Migrating from Google Analytics 4 to Sealmetrics
Moving from Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to Sealmetrics takes most teams 1–2 weeks end to end. This guide walks through what to prepare, how GA4 concepts map to Sealmetrics, and how to run both platforms in parallel so you can validate data before cutting GA4 off.
Before you start
Document the following from your current GA4 property:
- Core metrics you rely on (sessions, users, pageviews, conversions, revenue).
- Custom events and the parameters they carry.
- E-commerce tracking implementation (GA4 events or GTM-based).
- Audiences and custom definitions.
- Connected integrations (Google Ads, Search Console, Looker Studio, BigQuery export).
- Retention settings and historical data you need to export before shutdown.
How GA4 concepts map to Sealmetrics
| GA4 | Sealmetrics |
|---|---|
| Session | Session (cookieless, 30-min inactivity window by default) |
| Engaged session | Engaged session (configurable engagement threshold) |
| User | Visitor (first-party, consent-free identifier) |
| Event | Event (typed: pageview, conversion, micro-conversion, custom) |
| Conversion | Conversion (native) + Micro-conversion |
| Audience | Segment |
| Data streams | Sites |
| Custom dimensions / metrics | Custom properties on events |
| BigQuery export | Exports API |
Migration steps
- Install the Sealmetrics tracker alongside GA4 — see Tracker installation. Both can run in parallel without conflict.
- Map events. Re-declare your GA4 custom events as Sealmetrics events. See Conversion tracking.
- Configure attribution. Set channel groupings, attribution windows, and excluded domains via the Platform settings — see Bypass POS or referrer.
- Validate in parallel for 2–4 weeks. Expect Sealmetrics to report 5–8× more traffic in EU markets because it captures consent-rejected visitors.
- Export GA4 history you want to keep — raw events via BigQuery, reports via CSV. Sealmetrics retains data for 24 months without consent; GA4 maxes out at 14 months under consent-free operation.
- Update dashboards. Rebuild Looker Studio / BI reports against Sealmetrics exports or the Batch API.
- Cut GA4 off once parallel validation passes your QA.
What's different
- No cookies, no consent banner. Sealmetrics captures 100% of traffic under GDPR legitimate interest (Article 6(1)(f)), audited by Comply.
- No Google Ads native integration. If you rely on GA4 → Google Ads conversion import, keep GA4 for that flow alongside Sealmetrics, or use server-side conversion upload.
- No predictive metrics (purchase probability, churn probability). Sealmetrics reports observed behavior.
- Simpler attribution model. Last non-direct click by default; configurable.
Related
- Google Analytics 4 vs Sealmetrics — feature-by-feature comparison.
- GA4 vs Sealmetrics FAQ — common migration questions.
- Compliance overview — GDPR, ePrivacy, CNIL, UK PECR posture.