May 09, 2023
Since the introduction of "Quotas" in the interface to GA4, the use of Looker Studio dashboards has been severely restricted and error messages are increasingly appearing, making it almost impossible to work. We know how frustrating this is and are happy to help you find a solution so that you can use your dashboards smoothly again.
Blog update from 13/06/2023
In May 2023, the GA4 quotas for standard properties were increased by Google. As a result, Looker Studio dashboards are now displayed error-free and no more "quota errors" occur. Although a connection to Google BigQuery is no longer required for visualisation, it is still recommended to ensure historical data of more than 14 months.
In November 2022, Google introduced a quota system ("Quotas") for connecting GA4 data to Looker Studio. This change has led to frequent error messages in dashboards, especially for non-GA 360 accounts, as the quota is quickly reached when using the dashboard. The quota is set by Google Analytics and affects all APIs that are connected to Google Analytics. Every action by a user, such as setting a filter, is counted towards the quota (per property, project and time unit). If several dashboards access the same property, each action is counted towards the same quota. As soon as the quota is used up, you must wait up to 24 hours before a new request can be sent. During this time, no data is displayed in the Looker Studio dashboard.
Although the quota for connecting GA4 data to Looker Studio is set by Google Analytics, there is a simple solution to work around these restrictions: BigQuery
It is possible to automatically write the data to Google BigQuery on a daily basis and then connect it to Looker Studio. The connection between Looker Studio and BigQuery can be used indefinitely, which allows any number of queries without contingent errors.
However, it is currently not possible to retroactively integrate GA4 data directly into the BigQuery database via Google Analytics. Only data that has been collected since GA4 and BigQuery were linked is visible in Looker Studio. For this reason, we recommend establishing the link between GA4 and BigQuery as soon as possible in order to have access to a larger amount of data in the future.
It is quite conceivable that Google will develop a solution for this problem (reloading the GA4 history). However, there is currently no official announcement from Google regarding such a solution. We will keep you up to date and will inform you as soon as there is any news.
We are always available to help you link your GA4 property to Google BigQuery and connect your Looker Studio dashboards to this new data source. Contact us and let us help you get the most out of your data!
