Do I still need Google Analytics if I have a Wix website?

Great question!

If you have a Wix website, you might wonder whether you still need Google Analytics, given that Wix already has built-in analytics tools.

So, let’s look at the differences between Wix Analytics and Google Analytics to help you decide which is best for your needs - or whether you should use both.

Wix Analytics: What It Offers

One of the great things about Wix is that it provides a built-in user-friendly analytics dashboard that integrates seamlessly with your website – and it is improving all the time!

Here are some of the key features:

• Traffic Overview: Wix Analytics shows information about your site's visitors, such as the number of visitors, page views, and traffic sources. This even includes the platform when visitors have come from social media.
  

• Visitor Behaviour: You can see which pages are most popular, how long visitors stay on your site, and which buttons or links they click the most.
  

• Sales and Conversion Tracking: For eCommerce sites, Wix Analytics tracks sales data, including revenue, conversion rates, and abandoned carts.
  

• User Demographics: You can track how many visitors are accessing your site via mobile devices versus desktops as well as which country users are physically located in.

Analytics in Wix has improved markedly over the past few years and continues to add new features which make it a rival of Google Analytics in our books, especially if you have everything on the Wix platform.

Google Analytics: What It Offers

Google Analytics has historically been a more comprehensive tool that offers a wider range of data and customization options, but for some users it can be confusing and have too many bells and whistles.

Here’s what Google Analytics offers:

• In-Depth Reporting: Google Analytics provides more detailed reports, including user demographics, interests, device types, and geographic locations. You can also track custom events and set up goals to measure specific actions on your site.
  

• Advanced Segmentation: Google Analytics allows you to create custom segments to analyse specific groups of users, such as those who came from social media, organic search, or a particular campaign.
  

• Integration with Other Tools: Google Analytics can be integrated with Google Ads, Search Console, and other Google services, giving you a more comprehensive view of your marketing efforts.
  

• Custom Reports and Dashboards: Google Analytics lets you build custom reports and dashboards tailored to your specific needs, providing deep insights into user behaviour and campaign performance.

If you are using apps that sit on different platforms, then Google Analytics is brilliant, but did you know that Wix also now lets you connect Google Search Console data and Ads run from Wix?

Should You Use Both?

If you’re running a basic website and you’re satisfied with Wix’s built-in analytics, you might find that Wix Analytics is enough. It’s easy to use, provides essential insights, improving almost monthly, and is integrated directly into your Wix dashboard.

However, if you’re looking for more detailed data, want to integrate with other marketing tools, or need to perform advanced analysis, Google Analytics is a valuable addition.

It is important to note that if you do choose to run both Wix Analytics and Google Analytics there can be some discrepancies in the data. Below are two example reports run from the same website, on the same timescale and showing slightly different figures:

Wix Analytics

Google Analytics

Whilst Wix shows unique visitors at 1022, Google shows users at 899, but other metrics such as site sessions are the same. So having both analytics set up is a good way to check slightly different metrics.

Here are a few other reasons to consider using both:

• Comprehensive Insights: Combining Wix Analytics with Google Analytics gives you a broader perspective. Wix’s data is more accessible for day-to-day monitoring, while Google Analytics offers deeper insights and analysis.
  

• Cross-Platform Tracking: If you’re running campaigns on Google Ads or tracking performance across multiple platforms, Google Analytics can consolidate this data for a clearer view of your marketing efforts.
  

• Backup Analytics: Having both tools ensures you have a backup. If one tool misses something or has a reporting glitch, the other can fill in the gaps.
  

• External Agencies: if you work with advertising or marketing companies who are not experienced with Wix, having both tools set up allows them to access historical data via Google rather than having to start from scratch.

In Summary...

Wix Analytics is a great tool for daily tracking and getting quick insights directly from your website dashboard and the depth of tracking in the Analytics reports is now getting more sophisticated with advanced reports and measurements.

However, Google Analytics offers even more advanced features and allows that cross-platform detail that Wix simple doesn't - at least not yet!

So, if you prefer a streamlined experience, Wix Analytics might be sufficient. But if you want to dive deeper into data, track more complex user behaviour, or integrate with other marketing tools, Google Analytics is definitely worth using alongside Wix’s tools.

We'd recommend using both and if you're stuck and don't know how to set these up, feel free to give us a call or read our guide on setting up Google Analytics which will walk you through the steps you need to take.