Discrepancies between Shopify and GA4 revenue

[AntoinedeMlt]

Hi there,

I’m using the Google and Youtube app and added the integration with GA4.

While I’m seeing a small discrepancies with sessions and sales between GA4 and Shopify tracking , I’m noticing a much bigger difference for revenue between GA4 and Shopify.

Could you let me know how I can reduce this revenue discrepancy in order to have similar numbers between the 2 platforms, similar to sessions and sales.

Thanks for the insights,

[LizHoang]

Hi @AntoinedeMlt , thank you for reaching out and sharing your concerns.

This difference arises because Shopify and GA4 use different methods to calculate sales. Shopify records sales based on actual orders created and completed at checkout, with dynamic updates for changes such as refunds, cancellations, or edits. In contrast, GA4 tracks revenue based on visits to the “Thank You” page, which is triggered after a successful checkout. This method doesn’t automatically adjust for refunds, cancellations, or cases where the “Thank You” page is blocked or fails to load.

To minimize these discrepancies, we recommend ensuring the “Thank You” page is not blocked by browser settings, extensions, or ad blockers, as this can impact tracking in GA4. Additionally, cross-checking order details and statuses ( such as refunds, and cancellations) between Shopify and GA4 can help identify specific variances.

I hope my information is helpful to you, please feel free to feedback.

Liz

[AntoinedeMlt]

Hello Liz,

Thank for replying.

Very useful your information.

If Shopify doesn’t take into cancelled sales, refunds and edits but GA4 not, GA4 revenue should be higher

But in my case this is the revenue in Shopify which is more higher than in GA4. Why then?

Also, how to ensure that the “Thank You” page is not blocked by browser settings, extensions, or ad blockers.

Thanks a lot for the support,

Regards,

[LizHoang]

Hi @AntoinedeMlt , thanks for your feedback.

To check your case more thoroughly, could you kindly share your Shopify URL so I can check further?

Thanks for your time and cooperation in the meantime.

Liz

[AntoinedeMlt]

Hi Liz,

Sure. Here it is.

Thanks a lot for looking into it.

Merry Xmas,

Regards,

[LizHoang]

Hi @AntoinedeMlt , thanks for your sharing.

After reviewing your website carefully, I noticed that the default consent for triggering data to Google has not yet been set up. To address this, I recommend referring to the following guide from Google: Consent Debugging Guide. This resource provides detailed information on setting up default consent.

For a more effective and fast solution to managing cookies and consent, I suggest consulting with a cookie management specialist or exploring third-party apps designed for consent management. These experts or tools can ensure compliance with regulations and improve your website’s data tracking setup.

I hope my information is helpful to you, and please feel free to feedback.

Liz

[AntoinedeMlt]

Thank you Henry.

Very detailed explanation.

Thanks for the reply,

Regards,

[AntoinedeMlt]

Hi Liz,

Thank you for your follow up.

However I can see that consent signals are received by the property.

Is it something else you are speaking about?

Thanks,

[AntoinedeMlt]

Hi Henry,

I’m reaching out to seek your guidance on ensuring that GA4 events, specifically “view_product”, “add_to_cart”, and “purchase”, are consistently triggered and recorded on our website, using the Shopify app “Google and YouTube” for the GA4 integration.

Despite utilizing both the Chrome Developer Tool and GA4’s DebugView, I’m unable to see these events firing in real-time. However, they appear in the GA4 event section, indicating that they are being recorded to some extent (I can see data for yesterday for example).

Could you provide some insights or methods to physically verify that these events are accurately captured each time they are triggered? It is crucial for us to ensure that no events are missed for precise data reporting and analysis.

Thank you for your assistance.

Best regards,

[Sam_Mahmud]

Hi antoinedmlt,

you can verify your events from the GA4 debug view.

sometimes debug view does not reponse properly as it should be. For this glitch you can use a chrome extension you can use google analytics debugger

https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/google-analytics-debugger/jnkmfdileelhofjcijamephohjechhna

For better tracking accuracy consider google tag Manager GTM as it allows us to configure Server side tracking/conversion api with first party domain.

Feel free to ask if you have any questions.

Thanks

[AntoinedeMlt]

Hi Sam,

Thank you for your reply.

This is what I did (use the GA4 debug vie and install the Google Analytics Debugger chrome extension) but I see only page_view events and not the others although I’m going on product pages and add products to cart.

So I should also see these events (view_product and add_to_cart) in the debug view.

And when I go to events, I see data for these events so I know they are implemented and are firing.

I just want to be sure at 100% they fire all the time. It is strange I can’t be able to do that.

I know we could use GTM, but since the integration with the Shopify app “Google and Youtube” exists and is easy to implement, we use it, as we have limited resources for tracking set up.

Let me know,

Thank you,

[AntoinedeMlt]

Hi Sam,

I tested it for one of my other websites and the debug view is detecting the events. See below.

So it means the GA4 debug view tool is working for me.

But for the other website, it does not detect the events although I have data for them as said before.

Thanks for giving me some insights,

Regards,

[Sam_Mahmud]

As far as the page view event is showing in the debug view, the others are supposed to show the same as the page view for the first website you mentioned.

I never had an issue where the debug view or real-time did not show any result.

If your revenue and the events are getting tracked properly, this could be a technical error from Google.

I have no faith in the Google and YouTube apps for tracking purposes. As it is is automated it has technical error/bug. Many of my clients had revenue and event mismatch issue.

Kind Regards

[AntoinedeMlt]

Hi Sam,

Ok.

So your advice is to set up the full GA4 tracking on GTM, is it that?

And also include server side tracking on GTM for more accuracy?

Thanks,

Regards,

Happy New Year,

[Sam_Mahmud]

From my working experience, I always recommend my clients for Google Tag Manager GTM for optimum tracking accuracy. They all are happy with the result.

You have already mentioned that you are experiencing revenue discrepancies. So the last and best way definitely GTM.

So far, GTM performs the best in terms of tracking, and it must be with first-party domain/subdomain server-side tracking to drop first-party cookies on visitors’ browsers.

Kind Regards

Happy new Year

[AntoinedeMlt]

Thank you Sam.

For GA4 tracking, can you give me an idea of what you would charge for the implementation?

Thanks,