UTM tags are a common approach to tracking where your traffic is originating from. However, now there is a more efficient way to track your web activities; which is through Google Ads' auto-tagging. Auto-tagging is a function that automatically adds a parameter to your URLs, which is effective in passing information from Google Ads to Google Analytics instantaneously. With this easy step-by-step guide, you will quickly learn how to enable auto-tagging in Google Ads.
Login to your Google Ads Account
Navigate to Admin (left-hand-side menu)
Navigate to Account Settings
Check the box under Auto-tagging and save
You can find your Google Ads traffic in Google Analytics, under the Traffic Acquisition report, Session default channel group dimension, as:
Paid Search (for search campaigns)
Cross-network (for Performance Max campaigns)
and as google / cpc under the Session source / medium dimension.
Frequently Asked Questions on Google Ads Auto-Tagging
What is Auto-Tagging?
Auto-tagging is a Google Ads feature that automatically adds a unique identifier (GCLID - Google Click Identifier) to your destination URLs when a user clicks on your ad. This tracking parameter helps connect your Google Ads clicks with actions users take on your website.
Why Should I Use Auto-Tagging?
Auto-tagging provides several key benefits:
Enables accurate conversion tracking in Google Analytics
Allows you to see which keywords, ads, and campaigns drive the most valuable customer actions
Eliminates manual tagging errors and saves time
Provides more detailed reporting on user behavior and campaign performance
Helps optimize your advertising spend based on actual conversion data
What Happens When Auto-Tagging is Enabled?
When enabled, Google Ads automatically appends a GCLID parameter to your landing page URLs.
For example:
www.example.com/page becomes www.example.com/page?gclid=123xyz
The GCLID is unique for each ad click and contains encoded information about:
Campaign ID
Ad Group ID
Keyword ID
Creative ID
Click timestamp
Other click attributes
Comments