Google Analytics 4 alternative
Looking for a Google Analytics 4 alternative?
Discover how SourceMedium compares as an alternative to Google Analytics 4 for ecommerce analytics, attribution, and data management.
Common Google Analytics 4 pain points
Why teams look for a Google Analytics 4 alternative.
Data sampling and thresholds
GA4 explorations can be sampled, and privacy thresholds may withhold data from reports entirely. This limits analysis fidelity for smaller segments.
14-month data retention
Standard GA4 retains data for 14 months (50 months on 360). Long-term trend analysis requires BigQuery export, adding infrastructure complexity.
Not built for ecommerce metrics
GA4 is a web analytics platform, not an ecommerce analytics tool. P&L, CLTV, cohort analysis, and contribution margin aren't built-in — they require custom modeling.
BigQuery export limits
Standard properties are limited to 1M events/day for daily BigQuery export. High-traffic stores may hit this cap, requiring a 360 upgrade.
How SourceMedium compares to Google Analytics 4
A feature-by-feature comparison across the capabilities that matter most.
| Feature | SourceMedium | Google Analytics 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Integrations & Data Sources | 40+ integrations across 5 business functions — commerce, ads, email, subscriptions, and ops — with documented coverage and daily reconciliation | Web/app event tracking only — no commerce, ad, email, or subscription data integration |
| Data Freshness | Reconciled daily across all sources with full historical backfill — every metric traceable to its source | Standard has processing delays and sampling; unsampled intraday requires 360 (~$50K+/yr) |
| Attribution Models | Server-side multi-touch attribution — no new pixels, no cookies, works with your existing tracking infrastructure | 3 models — data-driven, last click, and Google paid channels last click |
| Cohort / CLTV | 20 pre-built analytics modules including LTV, repurchase, retention, and new customer analysis — ready to use on day one | No built-in ecommerce LTV — requires custom event setup and downstream modeling |
| Dashboards & Visualization | Pre-built dashboards + AI analyst that answers ad-hoc questions in natural language, backed by SQL you can verify | Standard dashboards subject to sampling and privacy thresholds that can withhold data |
| Custom Metrics | Define a metric once, use it everywhere — dashboards, SQL, and AI always return the same answer | Custom metrics and events via event schema — requires manual configuration |
| SQL / Export / API Access | Full SQL access on every plan — query your managed BigQuery warehouse, connect any BI tool, extend with custom models | BigQuery export capped at 1M events/day on standard; unsampled data requires 360 |
SourceMedium
Based on publicly available documentation, last verified February 2026.
Looking for a Google Analytics 4 alternative?
GA4 isn't failing you — it's just not built for ecommerce analytics. If you're trying to get P&L, CLTV, cohort analysis, or multi-touch attribution from GA4, you're building a custom data stack around a web analytics tool. SourceMedium is the purpose-built alternative.
What to look for in a GA4 alternative for ecommerce
Commerce metrics built in, not custom-modeled. P&L, CLTV, cohort analysis, contribution margin, and repurchase rates should work out of the box — not require custom event schemas, BigQuery pipelines, and downstream modeling you have to build and maintain.
Full data access without sampling. Sampling distorts analysis. Privacy thresholds can hide entire data segments. Your analytics platform should give you full, unsampled access to every row of your data.
Multi-source unification, not just web events. GA4 only sees your website. Your ecommerce analytics need to combine Shopify orders, ad spend, email revenue, subscription data, and operational metrics into one reconciled view.
Full historical backfill, not 14-month retention. 14 months isn't enough for seasonal trend analysis, multi-year cohort studies, or LTV modeling. Your analytics platform should retain your full history in a warehouse you own. Ask any vendor: if we leave, what happens to our data, dashboards, and team's work?
How SourceMedium addresses these needs
SourceMedium is purpose-built for ecommerce: 40+ integrations, pre-built P&L and cohort dashboards, attribution that runs server-side using your existing tracking, and full SQL access to a managed BigQuery warehouse — no sampling, full historical backfill, no data stack to build yourself. Most brands use SourceMedium alongside GA4, keeping GA4 for web analytics and SourceMedium for commerce intelligence.
See what your GA4 data looks like reconciled with your full commerce stack. Request a demo →
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