Google Analytics and Retool: Complete Integration Guide 2024

 

Integrating Retool with Google Analytics

 

Integrating Retool, a powerful interface-building platform, with Google Analytics enables you to visualize and manipulate your analytics data efficiently. The following steps provide a thorough guide on achieving this integration, requiring familiarity with both Retool's environment and Google Analytics API.

 

Prerequisites

 

• A Retool account and access to a project where you want to integrate Google Analytics.
• A Google Analytics account with API access permissions.
• Basic knowledge of API queries and data structure in GA.

 

Setting Up Google Analytics API

 

• Log in to your Google Cloud Platform and create a new project or select an existing project to enable the Google Analytics API.
• Go to the API Library within the Google Cloud Console and search for "Google Analytics Reporting API". Click "Enable" to activate this API for your project.
• Navigate to the

  Credentials

  section and create new credentials by selecting "Service account". This service account allows programmatic access to Google Analytics data.
• After creating the service account, download the JSON key file. You will need the key details to authenticate requests from Retool to Google Analytics.
• In your Google Analytics account, add the newly created service account's email as a user with Read & Analyze permissions to the relevant view you plan to access.

 

Configuring Retool to Access Google Analytics

 

• Log in to Retool and navigate to the "Resources" section, where you will set up a new resource for connecting to Google Analytics.
• Select "REST API" as the resource type since you will be accessing Google Analytics data through API requests.
• Name your resource and configure the base URL to point towards Google Analytics Reporting API endpoint, typically https://analyticsreporting.googleapis.com/v4/reports:batchGet.
• In the "Authentication" section, choose "OAuth 2.0" and use the service account credentials obtained earlier. Enter the Client Email and Private Key fields from your downloaded JSON key file.
• For the OAuth 2.0 Scopes, use https://www.googleapis.com/auth/analytics.readonly, which provides read access to your analytics data.

 

Building Queries in Retool

 

• After setting up the resource, go to your Retool project and add a new query using the configured Google Analytics resource.
• Customize the API request in JSON format according to Google Analytics' query requirements. Here is an example JSON body for querying basic pageview data:

      {
        "reportRequests": [{
          "viewId": "YOURVIEWID",
          "dateRanges": [{"startDate": "7daysAgo", "endDate": "yesterday"}],
          "metrics": [{"expression": "ga:pageviews"}],
          "dimensions": [{"name": "ga:pagePath"}]
        }]
      }
      

• Replace YOURVIEWID with the actual Analytics View ID you're accessing. This information is available in Google Analytics under the 'View Settings' of the relevant property.
• Test run your query within Retool to ensure that you are able to successfully pull data from Google Analytics.

 

Visualizing Data in Retool

 

• Once your query successfully retrieves data, use Retool’s interface builder to display this data. You may use tables, charts, or any suitable widgets that Retool offers to visualize key metrics from Google Analytics.
• Drag and drop desired components like tables or charts onto your Retool app, and bind them to the query result fields to dynamically update visualizations based on your Google Analytics data.
• Leverage Retool’s transformation capabilities to format, aggregate, or modify data sets obtained from Google Analytics before visual representation.

 

Testing and Deploying the Integration

 

• After building the visualization, test the integration thoroughly within Retool to make sure data representation is quick, accurate, and user-friendly.
• Ensure that any dropdowns or filters work correctly to refine analytics data as needed.
• Once satisfied with the setup, deploy the Retool application so that the integrated Google Analytics data is accessible to all permitted users.

 

By following these steps, you can effectively integrate Retool with Google Analytics to make informed decisions by visualizing your analytics data within a custom-built interface. This setup enables real-time data access and manipulation, empowering users to analyze metrics using a variety of visual tools available in Retool.