent from users.
Steps for Changing Your Data Retention Setting
GA4 allows you to change your data retention setting at any time by following these steps:
- Go to Admin in the left-hand navigation menu
- Go to Data collection and modification >> Data Retention
- Choose your desired retention period from the drop-down menu
- Click “Save.”
Note that changing to a shorter retention period, such as from 14 months to 2 months, will result in the immediate deletion of any data older than 2 months. However, changing to a longer duration will not recover any previously deleted data.
User Data Deletion Steps
In addition to automatic data deletion based on your retention setting, GA4 provides a user deletion tool to remove individual users’ data upon request manually. This is often necessary to comply with data privacy laws when a user invokes their “right to be forgotten” or asks for their data to be deleted.
To delete a user’s data:
- Go to Admin in the left-hand navigation menu
- Go to Data collection and modification >> Data deletion requests
- Enter the user identifier, which can be a GA Client ID, user ID, or app instance ID
- Click “Submit.”
Retention Impact on Reporting
Your chosen data retention setting can have a significant impact on the reports and insights available in GA4. Let’s look at a couple of common reporting scenarios:
Year-over-Year Comparisons
If you want to compare metrics like users, revenue, or conversion rate to the previous year, you’ll need a retention setting of at least 14 months. With the default 2-month setting, you will need more historical data to conduct a year-over-year analysis.
User Lifetime Value
Calculating a user’s lifetime value (LTV) requires tracking their behavior and transactions over an extended period. If you have a longer sales cycle or expect users to make repeat purchases over several years, a 26-month or 50-month retention period would be necessary to calculate LTV accurately.
On the other hand, a shorter retention window can be preferable if you prioritize privacy compliance over long-term insights. With a 2-month setting, you’ll have a rolling 60-day window of granular user-level data to work with.
Data Retention and Audiences
GA4’s audiences feature allows you to define groups of users based on shared characteristics or behaviors for more targeted analysis and marketing. Your retention setting determines how far back GA4 will look when evaluating users for audience membership.
For example, say you have an audience defined as “Users who have purchased in the last 120 days.” With a 14-month retention setting, GA4 will be able to include users who purchased up to 14 months ago. However, if you have a 2-month setting, only users who purchased in the last 60 days would be eligible for the audience.
Keep your desired audience criteria in mind when deciding on a retention period to ensure you can effectively leverage this powerful feature.
Data Retention for Exported Data
It’s important to understand that GA4’s data retention settings only apply to data stored within the GA4 platform itself. If you export data to BigQuery or via the Reporting API for storage and analysis elsewhere, you’ll need to establish your data retention policies for that exported data.
For example, if you export raw event data from GA4 to BigQuery, that data will persist in BigQuery until you manually delete it or set up an automated deletion process. The same applies to data exported to other tools or databases.
To maintain consistency and compliance, align your external data retention practices with your overall data governance and privacy policies.
Compliance Considerations
As mentioned earlier, data privacy regulations often have provisions related to data retention. Here are a few key compliance considerations to keep in mind:
GDPR
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requires that personal data only be kept for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected. This means you should select the shortest GA4 retention period that still allows you to meet your business needs.
If you rely on consent as your legal basis for data collection under GDPR, your retention period should be, at most, the duration of the user’s permission. You may need to implement processes to refresh consent or delete data if a user withdraws their consent.
CCPA
The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) gives California residents the right to request the deletion of their personal information. If you receive a valid deletion request, you’ll need to remove that user’s data from GA4 using the user deletion tool discussed earlier.
CCPA also requires businesses to disclose their data retention practices in their privacy policy. Be sure to update your policy to reflect your chosen GA4 retention setting.
HIPAA
If you’re subject to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), you may be using GA4 to track user interactions related to protected health information (PHI). In this case, you’ll need to ensure your GA4 data retention practices align with HIPAA’s data retention requirements, which can vary depending on the specific type of data.
Consult with a legal professional well-versed in data privacy regulations to ensure your GA4 data retention settings and overall data governance practices are fully compliant.
Final Thoughts
Data retention is an important but often overlooked factor when implementing Google Analytics 4. By default, GA4 has predefined retention periods ranging from 2-14 months for different types of data including events, sessions, user properties, and advertising data. While these defaults are reasonable for most use cases, some businesses may require longer data retention for historical analyses or to identify long-term trends.
The good news is GA4 allows extending retention to 14 months across all data types. This can be purchased directly through the Admin section under Data Retention settings. When deciding on retention policies, businesses should consider their analytics needs, storage costs, and legal or regulatory obligations.
Finding the right balance enables getting maximum value from GA4 while efficiently managing data volumes over time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I recover data that has been deleted due to my retention setting?
No, once data has been automatically deleted based on your retention setting, it cannot be recovered. That’s why it’s important to carefully consider your business needs and choose an appropriate retention period from the start.
What is data retention in GA4?
Data retention refers to how long your analytics data is stored in GA4 before being deleted. GA4 has different retention periods for various data types.
How long are session and event data retained?
Session and event data is retained for 14 months in GA4. After that, it will be deleted.
What is the retention period for user properties?
User properties like age, gender, interests, etc., are retained for 38 months in GA4 before being deleted.
How long is impression and click data kept?
Impression and click data from ads and recommendations are retained for 16 months in GA4.
Is it possible to store data longer than the default retention?
Yes, with GA4, you can purchase extended data retention for 24 months or 36 months for all your analytics data.
Where can I find data retention settings?
You can view and manage data retention periods in the Admin section under Data Retention. There, you can also purchase extended retention.
