Google Analytics 4 (GA4), as of December 2025, tracks user interactions as ‘events’ rather than traditional ‘pageviews’ – meaning any interaction a user has with your website or app is recorded as a distinct event.

This differs from Universal Analytics, which primarily focused on page loads. In GA4, everything is an event, including page views (now tracked as the ‘page_view’ event), clicks, form submissions, video plays, and file downloads. GA4’s data model is built around these events and their associated ‘parameters’ which provide additional detail. For Australian small businesses, this means more granular data collection, even with standard implementations. Enhanced Measurement, currently available in GA4, automatically tracks several common events like outbound clicks and site search without requiring custom code. Data residency options, compliant with Australian privacy regulations, are available through Google Cloud regions. GA4 now includes predictive metrics, powered by machine learning, offering insights into churn probability and potential revenue, though these features are still evolving as of December 2025. Integration with Google Ads remains seamless, allowing for more refined audience targeting. In 2026, Google is expected to further refine the event modelling capabilities, particularly around cross-platform tracking.

Essentially, GA4’s event-based model provides a flexible and comprehensive system for understanding user behaviour by recording every significant interaction as a measurable event.