Short answer
UTM Builder: what it does
A UTM link is your normal URL with utm_source, utm_medium and utm_campaign added, so analytics knows exactly which post, ad or email sent each visitor. Keep the tags lowercase and consistent, or one campaign splits into several rows.
Last updated 3 August 2026
Here's one we ran earlier.
A newsletter link to a pricing page for a spring launch
Your link
Copy thishttps://example.com/pricing?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=spring-launch
How GA4 will file it
Analytics viewDefault channel group: Email. Session source / medium: newsletter / email. Campaign: spring-launch.
Three steps, no account.
Pick one naming rule
Lowercase, hyphens instead of spaces, no dates in the source. 'Newsletter' and 'newsletter' are two different rows in GA4.
Tag every link you control
Emails, bios, partner posts and ads. Untagged links land in Direct or Referral and you lose the reason the visit happened.
Never tag internal links
UTMs on links inside your own site overwrite the original source and break attribution. Only tag links that live somewhere else.
Common questions.
Which UTM parameters are required?
Source, medium and campaign. Content and term are optional and mainly useful for A/B tests and paid search keywords.
Do UTM links hurt SEO?
No, as long as your pages have a canonical tag pointing at the clean URL. Search engines then ignore the tagged copies.
Should I shorten UTM links?
Only where length matters, such as print, QR codes and SMS. A shortener keeps the tags; the visitor never sees them.
What medium should email use?
Use 'email'. GA4 puts that in the Email channel automatically. Made-up mediums end up in Unassigned.
Does this cost anything?
No. It's free, no account needed, and you can run it as many times as you like.
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