How to Set Up GA4 Conversion Tracking (Step-by-Step)

By Emily Redmond, Data Analyst at Emilytics · April 2026

TL;DR: A conversion is any event you mark as important to your business. Create the event first (sign-up, purchase, demo request), then mark it as a conversion in GA4. Add a value parameter to track conversion worth.

GA4 conversions are simple, but getting them right changes everything. A conversion is just an event you've decided matters. This guide walks you through marking events as conversions, adding values, and tracking multiple conversion types.

What Is a Conversion?

A conversion is any action that matters to your business:

• A purchase (ecommerce)
• A sign-up (SaaS)
• A demo request (B2B)
• A newsletter subscription (content)
• A download (lead generation)
• A call (service business)

In GA4, a conversion is an event you've marked as important. Conversions get special treatment: they show up in most reports, you can build audiences around them, and you can track their value.

GA4 lets you mark up to 30 events as conversions per property. You don't have to choose; mark anything that could be valuable and refine later.

Step 1: Make Sure Your Event Exists

Before you can mark an event as a conversion, the event must be firing in GA4. If it doesn't exist yet, create it using Google Tag Manager or code.

Example: Let's say you want to track "Book Demo" button clicks.

Create the Event in GTM

1. Go to Google Tag Manager
2. Create a new trigger:
   • Trigger type: Click
   • Some Clicks
   • Filter: Click text → contains → "Book Demo"
3. Create a new tag:
   • Tag type: Google Analytics: GA4 Event
   • Event name: book_demo
   • Measurement ID: (your GA4 Measurement ID)
   • Triggering: Apply the trigger from step 2
4. Publish

Now visit your site, click the "Book Demo" button, and verify the event fires in GA4 Real-Time.

Or Create via Code

document.querySelector('.book-demo-btn').addEventListener('click', function() {
  gtag('event', 'book_demo', {
    location: 'homepage'
  });
});

Step 2: Mark the Event as a Conversion

Once your event is firing in GA4, mark it as a conversion.

1. Go to analytics.google.com → Your Property
2. Go to Admin (bottom left)
3. Under "Data collection and modification," click Events
4. Find your event in the list (e.g., book_demo)
   • If you just created it, it might take a few hours to appear
   • If it doesn't appear, the event hasn't fired yet—go back and verify
5. Click the toggle next to Mark as conversion
6. Save

That's it. GA4 now tracks this event as a conversion.

💡 Emily's take: The "mark as conversion" toggle is confusing because there's no special "conversion event" type. It's just a label GA4 applies to certain events. Once you mark an event as a conversion, GA4 shows it in conversion reports, tracks conversion counts, and lets you build conversion audiences. It's not different data—just different reporting.

Step 3: (Optional) Add a Conversion Value

A conversion can have a value—what that conversion is worth to your business. This matters because:

• GA4 can optimize campaigns on conversion value, not just count
• You can see total revenue, average order value, etc.
• You can compare which conversions are most valuable

Examples of Conversion Values

• Ecommerce: Each purchase event has a value (e.g., $99.99)
• SaaS: A sign-up might be worth $100 (customer lifetime value estimate)
• B2B: A demo request might be worth $5,000 (average deal size)
• Lead gen: A form submission might be worth $50 (lead value)

How to Add Value to an Event

Option 1: Include value in the event parameters

When you fire the event, include a value parameter:

gtag('event', 'purchase', {
  transaction_id: 'txn_12345',
  value: 99.99,
  currency: 'USD'
});

GA4 automatically recognizes value and currency and treats it as the conversion value.

Option 2: Set a fixed value in GA4

If your event doesn't include a value parameter, you can set a fixed value in GA4.

1. Go to Admin → Events
2. Click on your event (e.g., book_demo)
3. Scroll to Conversion event settings
4. Set a fixed value (e.g., "$100" for each demo request)
5. Save

Now every book_demo event counts as a $100 conversion.

Option 3: Assign value based on parameters

If an event has different values depending on which version fired, use a parameter:

gtag('event', 'subscribe', {
  subscription_tier: 'premium',
  subscription_value: 99.99
});

Then in GA4, map the subscription_value parameter to the conversion value (this requires GA4 360 or using the Measurement Protocol).

Multiple Conversions: Examples

Most businesses have several conversion types. Here are realistic examples:

SaaS Company

Ecommerce Store

B2B Lead Gen

Note: Not all events need a value. A download might be a conversion just for tracking volume. A demo request is valuable because it's closer to a sale.

