Key Differences between GA4 360 & GA4 Standard

When comparing a product's free version to its enterprise version, it’s expected to find features exclusive to the paid version. However, the disparity between GA4 360 and free GA4 often lies not in the presence or absence of a feature, but in the degree to which it is available.

In simpler terms, both the 360 and the free versions of GA4 offer similar features, but GA4 360 provides the advantage of higher usage limits for those features. For instance, both versions allow native data export to BigQuery. However, while GA4 allows exporting up to 1 million events per day, GA4 360 includes 20 billion events per day. 

Let’s start with the basics:

What is Google Analytics 4 (GA4)?

GA4, a groundbreaking Google product, revolutionizes the way we collect Web and App data. Offering the flexibility of separate or continuous property collection, it outshines both Universal Analytics (UA) and GA360. By adopting an event-based, rather than a session-based data model, GA4 provides a nuanced, precise, and comprehensive perspective on user behavior. Additionally, GA4 boasts advanced privacy controls like cookieless measurement and predictive capabilities that offer intuitive guidance without complex models.

What is Google Analytics 360?

Google Analytics 360 (GA360) is the paid, enterprise version of Google Analytics. It provides advanced features and higher usage limits beyond what the free version offers. GA4 360 forms part of the Google Marketing Platform, which includes other products like Google Tag Manager 360, Search Ads 360, and Display & Video 360.

With GA360, you can collect more data before reaching sampling limits, giving you improved insights. It also allows for greater flexibility in data collection with increased options for custom dimensions, custom metrics, event parameters, and more.

Key Product Differences: GA4 360 vs. GA4 (Free)

There are numerous distinctions between GA4 360 and GA4. Below, we’ve curated a selection of what we consider to be the most significant.

Data Collection

In general, GA4 360 offers the advantage of gathering a significantly larger volume of data compared to GA4 before encountering data sampling limitations. It also provides increased flexibility in data collection through expanded options such as custom dimensions, metrics, event parameters, etc. This ensures a more comprehensive and sophisticated approach to data analysis.

Here are a few key differences to note:

Data Integration & Activation

Collecting data with GA4 is just a means to an end. As marketers, our ultimate goal is to activate that data across multiple customer touch points. This is where GA4's integrations with the Google stack truly shine. As mentioned earlier, both GA4 360 and GA4 seamlessly integrate with the entire Google stack, however, if you're looking to scale those integrations, you may find the free version limiting.

Let’s take a closer look: 

Short Version: The 360 product enables activations on a significantly larger scale, amplifying the scope for execution.

Administration & Account Management

While Admin and Account Management features may not be the most thrilling aspect, they do offer significant differences. Investing in the 360 version provides a greater level of flexibility when it comes to the architecture of your GA account. With the ability to create "roll-up" properties and "sub-properties," you can effectively segment your data and establish highly customized data governance. These features not only enhance the way your GA account is structured but also enable crucial insights and improved control over your data.

Other Features

There are several notable distinctions in features between GA4 360 and GA4 that warrant mention:

Service-Level Agreements (SLA)

One crucial distinction between 360 and the free product lies in the inclusion of Service Level Agreements (SLAs). While the free product lacks any SLAs, the 360 product offers several assurances, outlined below.

Reporting and analysis features:

GA360 offers superior reporting and analysis capabilities compared to the GA4 Standard with features like data-driven attribution, advanced segmentation, and customizable funnels, that empower users with deeper insights and enhanced data interpretation.

Increased data retention

The capabilities of GA4 properties have taken a huge leap forward, especially when it comes to data retention. This directly impacts your ability to access historical data within the interface. While Google suggests using Big Query and Looker Studio (formerly Google Data Studio) to meet these needs, there's still the desire to retrieve full year-over-year reports. The free version of GA4 only retains data for 14 months, limiting your reporting lookbacks to just over a year.

GA4 4 360 properties offer extended data retention of up to 50 months. This means you'll get access to an impressive four years of valuable historical data for both pre-built and custom reporting. 

Which Version is Right for You?

The choice between GA4 and GA360 depends on various factors, such as the size of your business, budget considerations, and your specific needs for data collection and analysis. For small to medium-sized companies seeking essential capabilities, GA4 Standard is a suitable option. On the other hand, if you are a larger business with more advanced feature requirements, GA4 360 is better equipped to meet to your needs.

If you have questions, need help deciding or require assistance transitioning to GA4 360 or GA4 standard, our team of experts is here to help. Talk to us.