Setting Up Google Analytics MCP: A Step-by-Step Guide

This guide will walk you through setting up the Google Analytics MCP server, allowing you to query your GA4 data using natural language through Claude, Cursor, and other MCP clients.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, ensure you have:

Python 3.8 or higher
Google Analytics 4 property with data
Service account with Analytics Reporting API access

Check your Python setup:

# Check Python version (need 3.8+)
python --version
python3 --version

# Check pip
pip --version
pip3 --version

Step 1: Setup Google Analytics Credentials

Create Service Account in Google Cloud Console

Go to Google Cloud Console
Create or select a project:
- New project: Click “New Project” → Enter project name → Create
- Existing project: Select from dropdown
Enable the Analytics APIs:
- Go to “APIs & Services” → “Library”
- Search for “Google Analytics Reporting API” → Click “Enable”
- Search for “Google Analytics Data API” → Click “Enable”
Create Service Account:
- Go to “APIs & Services” → “Credentials”
- Click “Create Credentials” → “Service Account”
- Enter name (e.g., “ga4-mcp-server”)
- Click “Create and Continue”
- Skip role assignment → Click “Done”
Download JSON Key:
- Click your service account
- Go to “Keys” tab → “Add Key” → “Create New Key”
- Select “JSON” → Click “Create”
- Save the JSON file - you’ll need its path

Add Service Account to GA4

Get service account email:
- Open the JSON file
- Find the client_email field
- Copy the email (format: [email protected])
Add to GA4 property:
- Go to Google Analytics
- Select your GA4 property
- Click “Admin” (gear icon at bottom left)
- Under “Property” → Click “Property access management”
- Click ”+” → “Add users”
- Paste the service account email
- Select “Viewer” role
- Uncheck “Notify new users by email”
- Click “Add”

Find Your GA4 Property ID

In Google Analytics, select your property
Click “Admin” (gear icon)
Under “Property” → Click “Property details”
Copy the Property ID (numeric, e.g., 123456789)
- Note: This is different from the “Measurement ID” (starts with G-)

Test Your Setup (Optional)

Verify your credentials:

Install Google Analytics Data library:
```
pip install google-analytics-data
```

Create test script (save as test_ga4.py):

import os
from google.analytics.data_v1beta import BetaAnalyticsDataClient

# Set credentials path
os.environ["GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS"] = "/path/to/your/service-account-key.json"

# Test connection
client = BetaAnalyticsDataClient()
print("✅ GA4 credentials working!")

Run test:
```
python test_ga4.py
```

If you see ”✅ GA4 credentials working!” you’re ready to proceed.

Step 2: Install the MCP Server

Choose one method:

Method A: pip install (Recommended)

pip install google-analytics-mcp

MCP Configuration:

First, check your Python command:

# Test which Python command works on your system:
python3 --version
python --version

Then use the appropriate configuration:

If python3 --version worked:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ga4-analytics": {
      "command": "python3",
      "args": ["-m", "ga4_mcp_server"],
      "env": {
        "GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS": "/path/to/your/service-account-key.json",
        "GA4_PROPERTY_ID": "123456789"
      }
    }
  }
}

If python --version worked:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ga4-analytics": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "ga4_mcp_server"],
      "env": {
        "GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS": "/path/to/your/service-account-key.json",
        "GA4_PROPERTY_ID": "123456789"
      }
    }
  }
}

Method B: GitHub download

git clone https://github.com/surendranb/google-analytics-mcp.git
cd google-analytics-mcp
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt

MCP Configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ga4-analytics": {
      "command": "/full/path/to/ga4-mcp-server/venv/bin/python",
      "args": ["/full/path/to/ga4-mcp-server/ga4_mcp_server.py"],
      "env": {
        "GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS": "/path/to/your/service-account-key.json",
        "GA4_PROPERTY_ID": "123456789"
      }
    }
  }
}

Step 3: Update Configuration

Replace these placeholders in your MCP configuration:

/path/to/your/service-account-key.json with your JSON file path
123456789 with your GA4 Property ID
/full/path/to/ga4-mcp-server/ with your download path (Method B only)

Usage

Once configured, ask your MCP client questions like:

Discovery & Exploration:

“What GA4 dimension categories are available?"
"Show me all ecommerce metrics"
"What dimensions can I use for geographic analysis?”

