GA4 or GA4 360? That Is The Question!
The new GA4 has brought a real revolution in working with user data, introducing more flexibility, metrics, and capabilities. So can we say that using the new version of GA, marketers are simply doomed to success? — Rather, not everything is so simple. Much depends on the scale and needs of the business, so Google has developed two versions of the Google Analytics 4 product: the standard free GA4 and the advanced paid GA4 360, adapted for businesses.
But not all business owners will rush to switch to the paid Google Analytics 4 360, because the standard free version has mostly the same functions. And the difference between the paid version and the standard Google Analytics 4 is mainly in the available data processing limits. But is everything so simple? In this article, we will take a closer look at the difference between these two products and talk about what purposes GA4 360 is really better suited for.
What is GA4?
Google Analytics 4 is the latest version of Google’s popular web analytics tool to date, revolutionizing the way data is collected from both web pages and apps. Offering the flexibility of cross-platform and continuous data collection, GA4 surpasses GA3 and Universal Analytics (UA). By using an event-based data model rather than a session-based one, GA4 provides a nuanced, accurate, and comprehensive view of user behavior. Additionally, GA4 boasts advanced privacy controls such as cookie-free measurement and predictive capabilities that offer intuitive guidance without complex models.
What is Google Analytics 4 360?
Google Analytics 4 360 (GA4 360) is the enterprise paid version of Google Analytics 4. It has advanced features and higher usage limits than the free version of GA4. In addition, GA4 360 is part of the Google Marketing Platform, which includes other Google marketing products such as Google Tag Manager 360, Search Advertising 360, and Display & Video 360.
The main advantage of this version is that it allows you to collect more data before reaching sampling limits, which provides higher and more comprehensive statistics for web analytics. It also provides greater flexibility in data collection with advanced parameters for special indicators, event parameters, etc.
Key differences between GA4 and Google Analytics 4 360
The most obvious difference between GA4 360 and regular GA4 is that it is paid. However, this price includes a number of technical advantages. First, we will provide a short list of differences between GA4 and GA4 360 with a concise description of each, and then we will describe them in detail for those who know what web analytics is from A to Z.
Data collection
Web analytics is the collection, measurement, analysis, and interpretation of data about visitors to a website or app. And GA4 360 has the potential to do better web analytics because it can collect more data than GA4 and offers great flexibility in how you collect that data.
Data Integration and Activation
Both GA4 360 and GA4 integrate seamlessly with the entire Google Marketing Platform suite, but if you want to scale those integrations, the free version has significant limitations.
Account Administration and Management
Because GA4 360 has “roll-up” properties and “subproperties,” you can effectively segment and manage your data in greater detail.
Service Level Agreements
While the free product lacks any SLAs, GA4 360 does offer several guarantees.
Reporting and Analysis Features
GA4 360 offers more advanced reporting and analysis capabilities that allow users to gain deeper insights into their data and improve their interpretation.
Enhanced data retention
The free version of GA4 retains data for 14 months, while GA4 360 offers up to 50 months of data retention.
Detailed GA4 vs. GA4 360 Technology Comparisons
Let’s dive into the above-mentioned technology differences between GA4 and GA4 360 in more detail to make the differences between the two versions of Google Analytics even clearer:
Data Collection
What are good analytics? First and foremost, it should be based on good data collection. Overall, GA4 360 offers the advantage of collecting significantly more data than GA4 before running into data sampling limitations.
GA4 360 also offers increased flexibility in data collection with advanced parameters such as custom dimensions, metrics, event parameters, etc. This allows for a more comprehensive approach to data analysis than other web analytics methods.
Data Integration and Activation
To achieve your business goals, you need to conduct data analytics from time to time. The ultimate goal for marketers is to activate data across multiple customer touch points. This is where GA4’s integration with Google Marketing Platform tools really comes in handy. Both GA4 360 and GA4 integrate easily with them, but if you want to scale these integrations, the free version may cost you significant limitations.
Account Administration and Management
The account administration and management features in GA4 and GA4 360 also differ significantly. GA4 360 provides a greater level of flexibility in the architecture of your Google Analytics account. With “rolled-up” resources and “sub-resources,” you can effectively segment your data and customize how you manage it. These features not only improve the structure of your GA account, but also allow you to gain additional insights and improve control over your data.
Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
Quality web analytics services require service level guarantees in the tools for collecting and processing data. One of the important differences between GA4 360 and the free product is the inclusion of Service Level Agreements (SLAs).
Reporting and Analysis Features
GA4 360 offers better reporting and data analysis capabilities overall than other analytics systems, website analytics software, and standard GA4 in particular. This advantage is achieved through features like data-driven attribution, advanced segmentation, and custom funnels, which allow users to gain deeper insights and improve their interpretation of data.
Extended Data Retention
While Google offers Big Query and Looker Studio (formerly Google Data Studio) to meet this need, Google Analytics users still want a full year of reports. The free version of GA4 only stores data for 14 months, limiting retrospective analysis of reports to just over a year.
GA4 360, however, offers extended data retention of up to 50 months, meaning you can access four years of valuable historical data for both pre-built and current reports.
Efficiency and Durability
Unlike GA4 360, you cannot rely on standard GA4 to process large amounts of data with high accuracy. This is because GA4 360 subscriptions come with higher data collection and processing limits than standard GA4. So if your site gets a lot of traffic, such as more than 1 million visitors per month, then you are definitely better off with GA4 360.
Which version is right for you?
The choice between GA4 and GA4 360 depends on many factors, such as the size of your business, budget considerations, and your specific data collection and analysis needs. For small and medium-sized businesses, the standard GA4 feature set may be sufficient. However, if you have a large company with millions of site visits per day, or if your business requires real-time data, then you will likely need advanced data collection and processing features. Therefore, in this case, GA4 360 will be the most suitable version of Google Analytics.
