google-analytics-admin-api-basics

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---
name: google-analytics-admin-api-basics
metadata:
  category: GoogleAnalytics
description: >-
  Manages Google Analytics account and property settings, enables the Analytics Admin API via the Cloud CLI, lists accounts and properties, and manages data streams, custom dimensions, conversion events, and integrations. Use when you need to programmatically configure Google Analytics accounts, provision properties, manage data retention, configure Measurement Protocol secrets, or manage Firebase and Google Ads links.
---

# Getting Started with Google Analytics Admin API

The Google Analytics Admin API provides programmatic access to Google Analytics
account and property configuration. It lets you automate account management,
manage data streams, configure custom dimensions, and handle product
integrations.

## Enabling the API via Cloud CLI

Before making API calls, ensure the Google Analytics Admin API is enabled in
your Google Cloud project.

If `gcloud` is not found, prompt the user to install the Google Cloud CLI before
running these commands.

1.  **Enable the API:** Use the Cloud CLI (`gcloud`) to enable
    `analyticsadmin.googleapis.com`.

    ```bash
    gcloud services enable analyticsadmin.googleapis.com --quiet
    ```

    *Why: Enabling the API ensures your Cloud project has the necessary quota
    and permissions allocated for managing Google Analytics configurations.*

2.  **Verify API Enablement:**

    ```bash
    gcloud services list --enabled --filter="analyticsadmin.googleapis.com"
    ```

## Authentication

To authenticate your API requests, you must generate Application Default
Credentials (ADC) and give your account the necessary scopes. Run the following
command in your terminal:

```bash
gcloud auth application-default login --scopes="https://www.googleapis.com/auth/cloud-platform,https://www.googleapis.com/auth/analytics.readonly"
```

*Why: This configures ADC in your local environment with the required Cloud
Platform and Google Analytics read-only scopes, allowing the client library to
automatically authenticate your requests.*

> [!NOTE] **Configuration Changes**: Methods changing the Google Analytics
> account/property configuration will need the
> `https://www.googleapis.com/auth/analytics.edit` scope.

## Admin API Use Cases

You can use the Google Analytics Admin API to:

*   Run Data Access reports (see
    https://developers.google.com/analytics/devguides/config/admin/v1/access-api.md.txt
    for more info)
*   Create Account summaries
*   Manage accounts
*   Provision new accounts
*   Search account change history events
*   Manage and create properties
*   Manage property data retention settings
*   Manage conversion events
*   Manage custom dimensions and metrics
*   Manage data streams and configure measurement protocol secrets
*   Manage Firebase links
*   Manage Google Ads links
*   Manage key events

### v1alpha-Only Use Cases

The following capabilities are currently available only in the `v1alpha` version
of the Admin API:

*   Manage account and property access bindings
*   Create and manage rollup properties
*   Create and manage subproperties
*   Acknowledge user data collection
*   Change property attribution, data retention, Google signals, reporting
    identity, and User Provided Data settings
*   Manage AdSense links
*   Manage BigQuery links
*   Manage audiences
*   Manage channel groups
*   Manage calculated metrics
*   Manage DisplayVideo360Advertiser links
*   Manage expanded data sets
*   Manage reporting data annotations
*   Manage SearchAds360 links
*   Manage event create rules for a data stream
*   Manage SKAdNetwork conversion value schema of an iOS stream
*   Submit a request for user deletion for a Google Analytics property.

## Calling the Admin API

To interact with the Admin API, use the official Google Analytics Admin client
library. Note that `v1beta` is the most stable version of the Admin API. For the
latest features, consider using `v1alpha`.

> [!IMPORTA