Trouble excluding test data from Google Analytics 4 Realtime reports

Google Analytics 4

Trouble excluding test data from Google Analytics 4 Realtime reports

Posted by Jayden on 21 May 2022 at 1:27 am
“Hey there, I’m having a bit of a pickle here trying to debug GA4 without meddling with my data. I can’t seem to make it happen without deactivating my internal traffic filter, and then my doings on the app roll into the Realtime reports. It only seems to be showing up there for now, but my gut tells me it might pop up in all Reports after 48 hours.

Now, I’m wondering if behavior like this is typical? Is there something different about Realtime reporting? Does it pick up on dev traffic while the other reports turn a blind eye? If that’s the case, you can ignore the rest of my dilemma.

So far, I’ve tried using Google Chrome with this nifty GA debug extension [ga debugger ext](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/google-analytics-debugger/jnkmfdileelhofjcijamephohjechhna) to examine my website on localhost. When my Internal Traffic filter is off and my Developer Traffic filter is on, my presence shows up on the Realtime reports (not cool). But I can see data in the debug view (nice). No data is revealed in either the Realtime reports area or the debug view when both filters are active (a bit of a catch-22).

Here’s some of my lovely code that I’m working with:
```
import ReactGA from "react-ga4";

function App() {

  useEffect(() => {
      ReactGA.initialize("G-blablabla");
      ReactGA.send("pageview");
    },
    []
  ) 


  let location = useLocation();
  useEffect(() => {
    ReactGA.send({ hitType: "pageview", page: location });
  }, [location]);


  const GenerateAppRoutes = () => {
    return (
      <>
        <Route path="/" element={
            <Landing/>
          }
        />
        <Route path="/blog/design" element={
          <BlogPillar 
            imgSrc={sampleImg}
            topicTitle='Design' 
            articles={
              [
                {'link': '/blog/design/materials', 'title': 'Materials'},
                {'link': '/blog/design/fasteners', 'title': 'Screws'},
              ]
            }
            imgAlt=""
          />
        }/>
      </>
    )
  }

  const AppRoutes = GenerateAppRoutes();
  const appRouteObjects = createRoutesFromChildren(AppRoutes);
  const GeneratedRoutes = useRoutes(appRouteObjects);
  return (
    <>
      <NavBarComponent/>
      {GeneratedRoutes}
    </>
  )
}

export default App;
```
Can someone out there help me figure this out? Any advice would be great! Cheers!”
Rajesh replied 1 year, 5 months ago 3 Members · 2 Replies
2 Replies

Landon

Member
28 January 2023 at 10:27 am

Your current dilemma appears to be related to the way Google Analytics 4 (GA4) and your filters are set up. The Real-time report you mention may indeed be picking up on developer (dev) traffic. Normally, dev traffic and real user traffic can be differentiated by using a variety of filters, but your settings may not be allowing this. You are using a helpful GA debug extension on Google Chrome to examine your website, but you’re noticing discrepancies when the filters are toggled on and off. In terms of your code, it appears you’re correctly initializing GA4 and sending pageview hits. However, without knowledge of your entire setup, it’s hard to definitively uncover the root cause of your problem. A professional who is familiar with GA4 configuration and your specific website setup might be able to provide further advice but to truly separate your internal traffic from your users, consider setting up a separate property for your testing and development cases. Hope this helps!
Rajesh

Member
2 April 2023 at 12:21 pm

Sure thing, pal! From what I understand, you’re trying to debug in GA4 and your internal filter seems to affect your visibility in the Realtime reports. Normally, GA Realtime does include dev traffic, so your findings aren’t strange. Try setting up a testing property (separate from your main one) to isolate your dev/debug traffic. Happy debugging!

Trouble excluding test data from Google Analytics 4 Realtime reports

Landon

Rajesh