Step 4: Verify Conversion Tracking

In Real-Time

1. Go to GA4 → Real-time (under Reports)
2. Trigger a conversion on your site (sign up, make a purchase, etc.)
3. Watch the Real-Time report
4. You should see the conversion event fire

In Standard Reports

1. Go to GA4 → Reports → Conversion (or the report name)
   • You'll see a "Key Events" or "Conversion" section depending on your GA4 version
2. You should see your conversion event listed with counts

In Explorations

1. Go to GA4 → Explore
2. Create a freeform report
3. Add event_name as a dimension
4. Add event_count as a metric
5. Filter to your conversion event name
6. See how many times it fired

Advanced: Conditional Conversions

Sometimes you want to mark an event as a conversion only if certain conditions are met. For example:

• Mark a purchase event as a conversion only if value > $50
• Mark an email_signup as a conversion only if from organic search
• Mark a video_play as a conversion only if watch time > 30 seconds

To do this, you'll need custom logic in GTM or code:

In GTM: Create a custom variable that checks the conditions, then create an event only if the variable is true.

In Code: Fire a separate conversion event based on conditions:

// Only fire if purchase value is over $50
if (purchaseValue > 50) {
  gtag('event', 'high_value_purchase', {
    value: purchaseValue,
    currency: 'USD'
  });
}

This is more advanced, but it lets you be precise about what counts as a conversion.

Tracking Offline Conversions

What if a conversion happens offline? A phone call, an in-person meeting, a product return?

GA4 lets you import offline conversions via the Measurement Protocol or CSV import:

1. Go to Admin → Data Streams → Select your stream
2. Scroll to Connected apps
3. Look for upload options

You'll map the offline event to a user (via User-ID or email), add the event name and value, and import. This takes some engineering setup, but it's powerful—you can connect all your conversions (online and offline) to the same user.

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Not Adding Parameters to Conversion Events

Bad:

gtag('event', 'purchase');

Good:

gtag('event', 'purchase', {
  transaction_id: 'txn_12345',
  value: 99.99,
  currency: 'USD',
  items: [{ item_name: 'Widget', price: 99.99 }]
});

Parameters add context. Without them, you know a purchase happened, but not what was bought or for how much.

Mistake 2: Marking Too Many Events as Conversions

Marking 30 events as conversions is possible but creates noise. Mark only events that truly matter to your business. If you mark 30 things, you're tracking nothing.

Mistake 3: Not Setting a Value for Revenue-Generating Conversions

If a conversion generates money (purchase, subscription, booking), always include value. Without it, you can't measure ROI.

Mistake 4: Using Different Event Names for the Same Action

Don't fire purchase sometimes and buy other times. Use consistent naming. GA4 treats them as separate events.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I change what counts as a conversion after the fact? A: Yes. Removing a conversion from the list removes it from future reports. But removing a conversion doesn't delete historical data—past events are still in GA4, just not labeled as conversions anymore.

Q: How long until a conversion shows up in reports? A: Real-time reports show conversions within ~5 minutes. Standard reports finalize within 24 hours. Don't expect to see yesterday's conversions in a report until today.

Q: Can a single user convert multiple times? A: Yes. If a user purchases twice, you see two conversion events. GA4 counts each separately.

Q: What's the difference between marking an event as a conversion vs. creating a goal? A: In Universal Analytics, "goals" were the main way to track conversions. In GA4, you mark events as conversions. It's the same concept with different terminology.

Q: Can I export conversions to Google Ads? A: Yes. Once you mark an event as a conversion, GA4 automatically makes it available to Google Ads. Ads can then optimize campaigns on that conversion.

The Bottom Line

Conversions are the heartbeat of analytics. Mark the events that matter (signups, purchases, demos, downloads), assign values where applicable, and you can see which channels, campaigns, and pages drive real value.

Don't overthink it. Start with one or two key conversions. Get those right. Expand later.

Next, check out GA4 Custom Dimensions and Metrics: How to Use Them to segment your conversions by user type, traffic source, or any other dimension.

Emily Redmond is a data analyst at Emilytics — the AI analytics agent that watches your GA4, Search Console, and Bing data around the clock so you never miss what matters. 8 years of experience helping founders and growth teams turn data noise into clear decisions. Say hi →