How do I track ChatGPT traffic in Google Analytics?
Google Analytics 4 lists AI Assistant among its predefined channels, so start by checking that channel and the Unassigned traffic in your acquisition reports. For anything it misses, build a custom channel group from the referral source. Treat the numbers as a floor, because not every visit from an assistant carries a clear source.
Free to read, no signup. Nova drafts the channel rules from your referral sources.
What GA4 documents
Straight from Google's Analytics Help. The channel rules are set by Google, and you can add your own custom groups.
AI Assistant is a predefined channel
GA4 sorts traffic into predefined channels, including AI Assistant, using rules on source, medium and campaign. Traffic that matches no rule is labelled Unassigned.
GA4 default channel groupCustom channel groups are allowed
Google says you can create custom channel groups with your own rules, and edit the primary channel group that serves as your property's default.
GA4 default channel groupReferral comes from source and medium
Referral traffic is identified by a medium of referral, app or link, so the referring site shows up as the source.
GA4 default channel groupFive steps to do it yourself
Do it by hand with these steps, or hand the whole thing to Nova.
Open the acquisition reports
In GA4, open Traffic acquisition and look at the default channel group for AI Assistant and Unassigned.
Nova: explains where to look and what to note.
List the AI referral sources
Open sessions by source and note domains that belong to AI assistants.
Nova: lists sources that look like AI assistants.
Check what lands in which channel
Compare the sources against the AI Assistant channel to find any that fall into Referral or Unassigned.
Nova: compares sources with the channel they landed in.
Build a custom channel group
Create a group with rules for the sources the default misses, and keep it documented.
Nova: drafts the rules for you to review.
Report it monthly
Track sessions and key events from the group each month and note its limits.
Nova: adds the numbers to your monthly report.
Short on time? Nova, your AI brand visibility expert, runs this Maneuver on your brand and tracks the result.
Take it to NovaAI sources and where they land
| Source | Default channel | Sessions | Move |
|---|---|---|---|
| [source-1] | AI Assistant | [N] | None |
| [source-2] | Referral | [N] | Add to custom group |
| [source-3] | Unassigned | [N] | Check medium, add rule |
Nova then keeps your custom rules in step with the sources it sees.
Take this Maneuver into your own AI agent
Get ai-traffic-attribution.md, a ready-to-use skill file with a source list, a channel check and a custom group template. Drop it into Claude, Cursor or any agent that reads SKILL.md files.
Skill file for Claude, Cursor and other agents
- A source inventory template
- A default-channel check
- A custom channel group template
Questions, answered.
Relevant reads
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