Unlock Hidden Insights: The Secret to Creating Google Analytics Dashboards No One Talks About
Ever feel like you’re drowning in data, but starved for insight? That’s exactly where custom dashboards in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) shine – slicing through the noise to spotlight the metrics that truly matter. Instead of endlessly toggling between reports and scratching your head, imagine having all your crucial numbers lined up neatly in one place, ready for action. Sounds like a game-changer, right? But if you’ve peered into GA4’s dashboard-building tools and thought, “Wait, this looks more complex than I bargained for,” you’re not alone. The truth is, GA4 demands a bit more hands-on craftsmanship compared to its predecessor, but once you crack the code, it’s like having a secret weapon in your marketing arsenal. Stick with me, and I’ll walk you through the quirks and perks of building tailored GA4 dashboards, how to effortlessly share your masterpieces with your team, and some sharp best practices to keep your reports razor-focused and actionable. Ready to tame your data beast and turbocharge your decision-making? Let’s dive in. LEARN MORE.
Custom dashboards in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) are great for surfacing the metrics you care about most, so you can monitor performance, spot issues, and make decisions faster.
In this guide, you’ll learn a few ways to build custom GA4 dashboards, how to share reports with your team, and some general best practices.
What Is a Google Analytics Dashboard?
A Google Analytics dashboard is a customized report that lets you monitor your website’s key metrics in one place.
Google Analytics 4 doesn’t have the same built-in “Dashboards” feature that existed in Universal Analytics (GA4’s predecessor), but you can create a similar setup in GA4.
Here’s an example of a dashboard built in GA4:
Many people find creating GA4 dashboards to be challenging at first because the platform requires more manual configuration than Universal Analytics did. But once you understand the reporting structure, building a dashboard is straightforward.
What’s the Benefit of Using a GA Dashboard?
The benefit of using a Google Analytics dashboard is that it consolidates key metrics into a single report, so you can easily monitor performance and make decisions faster.
With a Google Analytics dashboard, you can:
- Share data with your team to ensure everyone has access to the same information
- Spot trends using data visualizations like bar graphs and charts
- Automate reporting rather than manually pulling data each time you log in
- Highlight the metrics that align with specific business goals
How to Create a Custom Google Analytics 4 Dashboard
You can create a custom GA4 dashboard by creating a new report, customizing an existing report, and using explorations for more advanced analysis. Here’s an overview of those methods:
1. Create a Report
To build a custom dashboard in GA4, create a new report in the library.
In your GA4 property, go to “Reports” > “Library.”
Click “+ Create new report” and choose either “Create overview report” (for a high-level, card-based summary) or “Create detail report” (for a more granular chart and table view).
This example uses “Create overview report.”
In the “Customize report” sidebar of your new overview report, choose and arrange up to four metrics you want to track. You can also add up to 16 cards (visual elements that display data) to the report.
Click “Save” and name your report. The new report will now appear in your GA4 library.
To make your custom report visible in the left-hand navigation, go to “Library,” locate the collection where you want your custom report to appear under “Collections,” click the three dots next to your chosen collection, and select “Edit.”
Click “+ Create new topic,” create a name for your custom reports section, and click “Apply.”
Drag your custom report from the right-hand panel into the topic in the left-hand panel.
Click “Save,” and then select “Save changes to current collection.” Your custom report will then show in the main menu.
2. Customize an Existing Report
You can also customize an existing report in GA4 if there’s one that’s already close to what you need, such as the Traffic acquisition detail report.
Click the pencil icon at the top of the report, then use the “Customize report” sidebar to modify dimensions, metrics, filters, charts, etc. For example, you can apply a filter to show just traffic from AI tools.
When you’re finished customizing the report, click “Apply” and then click “Save” > “Save changes to current report.” This ensures the existing report in the main navigation includes all your custom settings.
3. Use Explorations
GA4’s explorations let you analyze data beyond what’s available in standard reports.
