While using Google Analytics, you may ask when does a default analytics session expire.
By default, a Google Analytics session ends after 30 minutes of inactivity by the user on the website.
This means that if a user is inactive on your website for more than 30 minutes, their session will end, and a new session will begin when they return to your website.
In addition to inactivity, a session also ends at midnight, when the old day ends, and a new day starts.
A session will also end if there is a change of campaign by the user.
It’s important to note that an existing Google Analytics session will automatically expire if a user deletes the Google Analytics cookies.
This is because the cookies are used to identify the user and track their activity on your website.
When Does A Default Analytics Session Expire?
By default, a Google Analytics session ends after 30 minutes of inactivity by the user on the website.
To change the default timeout of 30 minutes for web sessions, you can adjust the web session timeout settings in your Google Analytics account.
You can make a session expire after 1 minute of inactivity or after 4 hours of inactivity, depending on your preferences and needs.
Understanding when a default Google Analytics session expires is crucial for online businesses that rely on session data for analyzing customer behavior.
By keeping track of session expiration and adjusting the settings as needed, you can ensure that you are collecting accurate and relevant data to inform your business decisions.
Factors Influencing Session Expiry
When it comes to Google Analytics, sessions are an essential part of tracking user behavior.
A session is a period of time during which a user interacts with your website or app.
By default, a session in Google Analytics expires after 30 minutes of inactivity.
However, there are several factors that can influence when a session expires.
Time Of Day
One factor that can influence session expiry is the time of day.
By default, Google Analytics resets sessions every day at noon.
This means that if a user has been active on your site for less than 30 minutes, their session will be reset at noon, regardless of whether or not they are still active on your site.
User Activity
Another factor that can influence session expiry is user activity.
If a user is active on your site, their session will not expire after 30 minutes of inactivity.
However, if a user opens a different browser window or navigates away from your site, their session will expire after 30 minutes of inactivity.
Campaign-Based Expiration
Campaign-based expiration occurs when Analytics starts a new session each time a user’s campaign source changes.
For example, if a user clicks on a link to your site from a Google AdWords ad, Analytics will start a new session.
If the user then clicks on a link to your site from a Facebook ad, Analytics will start another new session.
Adjusting Session Timeout
You can adjust the default timeout of 30 minutes for web sessions in Google Analytics.
To do this, go to your Google Analytics account, click on Admin, then select the Property column and click on Data Streams.
Select a web data stream and click on Configure tag settings.
In the Settings section, click on Show All to see all the settings.
You can then adjust the session timeout to any value that suits your needs.
In summary, session expiry in Google Analytics is influenced by several factors, including time of day, user activity, and campaign-based expiration.
By adjusting the session timeout, you can ensure that your sessions are set up to meet the needs of your website or app.
Extending Session Duration
If you find that your Google Analytics session duration is too short for your needs, you can extend it by changing the default timeout setting.
By default, a session lasts for 30 minutes of inactivity.
However, you can increase or decrease the session duration to suit your needs.
To change the default session timeout duration, follow these steps:
- Go to the “Admin” section of your Google Analytics account.
- Click on “Data Streams” under the “Property” column.
- Select the web data stream you want to configure.
- Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on “Configure tag settings.”
- In the “Settings” section, click on “Show all” to see all available options.
- Change the session timeout duration to the desired length.
Keep in mind that changing the session duration can affect your data analysis.
If you set the session duration too long, you may end up with fewer sessions and more extended sessions, which can skew your data.
Conversely, if you set the session duration too short, you may end up with more sessions, but they may not provide enough data to be useful.
Therefore, it’s essential to strike a balance between session duration and data accuracy when configuring your Google Analytics session timeout setting.
Implications Of Session Expiry
When a user visits your website, Google Analytics starts tracking their activity in a session. By default, a session expires after 30 minutes of inactivity.
This means that if a user is inactive on your website for more than 30 minutes, their session will end, and any subsequent activity will be counted as a new session.
The implications of session expiry are significant for website owners.
If your website has a high bounce rate, it could be due to sessions expiring before users have a chance to engage with your content.
This can lead to inaccurate data and misinterpretation of user behavior.
Additionally, if you rely on session data to analyze customer behavior, session expiry can be problematic.
It can result in incomplete data sets and make it difficult to draw accurate conclusions about user behavior.
To avoid these issues, it’s important to understand how sessions work and to set appropriate session timeout values.
You can change the default timeout value in Google Analytics to better suit your website’s needs.
However, it’s important to strike a balance between session length and the accuracy of data.
Overall, session expiry is a critical aspect of Google Analytics that website owners need to be aware of.
By understanding how sessions work and setting appropriate timeout values, you can ensure that your data is accurate and that you’re getting a clear picture of user behavior on your website.
Sure, here’s the section:
How To Check Session Expiry
To check when a default Google Analytics session expires, you can follow these steps:
- Log in to your Google Analytics account and select the website you want to check.
- Click on the “Real-time” tab in the left-hand menu.
- Under the “Overview” section, you will see a box labeled “Sessions.”
- Wait for a few minutes to see if the number of sessions changes.
- If the number of sessions remains the same for 30 minutes, it means that the session has expired.
Alternatively, you can use the Google Analytics Debugger Chrome extension to see when a session expires.
Once you have installed the extension, follow these steps:
- Open your website in Google Chrome.
- Right-click on the page and select “Inspect.”
- Click on the “Console” tab.
- Refresh the page.
- Look for the message “Session timeout” in the console. This indicates that the session has expired.
Keep in mind that the default session expiry time is 30 minutes, but this can be changed by the account owner.
If you need to track longer sessions, you can adjust the session timeout settings in your Google Analytics account.
Key Takeaways
Here are some key takeaways regarding when a default Google Analytics session expires:
- A Google Analytics session lasts until there has been no activity for 30 minutes by default.
- The account owner can change the length of a session to last anywhere between a few seconds and several hours.
- An existing session will automatically expire if a user deletes the Google Analytics cookies.
- If a user navigates to another website but returns to your website within 30 minutes, the session will not expire.
- Depending on the data you’d like to capture, a default session expiration can be problematic for online businesses that rely on session data for analyzing customer behavior.
To change the session timeout settings in your GA property, click on this link.
You can make a session expire after 1 minute of users’ inactivity or after 4 hours of users’ inactivity.
