# Google Analytics — Google's free web and app analytics platform (GA4) that tracks customer behavior across devices, with a paid Google Analytics 360 tier for enterprise-scale data volumes and SLAs.

By Noah — last updated & pricing verified September 15, 2026.

> **Google Analytics** is Google's web and app analytics platform, now built on Google Analytics 4 (GA4), an event-based data model that replaced the older session-based Universal Analytics. It tracks how visitors interact with a website or app across devices, using machine learning to surface insights like predicted churn or purchase likelihood, and connects directly to Google Ads for measuring marketing ROI.

GA4 is free for any business and includes customizable reports, audience building, conversion tracking, and cross-platform (web + app) measurement in a single property. Google Analytics 360 is the paid enterprise tier, aimed at large organizations that need higher unsampled data thresholds, guaranteed data freshness, service-level agreements, and integration with the broader Google Marketing Platform (Search Ads 360, Display & Video 360). 360 pricing isn't published and requires contacting Google sales.

## Facts

- Website: https://analytics.google.com
- Pricing: Free (verified undefined NaN, NaN)
- License: Freemium
- Platforms: web, ios, android
- Best for: businesses that want free, event-based web and app analytics tightly integrated with Google Ads for campaign measurement
- Standout feature: Free, unlimited-scale analytics for most businesses, with machine-learning-driven insights and direct integration into Google Ads for measuring campaign ROI without a separate tool.
- Biggest weakness: The GA4 event-based data model and reorganized interface represented a steep relearning curve for teams used to the older Universal Analytics, and standard GA4 properties still apply data sampling and shorter retention windows that only Google Analytics 360's custom, undisclosed pricing removes.
- Third-party ratings: Capterra 4.7/5 (8,101 reviews)
- Categories: [Web & Product Analytics](https://findalternative.to/categories/web-analytics)

## Pricing snapshot

| Plan | Price | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Google Analytics 4 | $0/mo | Free for businesses of any size. Event-based tracking, machine-learning insights, Google Ads integration, customizable reports and audiences. |
| Google Analytics 360 | Custom | Custom enterprise pricing via Google sales. Higher unsampled data thresholds, guaranteed data freshness, SLAs, dedicated support, and Google Marketing Platform integration. |

## Pros and cons

- Pro: Free for businesses of any size, with no meaningful traffic cap for most use cases.
- Pro: Deep, native integration with Google Ads for tying analytics directly to campaign performance.
- Pro: Cross-platform (web + app) tracking in a single GA4 property.
- Pro: Machine-learning-driven insights (predictive metrics, anomaly detection) built in at no extra cost.
- Con: GA4's event-based model and menu reorganization created a steep relearning curve versus the older Universal Analytics.
- Con: Standard (free) properties apply data sampling and shorter data-retention windows than the paid 360 tier.
- Con: Google Analytics 360 pricing is not published and requires a sales conversation, making budgeting difficult upfront.
- Con: Some users report GA4 reports are harder to pull and customize compared to the legacy interface.

## AI summary

- Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is free for businesses of any size.
- Google Analytics 360, the enterprise tier, uses custom pricing available only via Google sales.
- The combined Google Analytics/360 Capterra listing holds a 4.7/5 rating from 8,101 reviews.
- GA4 replaced the older session-based Universal Analytics with an event-based data model.
- GA4 integrates natively with Google Ads for campaign ROI measurement.
- Best for: businesses wanting free, event-based web and app analytics integrated with Google Ads
- Pricing: Free for standard GA4; Google Analytics 360 (enterprise) custom-priced via Google sales.
- Top alternatives: Mixpanel, Plausible, PostHog, Matomo, Amplitude
- Limitation: GA4's event-based model and interface changes created a steep relearning curve for teams used to Universal Analytics.
- Limitation: Free GA4 properties apply data sampling and shorter retention than the paid 360 tier.
- Limitation: Google Analytics 360 pricing isn't published, making budgeting difficult without contacting sales.

## Alternatives

6 vetted alternatives to Google Analytics: https://findalternative.to/google-analytics — top picks: Mixpanel, Plausible, PostHog

## Comparisons

- https://findalternative.to/compare/google-analytics-vs-matomo
- https://findalternative.to/compare/google-analytics-vs-mixpanel
- https://findalternative.to/compare/google-analytics-vs-plausible
- https://findalternative.to/compare/google-analytics-vs-posthog

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