Google Tag Manager, GA4 & Google Ads (incl. server-side tracking)

Installation instructions, documentation and FAQs for the Shopware plugin

Install extension

Install and activate the extension in your Shopware administration under Extensions.

How the plugin works

The plugin supports two different methods for tracking integration in your Shopware shop:

  1. Google Tag Manager (GTM)
    The recommended and most flexible method. With Google Tag Manager, you can manage all tracking events centrally, add your own tags and expand tracking at any time - without having to make any changes to the shop code. The plugin provides you with a preconfigured GTM template for this purpose.
  2. Google tag (gtag.js)
    This method integrates Google Analytics 4 and optionally also Google Ads directly via the gtag.js script - without Tag Manager. It is suitable if you prefer a simple setup.

Important: Deactivate other Google Analytics integrations if you use this app.

Set up Google Tag Manager

Tag Manager account and container

  1. Log in to your Google Tag Manager account or create a new account.
  2. Create a new empty container for importing the default settings.

For advanced users: You can also use an existing container and merge it later. However, we recommend using a new container.

You can find help with Google Tag Manager here:
Google Tag Manager Support

Create a GTM template with our generator

Our generator creates the finished JSON import file for your GTM container.

Template selection:
Total (Analytics + Ads): GA4 + Google Ads Conversion Tracking - standard case for most shops

Analytics only: Exclusively GA4. No Google Ads.
Ads only: Exclusively Google Ads conversion tracking. No GA4.

Tip: You can read the account ID and container ID directly from the URL when you are logged into GTM:
tagmanager.google.com/#/accounts/[Account ID]/containers/[Container ID]/

Open GTM. The account ID is in the URL: tagmanager.google.com/#/accounts/[ID]/
Click on your container in GTM. The container ID is in the URL: ../accounts/123456789/containers/[ID]/
The name you assigned when creating the container - visible in the GTM dashboard in the container selection at the top left.
Can be found at the top right of the workspace or under Administration. Format: GTM-XXXXXXXXXX

Import template

Import the customised file in GTM under Management → Import container.

Fill in variables

Switch to the GTM area Variables and fill in the following constants (enter values):

  • 1.0# Google Analytics - Tag ID
  • 2.0# Google Ads - Conversion ID
  • 2.1# Google Ads - Label ID

How to find the IDs:

Analytics: Create a property or go to your existing property in Google Analytics and navigate to Administration (bottom left) and then to "Data streams". Select the relevant data stream. You will find the GA4 ID at the top right (measurement ID). Google Help

Ads: Log in to Google Ads → Target project → Conversions → Summary. Open the desired conversion action (or create a new one) Under Tag setup, select the "Use Google Tag Manager" tab. There you will find the conversion ID and the conversion label.

Configure plugin in Shopware

Now switch to your Shopware backend and open the plugin configuration.

Under "Which tracking integration would you like to use?", select the option "Google Tag Manager".
Then enter your GTM ID (e.g. GTM-XXXXXXX) in the "Google Tag Manager Container ID" field.

If you use google Ads Tracking, please also activate the option and, if applicable, Enhanced Conversion Data:

Save the configuration to activate the integration of the container in the shop.

Check and publish containers

Use the Preview function in Google Tag Manager ("View in preview") to test your container. Enter your shop URL and check whether all events such as product view, add-to-cart or purchase are triggered correctly. Make sure that no tracking takes place if cookie consent is rejected.

If everything works as desired, don't forget to publish the container Click on the top right of the GTM on Send → Publish. Only then will your tracking be active in the live shop.

Configuration Google Analytics (gtag.js)

If you no Google Tag Manager you can alternatively work directly with the Google Analytics tracking code (gtag.js).

  1. Choose from "Which tracking integration would you like to use?" the option "Google Analytics (gtag.js)".
  2. Wear your Google Analytics 4 Measurement ID in the format G-XXXXXXXXXXXX in the corresponding field. You can find the ID in Analytics under Administration → Data streams
  3. Save the configuration.

The plugin now handles tracking via the gtag.js code - including all supported e-commerce events such as product view, add-to-cart and checkout.

Hint: If you use the Google Tag Manager you must maintain the GA-ID there in the container - not in the plugin.

Configuration Google Ads Tracking (gtag.js)

If you want to use Google Ads Conversion Tracking, without using the Google Tag Manager, you can set this up directly via the gtag.js tracking code.

  1. Choose from "Which tracking integration would you like to use?" the option "Google Analytics (gtag.js)".
  2. Activate the option in the plugin "Activate conversion tracking".
  3. Wear your Google Ads Conversion ID and the associated Conversion label in the corresponding fields.
  4. (Optional) Activate "Activate enhanced conversion data"to transmit additional user data such as email address or telephone number to Google Ads. This improves the allocation of conversions - especially for cross-device purchases.
  5. Save the configuration.