Traffic Analysis:

“What’s my website traffic for the past week?"
"Show me user metrics by city for last month"
"Compare bounce rates between different date ranges”

Multi-Dimensional Analysis:

“Show me revenue by country and device category for last 30 days"
"Analyze sessions and conversions by campaign and source/medium"
"Compare user engagement across different page paths and traffic sources”

E-commerce Analysis:

“What are my top-performing products by revenue?"
"Show me conversion rates by traffic source and device type"
"Analyze purchase behavior by user demographics”

Quick Start Examples

Try these example queries to see the MCP’s analytical capabilities:

1. Geographic Distribution

Show me a map of visitors by city for the last 30 days, with a breakdown of new vs returning users

This demonstrates:

Geographic analysis
User segmentation
Time-based filtering
Data visualization

2. User Behavior Analysis

Compare average session duration and pages per session by device category and browser over the last 90 days

This demonstrates:

Multi-dimensional analysis
Time series comparison
User engagement metrics
Technology segmentation

3. Traffic Source Performance

Show me conversion rates and revenue by traffic source and campaign, comparing last 30 days vs previous 30 days

This demonstrates:

Marketing performance analysis
Period-over-period comparison
Conversion tracking
Revenue attribution

4. Content Performance

What are my top 10 pages by engagement rate, and how has their performance changed over the last 3 months?

This demonstrates:

Content analysis
Trend analysis
Engagement metrics
Ranking and sorting

Available Tools

The server provides 5 main tools:

get_ga4_data - Retrieve GA4 data with custom dimensions and metrics
list_dimension_categories - Browse available dimension categories
list_metric_categories - Browse available metric categories
get_dimensions_by_category - Get dimensions for a specific category
get_metrics_by_category - Get metrics for a specific category

Dimensions & Metrics

Access to 200+ GA4 dimensions and metrics organized by category:

Metric Categories:

User Metrics: totalUsers, newUsers, activeUsers
Session Metrics: sessions, bounceRate, engagementRate
E-commerce: totalRevenue, transactions, conversions
Events: eventCount, conversions, event values
Advertising: adRevenue, returnOnAdSpend
And more specialized metrics

Troubleshooting

If you get “No module named ga4_mcp_server” (Method A):

pip3 install --user google-analytics-mcp

If you get “executable file not found”:

Try the other Python command (python vs python3)
Use pip3 instead of pip if needed

Permission errors:

# Try user install instead of system-wide
pip install --user google-analytics-mcp

Credentials not working:

Verify the JSON file path is correct and accessible
Check service account permissions in Google Cloud Console
Verify GA4 access in your property settings
Verify ID type:
- Property ID: numeric (e.g., 123456789) ✅
- Measurement ID: starts with G- (e.g., G-XXXXXXXXXX) ❌

API quota/rate limit errors:

GA4 has daily quotas and rate limits
Try reducing the date range in your queries
Wait a few minutes between large requests

Project Structure

google-analytics-mcp/
├── ga4_mcp_server.py       # Main MCP server
├── ga4_dimensions.json     # All available GA4 dimensions  
├── ga4_metrics.json        # All available GA4 metrics
├── requirements.txt        # Python dependencies
├── pyproject.toml          # Package configuration
├── README.md              # This file
└── claude-config-template.json  # MCP configuration template

License

MIT License

Source code: View the Google Analytics MCP repository on GitHub
Package: pip install google-analytics-mcp

Setting Up Google Analytics MCP: A Step-by-Step Guide

Prerequisites

Step 1: Setup Google Analytics Credentials

Create Service Account in Google Cloud Console

Add Service Account to GA4

Find Your GA4 Property ID

Test Your Setup (Optional)

Step 2: Install the MCP Server

Method A: pip install (Recommended)

Method B: GitHub download

Step 3: Update Configuration

Usage

Discovery & Exploration:

Traffic Analysis:

Multi-Dimensional Analysis:

E-commerce Analysis:

Quick Start Examples

1. Geographic Distribution

2. User Behavior Analysis

3. Traffic Source Performance

4. Content Performance

Available Tools

Dimensions & Metrics

Dimension Categories:

Metric Categories:

Troubleshooting

Project Structure

License