Start an exploration by opening an existing detail report and clicking the exploration icon in the top-right corner (shown below).
GA4 will open an exploration based on the selected report’s data. And in the workspace, you can adjust the settings and variables to dive into different trends and user behaviors in greater detail.
How to Share or Export Your Dashboard
You can share or export custom reports and explorations directly from the GA4 interface.
Share or Export a Report
Open your report, click the share icon in the top right corner, and select your preferred sharing method (send email, share link, etc.)
If you save your custom dashboards to existing collections in GA4, users with access to your property will already see those dashboards by default.
Share or Export an Exploration
To share a dashboard created with explorations, you have two options
- Click the export icon to download a file you can share with team members or other stakeholders
- Click the share icon to make a read-only view available to all users for your GA4 property
5 Existing GA4 Analytics Reports to Use as Dashboard Templates
Several of GA4’s default reports can serve as great foundations for custom dashboards that provide insights about traffic and engagement, including the following:
Organic Search Traffic Report
The Google organic search traffic report shows page-level information about your website’s search impressions, clicks, click-through rate, and positions.
To see the Google organic search traffic report, go to “Reports” > “Search Console” > “Google organic search traffic.”
This report is available only if your GA4 property is linked to Google Search Console (GSC) and the Search Console collection is published.
Traffic Acquisition Report
The Traffic acquisition report in GA4 shows how sessions start, which channels drive traffic, and how visitors engage and convert.
To locate the Traffic acquisition report, go to “Reports” > “Acquisition” > “Traffic acquisition.”
Events Report
The Events report in GA4 shows interactions tracked as events (clicks, scrolls, and purchases, etc.) to help you understand how users engage with your site and identify areas to improve the user experience.
Access the Events report by going to “Reports” > “Engagement” > “Events.”
Click the “+” sign by “Event name” to add additional dimensions. For example, you can analyze the pages where events occur.
Let’s say that you notice a landing page has a lot of scroll events but few form submissions, indicating users may be reading the content without converting. In this case, you should consider optimizing the page’s call to action (CTA).
Ecommerce Purchases Report
The Ecommerce purchases report shows which products users buy, how often those products are added to carts, and the revenue each product generates.
To see the Ecommerce purchases report, go to “Reports” > “Monetization” > “Ecommerce purchases.”
Note that the Ecommerce purchases report requires ecommerce tracking to be enabled in your GA4 property.
Landing Page Report
GA4’s Landing page report shows which pages attract users and how those pages influence engagement and conversions.
Access the Landing page report by going to “Reports” > “Engagement” > “Landing page.”
Best Practices for Using Dashboards in GA4
Get the most value from your Google Analytics dashboards by following these best practices:
- Align metrics to business goals: Only includes metrics that are relevant to your goals, such as conversions, engagement, and revenue. And keep in mind that some metrics are early indicators.
- Limit the number of cards: Overview reports support up to 16 cards, but using too many can create a crowded report that isn’t focused enough
- Organize dashboards intentionally: Group related metrics together. If you’re finding that your dashboard is getting cluttered, consider creating multiple dashboards.
- Use date comparisons for context: Use period-over-period comparisons to better identify trends
- Monitor for sampling in explorations: Explorations are much more prone to sampling than standard reports. Be on the lookout for the yellow warning triangle, and adjust if needed.
- Create role-specific dashboards: Building separate dashboards for different teams can sometimes work better than creating a single dashboard that attempts to serve everyone
Easily Track Your Site’s Performance
For an even more comprehensive look at your site’s performance, connect GA4 and Search Console to Semrush by going to the SEO Dashboard, clicking the gear icon, and selecting “Set up Google account.”
Once you follow the prompts to add Google services to your SEO Dashboard, you’ll see information about your traditional search performance, AI search visibility, traffic, and much more.
Experiment with your own SEO Dashboard by signing up for a free trial of Semrush One.