Hint: For Enhanced Conversions, you must also activate this function in your Google Ads account. You can find instructions here: Google Ads guide to extended conversions

How do I find my Google Ads conversion ID and the conversion label?

  1. Log in to your Google Ads account.
  2. Navigate to → Target project → Conversions → Summary
  3. Select an existing Conversion campaign or create a new one.
  4. Click in the area "Tag facility" on the tab "Set up the day yourself".
  5. In the "Event snippet" section, you will find both your conversion ID (e.g. AW-1234567890) and the conversion label (e.g. abc123XYZabcDEF456) under send_to.

Dynamic remarketing

If you want to use dynamic remarketing via Google Ads, you can specify a so-called "feed type key" in the plugin configuration. This is necessary so that Google can correctly allocate your product data and display suitable adverts.

Select the appropriate type depending on what you are applying for. The following options are available:

- retail
- education
- flights
- hotel_rental
- jobs
- local
- real_estate
- travel
- custom

For classic online shops, the following is usually "retail" the right choice.

You can find more information on use and setup in the official Google Ads Remarketing documentation:
https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7305793?hl=de&ref_topic=10070037#zippy

Configure consent management

In the plugin configuration, select the consent manager that you use in your shop. Supported plugins include the Shopware Cookie Consent Manager, Cookiebot, Usercentrics, CookieFirst, CCM19.

In the "Expert mode" field, you can - if necessary - enter a customised name or the key of your content tool. This option is particularly useful for external tools that require their own integration.

Assigning the cookie category: In the plugin settings, you can now explicitly specify the category in which the extension should appear in the frontend consent dialogue.

Expert settings (Consent-Free Tracking)

If you are using a special setup in which the Google Tag Manager is to be loaded independently of the cookie content, you can activate an additional container snippet here.

To do this, activate the option "Activate Consent-Free Google Tag Manager JavaScript snippet" and enter in the field below the corresponding Container ID (e.g. GTM-XXXXXXX).

This function is intended exclusively for advanced use cases - for example, if you use tags that are Do not collect any personal data or must be loaded before consent is given.

Please note: The shop operator is responsible for GDPR-compliant use. Only use this option if you are aware of the legal implications.

Opt-out link for Google Analytics

To deactivate tracking by users, add the following link to your privacy policy:

<a onclick="javascript:gaOptout();" href="javascript:void(0);">Switch off Google Analytics tracking for this website here</a>

Set up server-side tracking

What is server-side tracking?

Server-side tracking is a modern method of collecting website data. Instead of sending tracking data directly from the browser to Google, it is first sent to a separate server and forwarded from there in a controlled manner.

Classic tracking: Browser → Google
Server-side tracking: Browser → Your tagging server → Google

Important concepts: Web vs. server container

To use SST, you need two different container types in Google Tag Manager. These fulfil different tasks:

Container typeTaskBiloba template necessary?
Web containerCollects events (clicks, sales) in the browser.Yes (JSON import)
Server containerReceives data & protects privacy.No (standard)

Prerequisites

To be able to use server-side tracking, you need:

  1. A Google Tag Manager server container: Created in your GTM account.
  2. A tagging server (hosted on Google Cloud Platform, AWS, or with a provider such as Stape.io)
  3. Your own subdomain (recommended, e.g. gtm.your-domain.com)
  4. Budget: Please note that SST incurs hosting costs (approx. 30-50 €/month depending on traffic).

HintServer-side tracking incurs ongoing costs for server hosting. The costs depend on your shop's traffic.

How the automatic redirection works

Thanks to our plugin you have to No transport URLs manually in the GTM interface customise.

  1. Simply import our JSON file into the Web container.
  2. Enter your server URL in the Plugin configuration in Shopware.
  3. The plugin automatically instructs the web container to send all data to your own server when loading in the shop.

Step 1: Create server container

  1. Open Google Tag Manager
  2. Click on „Create container“
  3. Select the target platform „Server“
  4. Follow the set-up wizard

Step 2: Set up the tagging server

Google offers two options:

Option A: Automatic provisioning (recommended for beginners)

  • Google automatically sets up a server on Google Cloud Platform
  • Simplest method, but less control over the infrastructure

Option B: Manual provision

  • You set up the server yourself (Docker container)
  • More control, but technically more demanding
  • Can be hosted on any infrastructure

Detailed instructions from Google:

Step 3: Set up subdomain (recommended)

For optimal cookie functionality, you should have a subdomain of your website point to the tagging server:

gtm.your-domain.com → Your tagging server

This makes it possible:

  • First-party cookies (longer duration)
  • HttpOnly-Cookies (more security)
  • Better compatibility with Safari/ITP

Step 4: Configure plugin

  1. Open the plugin configuration in Shopware Admin
  2. Activate „Activate server-side tracking“
  3. Wear the Server container URL (e.g. https://gtm.deine-domain.de)
  4. Saving and clearing the cache

ImportantThe URL must be entered without a trailing slash!

