[GA4]Disappear after 14 months? Explanation of data retention that is often misunderstood | How to change the setting is also introduced.

This article provides a clear explanation of the data retention period for GA4. After reading this article, you will know how to change the data retention for "explore" from the default of 2 months to 14 months, and that, in fact, most GA4 reports except "explore" can use data longer than 14 months without problems.

Note that it is misinformation to say that the data retention period for GA4 is only up to 14 months and that you have to use BigQuery, which is paid for.

What is the data retention?

The default data retention for "explore" can be either "2 months" or "14 months. Data beyond the data retention will be automatically deleted on a monthly basis.

How to change the data retention period to 14 months

The default data retention is 2 months, but it is strongly recommended to change it to 14 months, as that does not even allow for comparison with the same month of the previous year in the most recent month.

It is easy to do, just select "Admin" > "Data Settings" > "Data Retention" in GA4 and select "14 months" for "Event Data Retention" as shown in the capture below. You should also turn on "Reset user data on new activity" to retain data longer.

What is Reset user data on new activity?

This setting determines whether the data retention period will override the starting point when the same user revisits the website or app. If off, data is deleted 14 months after the user's first visit. On the other hand, if on, data will be retained for 14 months from that point each time the user visits.

For example, if a user first visited on January 1, 2023 and then visited again on April 1, 2023, the difference between on and off would be as follows

Off: Deleted on March 1, 2024
On: Deleted on June 1, 2024

Only "Explore" are affected by the data retention

GA4 offers a variety of reporting functions, including report, explore, Looker Studio and BigQuery, and the functions of each report can be summarized as follows.

As you can see from the Historical Data section, only the Explore is affected by the data retention of up to 14 months, while the other reports can be used for historical data back beyond 14 months.

Why Only "Explore" Are Affected by Data Retention

GA4 reports are divided into two main types: "Aggregated Data" and "Unaggregated Data. Only the "Explore" uses "Unaggregated Data," which aggregates data each time to create a report, while all other report functions use "Aggregated Data.

Since "Unaggregated data" is affected by the data retention, only the "Explore" is affected by the data retention of up to 14 months.

Looker Studio for GA4 reporting unaffected by data retention

As we have explained, "exploratory reports" are affected by the data retention period and can only go back up to 14 months in the past, so for reporting reports and KPI monitoring that require long-term data, we recommend Looker Studio, which allows unlimited historical data.

Free GA4 Report Template

Related official Google documents

Official Analytics Help：Data retention

We also recommend this article

What is sampling?

GA4 sampling occurs when a large amount of data is used in an exploratory report and the number of events required to aggregate the report exceeds a certain upper limit. When this limit is exceeded, a representative sample is taken and a report is generated based on that sample data.

[GA4] How to create monthly and daily reports for E-commerce | Explore

This article will show you how to create monthly and daily reports using GA4's exploratory reports for e-commerce sites in an easy-to-understand manner. In this article, you will learn in detail how to create monthly and daily reports for e-commerce sites, as well as the key points to keep in mind when creating reports.

[GA4] How to Create Monthly/Daily Reports | Explore

This article will show you how to create monthly and daily reports using GA4's exploratory reports in an easy-to-understand manner. Read this article to learn more about how to set up monthly and daily reports and what to look out for.

 [GA4]Disappear after 14 months? Explanation of data retention that is often misunderstood | How to change the setting is also introduced.

This article provides a clear explanation of the data retention period for GA4. After reading this article, you will know how to change the data retention period for "exploratory reports" from the default of 2 months to 14 months, and that, in fact, data longer than 14 months is available without problems for most GA4 reports except for "exploratory reports".

 [GA4]How to use Explore | with Recommended Template

GA4's "Exploratory Report" allows for easy customization of items and advanced analysis using segments. Use them when you want to analyze your data in more detail. This article explains the types of GA4's "exploratory reports" and how to use them in an easy-to-understand manner. Examples of recommended report settings will also be introduced for your reference.