GA4, GTM, and sGTM Naming Conventions Checklist

Naming conventions are not style preferences—they are infrastructure. When your team is coordinating across GTM, GA4, and server-side systems, ambiguous names create misunderstandings, breaks tracking, and slow down audits.

This is a working checklist you can adopt directly. Copy it, fill in your org-specific values, and link it in your GTM container documentation.

GA4 Event Naming

Core Rules

Use snake_case exclusively: purchase_complete, form_submit, not purchaseComplete or Purchase Complete
Be descriptive but concise: form_submit good, user_submitted_contact_form_on_website bad
No PII or sensitive data: Event name should never contain email, phone, or account number
Maximum 40 characters: GA4 has a 40-char limit; stay under 35 to leave room for platform prefixes
Use verbs for actions: purchase_complete, cart_abandon, video_play
Use nouns for states: page_view, session_start (avoid page_viewed, session_started)

Custom Event Naming Pattern

[action]_[object]_[context]

action: purchase, add, remove, submit, start, complete, abandon, view, click
object: product, cart, form, video, page, list
context: (optional, clarifies business meaning) checkout, wishlist, newsletter

Examples:
- purchase_complete (not: transaction_completed, checkout_success)
- cart_abandon (not: abandoned_cart_event)
- form_submit_newsletter (not: newsletter_signup_form_submit)
- video_start_homepage (not: homepage_video_play)

Reserved Event Names (Google-defined)

GA4 automatically captures these. Do not override them:

page_view        # Automatic
click            # Automatic when element tracking enabled
scroll           # Automatic when scroll tracking enabled
view_search_results
purchase
refund
add_to_cart
remove_from_cart
add_to_wishlist
view_item
view_item_list
view_promotion
select_promotion
begin_checkout
add_shipping_info
add_payment_info

If you need custom logic around these events (e.g., “purchase with a discount”), use parameters, not a new event name.

GA4 Event Parameters

Core Rules

Use snake_case: transaction_id, product_category, not transactionID or ProductCategory
Limit to 100 parameters per event: GA4 truncates beyond this; be selective
No PII: Do not send email, phone, full address, SSN, or account passwords as parameters
Use standard ecommerce parameters: GA4 has predefined ecommerce fields; use them
Consistent types: If value is a number in one event, it must be a number in all events (not sometimes a string)

Standard Ecommerce Parameters

Use these exact names for ecommerce events—GA4 recognizes them:

# Product-level
product_id           (string)
product_name         (string)
product_category     (string)
product_brand        (string)
product_variant      (string)
quantity             (number)
price                (number, without currency symbol)

# Transaction-level
transaction_id       (string, unique per purchase)
value                (number, total transaction value)
currency             (string, ISO 4217: USD, EUR, GBP)
tax                  (number)
shipping             (number)
coupon               (string, promotion code)

# List-level
item_list_name       (string: "Homepage Featured", "Search Results")
item_list_id         (string)
item_list_index      (number: position in list)

# Engagement
engagement_time_msec (number, for non-standard interactions)

Custom Parameter Naming Pattern

For parameters outside standard ecommerce:

[context]_[attribute]

context: user, session, page, form, experiment, offer
attribute: (descriptive noun) id, name, status, value, count

Examples:
- user_type (free, premium, enterprise)
- experiment_variant (control, variant_a, variant_b)
- form_error_message (required_field_missing, invalid_email)
- offer_discount_percent (number)
- page_section (header, footer, sidebar, main_content)

Parameter Type Consistency Checklist

For each custom parameter, define its type once and enforce it:

Parameter: user_engagement_score
Type: Number (0–100)
Source: server-side GTM calculation
Used in events: page_view, purchase, form_submit
Never send as: String ("45"), Boolean

Parameter: ab_test_variant
Type: String (exactly: "control", "variant_a", "variant_b")
Source: Optimizely API
Never send as: Number, Boolean

GA4 Custom Dimensions

Core Rules

Use the same name as the GA4 event parameter: If your parameter is user_type, the dimension should be user_type, not User Type
Scope correctly: User-scoped dimensions (like subscription_status) vs event-scoped (like product_color)
Use snake_case: subscription_status, not SubscriptionStatus
Avoid conflict with default dimensions: GA4 reserves names like page_title, page_location, source, medium
Maximum 500 dimensions: Start with 20–30 core dimensions; add more only if you have a measurement reason