  • ✅ Correct: https://gtm.deine-domain.de
  • ❌ Incorrect: https://gtm.deine-domain.de/

Functionality in detail

After activation, the plugin automatically changes all Google tracking URLs:

BeforeAfterwards
https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.jshttps://gtm.deine-domain.de/gtm.js
https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/jshttps://gtm.deine-domain.de/gtag/js

In addition, the parameter server_container_url to all gtag('config', ...) Calls attached.

Source tracking (UTM / affiliate code)

Multitracking not only records Google events - the plugin also writes the advertising source of each order directly into the Shopware data record. UTM parameters, advertising click IDs and the HTTP referrer end up as Affiliate code and Campaign code in the order and are therefore immediately visible in the order list - without external reporting.

What is recorded?

  • UTM parameters — utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, utm_content, utm_term
  • Advertising click IDs — gclid (Google Ads), fbclid (Meta), msclkid (Microsoft Ads), ttclid (TikTok) and others
  • HTTP referrer - is used as a fallback if no UTM parameters or click IDs are available

Behaviour

  • By default activated - As soon as the plugin is installed or updated, tracking starts automatically.
  • Sticky per session: The first source value entered is retained for the entire session and is transferred to the order when the order is finalised - subsequent clicks do not overwrite it.
  • No override with manual ?affiliateCode=-parameters: If the URL is used to create your own affiliateCode (e.g. through an existing affiliate programme), this remains unchanged - the source tracking does not write about it.

Important after the plugin update: So that the default value is permanently stored in the system_config-table, the switch in the plugin configuration area (card „Source Tracking (UTM / Affiliate Code)“) must be explicitly set once to To and stored. Only then does the SystemConfigService the value true - otherwise the code default takes effect, but the value is not visible in the configuration.

Make columns visible in the order overview

The recorded values are stored in the Shopware standard fields Affiliate code and Campaign code These are hidden in the order list by default. Here's how to make them visible:

  1. In the Shopware admin on Orders → Overview go.
  2. At the top right of the table header, click on the symbol with the three horizontal bars (Column settings).
  3. In the list the options Affiliate code and Campaign code activate.
  4. Save selection - the columns appear immediately in the order list.

FAQs

Create a property or go to your existing property in Google Analytics and navigate to Administration (bottom left) and then to "Data streams". Select the relevant data stream. You will find the GA4 ID at the top right (measurement ID). Google Help

In Google Ads, navigate to → Target project → Conversions → Summary. Open the desired conversion. Under Tag setup you will find the conversion ID and conversion label.

With the Google Tag Assistant you can check and debug the implementation and functionality of your Google tags on the website. You can see whether the tags are correctly integrated and how they are triggered ("fire").

You can also access the Tag Assistant directly from the Google Tag Manager by using the "View in preview" function. This allows you to test in real time which tags are triggered by which action in the shop.

GTM offers you a centralised management interface for all tracking tags. With gtag.js, you only integrate Google Analytics directly, without additional administration or extensibility.

New properties in Google Analytics 4 do not usually display data immediately. First use the "Real-time" reportto check whether activities are recognised.

If no data appears, please check the following:

  • Is your GA4 measurement ID entered correctly?
  • Has consent been given by the visitor (consent to cookies)?
  • Is an adblocker active that could block tracking?

No, the add-on is not necessary, as support for Consent Mode V2 is independent of the Shopware Consent Manager.

With the extension, only one Adwords ID and one Analytics ID can be used at a time. It is not possible to use multiple snippets at the same time, for example for UA and GA4.

The message "A tag read consent before a default was set" means that no default was set for Constent Mode V2. We have deliberately implemented this as we only set Constent Mode V2 after confirmation by the user. This is the correct procedure from a GDPR perspective.

Yes, both integrations are supported.

Usually not. The client-side tags continue to work, the data is just sent via a different route.

The costs depend on your hosting provider and traffic. With Google Cloud Platform, the costs start at around €30-50 per month for small shops.

Yes, you can activate the debug mode in the plugin and check the network requests in the browser developer tools.

Support

If you have any questions or problems, please do not hesitate to contact us:

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