What are views in Google Analytics?

In Google Analytics, a "View" is essentially a subset of your data from a specific website property.

When you set up Google Analytics, you create a property for your website. Within this property, you can set up multiple views. Each view can be configured to show a subset of your data based on certain filters or configurations. This allows for more granular analysis and customized reporting.

Here is all you need to know about views... or you could just use Simple Analytics. Simple and privacy-friendly. No complexity. No cookies. Just the data you need in a simple dashboard.

Alright, back to Google Analytics.

Why Use Views?

• Customization: Views enable you to tailor the data you see. For instance, you could create a view that only includes traffic from a specific country or a view that excludes internal traffic from your organization.
• Testing: It is common practice to have at least three views:
  1. An unfiltered view that includes all website data.
  2. A test view where you can test filters and configurations without affecting your primary data.
  3. A main view that includes the most relevant filters and configuration for your regular analysis.
• Access Control: You can control who in your organization has access to each view, thereby managing the visibility of specific data sets.

Types of Filters in Views

• Predefined Filters: These are easy to set up and include common filtering options like excluding/including traffic from specific IP addresses, geographic locations, or devices.
• Custom Filters: They offer more flexibility and can be used for more complex requirements, like including only traffic to a specific section of your website.

Limits and Considerations

• Data Permanence: Once data is filtered out in a view, it cannot be recovered within that view. This makes the unfiltered view crucial as a complete data backup.
• View Limits: Google Analytics limits the number of views you can have per property, so plan your views strategically.

Final Thoughts

Views in Google Analytics offer a powerful way to segment and analyze your data, but not all organizations need this level of depth. If you just want a straightforward dashboard with the insights you need, GA is not a great place to start. Additionally, Google Analytics is a privacy-invasive tool and requires an annoying cookie banner.

That's why we built Simple Analytics, a privacy-friendly and simple analytics tool - no personal data, no cookies, just the insights you need in a straightforward dashboard.

If this resonates with you, feel free to give Simple Analytics a spin (it's free). You just need to add the script and off you go. This takes about one minute.

Enjoy!