Dimension Naming by Scope

User-scoped (describes the person across all sessions):

user_type                 # free, premium, enterprise
subscription_status       # active, expired, cancelled
user_age_range            # 18-24, 25-34, etc.
user_location_region      # US, EU, APAC
customer_lifetime_value   # monetary tier
user_cohort_date          # YYYY-MM date first seen

Event-scoped (describes this specific event):

product_color             # red, blue, green
product_availability      # in_stock, backorder, discontinued
form_field_error          # email_invalid, required_field_missing
experiment_variant        # control, variant_a, variant_b

GTM Tag Naming

Core Pattern

[Type] - [Brand/Context] - [Action] - [Platform]

Type: GA4, Meta, LinkedIn, Hotjar, Klaviyo, etc.
Brand: Which brand owns this (or "Global" if shared)
Action: What does the tag do? (Pageview, Purchase, FormSubmit, etc.)
Platform: Web, Mobile, Both (or omit if Web is default)

Examples:
- GA4 - Acme - Pageview
- GA4 - Acme - Purchase - Mobile
- Meta Pixel - Acme - AddToCart
- Hotjar - Global - Scroll Depth
- Klaviyo - SamsungUS - EmailCapture
- LinkedIn Insight - Global - Pageview

Anti-Patterns

❌ Track Purchase           (too vague, no vendor)
❌ ga4-purchase            (inconsistent case, missing context)
❌ Google Analytics Tag 1   (uninformative numbering)
❌ PurchaseEventTracking   (camelCase instead of pattern)
✅ GA4 - Acme - Purchase   (clear, scannable, consistent)

Naming by Tag Type

Analytics vendors (GA4, Adobe, Mixpanel):

GA4 - [Brand] - Pageview
GA4 - [Brand] - Purchase
GA4 - [Brand] - FormSubmit

Ad platforms (Meta, LinkedIn, Google Ads):

Meta Pixel - [Brand] - Purchase
LinkedIn - [Brand] - LeadForm
Google Ads - [Brand] - Conversion

Behavioral analytics (Hotjar, Crazy Egg, SessionCam):

Hotjar - [Brand] - Heatmap Setup
Crazy Egg - [Brand] - Session Recording

Email/CRM (Klaviyo, HubSpot, Iterable):

Klaviyo - [Brand] - EmailCapture
HubSpot - [Brand] - LeadSubmit

GTM Trigger Naming

Core Pattern

[Event Type] - [Condition] - [Details]

Event Type: Pageview, Click, Scroll, Form, Timer, Element Visibility, History Change
Condition: What makes this trigger fire?
Details: (optional) further specificity

Examples:
- Pageview - Checkout Success
- Click - AddToCart Button
- Scroll - 50% Depth
- Form - Newsletter Signup Submit
- Visibility - Video Player Appears

Standard Trigger Naming Reference

Pageview triggers:

Pageview - All
Pageview - Homepage
Pageview - Checkout Page
Pageview - Thank You Page

Click triggers:

Click - AddToCart Button
Click - ExternalLink
Click - Download Button
Click - Video Play Button

Form triggers:

Form - Submit - Contact Form
Form - Submit - Newsletter Signup
Form - Field Blur - Email Validation

Visibility triggers:

Visibility - Hero Image (appears for 3 sec)
Visibility - Video Player
Visibility - Bottom Section (scroll-triggered)

Custom event triggers:

Custom Event - purchase_complete
Custom Event - form_error
Custom Event - video_complete

GTM Variable Naming

Core Pattern

[Source] - [Purpose] - [Scope]

Source: DL (dataLayer), Cookie, FirstParty (server-side), Analytics, Query, Const
Purpose: What info does this hold?
Scope: (optional) Global or platform-specific

Examples:
- DL - EventName
- Cookie - UserID
- DL - ProductID - Ecommerce
- Const - GA4MeasurementID
- Query - UTMSource
- FirstParty - SessionID - ServerSide

By Variable Type

Data Layer variables:

DL - EventName
DL - EventValue
DL - ProductID
DL - ProductCategory
DL - CartTotal
DL - UserType

Cookie variables:

Cookie - UserID
Cookie - SessionID
Cookie - ConsentState
Cookie - ABTestVariant

Built-in variables:

{{Hostname}}
{{Page URL}}
{{Page Path}}
{{Referrer}}
{{Click URL}}
{{Event}}              (for gtag-based events)

Custom variables to create:

# Use "Const" for static values
Const - GoogleTagID         (value: G-XXXXX)
Const - GA4EventPrefix      (value: "acme_" for namespacing)

# Use "JS Variable" for computed values
JS - ProductTierFromPrice   (calculate tier based on {{DL - ProductID}})
JS - ConsentCheckPassed     (true/false logic)

