What are UTM parameters?
UTM parameters are tags added to the end of a URL, after a question mark, that tell analytics tools where a visit came from. A tagged link looks like example.com/pricing?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=october_launch.
When someone clicks it, Google Analytics 4 reads the tags and records the visit under that source, medium and campaign. The visitor sees the same page either way.
The UTM parameters GA4 reads
Three parameters do most of the work. The rest add detail.
- utm_source
- Where the traffic comes from: google, newsletter, linkedin, partner_site.
- utm_medium
- The type of channel: cpc, email, social, paid_social, affiliate. GA4 uses source and medium to assign default channel groups.
- utm_campaign
- The campaign or promotion: spring_sale, october_launch, webinar_2026.
- utm_term
- The paid keyword, mainly for search ads.
- utm_content
- Tells apart links in the same campaign, such as header_button versus footer_link, or two ad variations.
- utm_id
- A campaign ID, used to join GA4 data to imported cost data.
- utm_source_platform, utm_creative_format, utm_marketing_tactic
- Extra GA4 parameters for the platform that managed the buy, the creative type and the targeting tactic. Few teams need them.
UTM naming conventions
The value of UTM data depends on everyone tagging the same way. Agree on a few rules and write them down.
- Use lowercase for every value. GA4 treats Facebook and facebook as different sources
- Use underscores or hyphens instead of spaces, and pick one
- Keep a shared list of approved sources and mediums
- Use standard mediums like email, social, cpc and paid_social so GA4's default channel groups recognise them
- Name campaigns so they still make sense in a year, for example 2026_10_launch
How to build a UTM link
It takes under a minute per link.
- 1Paste the landing page URL
- 2Pick a preset or type the source and medium
- 3Add a campaign name that matches your naming rules
- 4Add utm_content if you're testing more than one link or ad
- 5Copy the URL, then click it once yourself to check it loads the right page
Never use UTM tags on internal links
Only tag links that bring people to your site from somewhere else. A UTM tag on a link from your homepage to your pricing page starts a new attribution for that visit, so GA4 credits your own homepage campaign instead of the newsletter or ad that actually brought the person in.
For tracking clicks between your own pages, use GA4 events instead.
Where to find UTM data in GA4
In Google Analytics 4, open Reports, then Acquisition, then Traffic acquisition, and change the primary dimension to Session source / medium or Session campaign. Visits can take up to a day or two to appear in standard reports. The Realtime report shows them within minutes, which is useful for testing a new link.
Do UTM parameters affect SEO?
Not directly, but tagged URLs can create duplicate versions of a page if search engines find and crawl them. Make sure your pages have a canonical tag pointing to the clean URL, and don't use UTM-tagged links in your sitemap or on your own pages. Our Canonical Tag Checker shows whether a page declares one.