Data Retention Settings in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) help businesses manage how long data is stored within the platform. This feature ensures compliance with data protection rules while balancing data availability and storage space.
Choosing the best data retention period depends on compliance requirements, data analysis needs, and cost management. Consider your specific business objectives, regulatory environment, and historical data requirements when deciding how long to keep the data.
Google currently offers 2-month and 14-month options for how long user-level data is kept. We recommend setting this to the maximum 14-months so you can run reports with Year-Over-Year comparisons, and also to maximize the amount of data you have available in the GA4 Explorations Tool.
DID YOU KNOW: When the retention period is changed to 14 months, that new retention period is applied to any data that was already collected.
Data Retention Settings in Google Analytics 4 provide flexibility for businesses to manage data storage while following privacy regulations. By selecting the right retention period and following good practices, organizations can maximize the data available for analysis while keeping user privacy and data security in mind.