Variable Lookup Table

If you use lookup tables to map values (e.g., mapping product IDs to categories):

Lookup - ProductIDtoCategory
Lookup - EventNameAliasing
Lookup - CountryToRegion

Server-Side GTM Naming

Client (Source) Naming

[Platform] - [Purpose] - [Brand]

Platform: Web, Mobile, iOS, Android, Backend, CMS
Purpose: Data Collection, Event Processing, Conversion Tracking
Brand: (if applicable)

Examples:
- Web - Data Collection - Global
- Mobile - Event Processing - Acme
- Backend - Conversion Tracking - Acme

Server-Side Tag Naming

[Platform] - [Vendor] - [Action]

Examples:
- Web - GA4 - Event Send
- Web - Meta - ConversionAPI
- Web - CustomAPI - Webhook

Server-Side Variable Naming

sGTM - [Purpose]

Examples:
- sGTM - ClientID
- sGTM - ConversionValue
- sGTM - EnrichedEventData

GTM Folder Organization

Folder Structure

Organize your GTM container into logical folders to reduce cognitive load:

GTM Container Structure:
├── Core Setup
│   ├── Built-in Variables
│   ├── Custom Variables
│   ├── Data Layer Debugging
│
├── GA4 - Pageview & Events
│   ├── GA4 Configuration
│   ├── GA4 - Pageview
│   ├── GA4 - Event: Purchase
│   ├── GA4 - Event: FormSubmit
│   ├── GA4 - Event: VideoPlay
│
├── Ad Platforms
│   ├── Meta Pixel - Global
│   ├── Google Ads - Conversion
│   ├── LinkedIn - Pageview
│
├── Behavioral Analytics
│   ├── Hotjar - Setup
│   ├── Crazy Egg - Sessions
│
├── Email & CRM
│   ├── Klaviyo - Newsletter
│   └── HubSpot - Lead Tracking
│
├── Error Handling & QA
│   ├── GTM Error Handler
│   ├── Data Validation
│   └── Consent Checks
│
└── Archive (deprecated items)

Folder Naming Rules

Use CapitalizedCase for folder names (but tags inside remain Type - Action pattern)
Start with vendor/platform name for vendor-specific folders
Group by purpose (not by implementer)
Mark deprecated with [Archive] prefix if not deleting immediately

Multi-Brand Considerations

Brand Prefix in Event Names

If you have multiple brands, add a brand-scoped prefix:

Brand A:  acme_purchase_complete    (or acme.purchase_complete)
Brand B:  samsung_purchase_complete

Or use a parameter:
brand: "acme"        (sent in all events)

This lets you easily filter reporting by brand in GA4 and BigQuery.

Brand-Scoped Dimensions

User-scoped:
- brand_name                 (which brand is this user associated with)
- brand_subscription_status  (varies by brand)

Event-scoped:
- brand_product_line         (which product line, if multi-brand)

Implementation Checklist

Reference: Optimize Smart Patterns

This guide is inspired by conventions developed by the Optimize Smart team, who advocate for:

Consistency > cleverness — Choose boring, predictable names
Scannability — A developer should understand a tag’s purpose from its name alone
Enforcement — Once you define a pattern, enforce it with code review or tooling
Documentation — Link this checklist in your GTM, not buried in Confluence

Enterprise GTM Governance — Enforcing standards at scale
Community Tools & Extensions — Tools to audit naming compliance
GTM Best Practices — Broader implementation patterns

GA4, GTM, and sGTM Naming Conventions Checklist

GA4 Event Naming

Core Rules

Custom Event Naming Pattern

Reserved Event Names (Google-defined)

GA4 Event Parameters

Core Rules

Standard Ecommerce Parameters

Custom Parameter Naming Pattern

Parameter Type Consistency Checklist

GA4 Custom Dimensions

Core Rules

Dimension Naming by Scope

GTM Tag Naming

Core Pattern

Anti-Patterns

Naming by Tag Type

GTM Trigger Naming

Core Pattern

Standard Trigger Naming Reference

GTM Variable Naming

Core Pattern

By Variable Type

Variable Lookup Table

Server-Side GTM Naming

Client (Source) Naming

Server-Side Tag Naming

Server-Side Variable Naming

GTM Folder Organization

Folder Structure

Folder Naming Rules

Multi-Brand Considerations

Brand Prefix in Event Names

Brand-Scoped Dimensions

Implementation Checklist

Reference: Optimize Smart Patterns

Related Resources