How to Install Google Tag Manager on Your Website?

Google Tag Manager (GTM) lets site owners deploy and manage tags like Google Analytics and Google Ads without touching code. For a standalone site, tracking is the foundation of marketing decisions. Once GTM is in place, adding tracking codes, events, and conversion goals all happens in the dashboard.

Here’s the full walkthrough video:

YouTube: How to install and configure Google Tag Manager (GTM)

Install the GTM code

First, get GTM’s code onto your site: create the account, copy the snippets, insert them with a plugin, and test.

Step 1: Search for GTM

Log in with your Google account and search for Google Tag Manager.

Step 2: Create an account

Click the Create account button in the top right to create a new GTM account.

Step 3: Add a new account

Fill in the account name, country, container name, and platform type. For a website, choose Web as the platform.

Step 4: Accept GTM’s terms of service

Accept Google Tag Manager’s terms of service.

Step 5: Get your installation code

Google Tag Manager gives you two snippets to add to the head and body of your site. It’s simpler than it sounds; here’s how it works on WordPress.

Step 6: Install the WPCode plugin

In the WordPress admin, add a plugin called WPCode.

Step 7: Add the code to header and body

After installing WPCode, open Code Snippets, then Header & Footer, and paste the two GTM snippets into the Header and Body sections on the right. Save when done.

Step 8: Test the installation

Back in Google Tag Manager, click Test. A green checkmark on the left means the code was added successfully.

Configure the GA4 tag

With the code in place, configure the GA4 tag in GTM, connecting the data stream you created earlier.

Step 9: Add a new tag

Click New to add a tag.

Step 10: Name the tag

Name the tag and click Tag configuration.

Step 11: Select the tag type

Choose the tag type and click Google Analytics.

Step 12: Select Google Tag

Choose Google Tag under Google Analytics.

Step 13: Enter the tag ID

Find the Tag ID (the Measurement ID) in GA4 and enter it in GTM. If you haven’t created GA4 yet, see this guide on creating a GA4 data stream. How to locate the ID is in the next step.

Step 14: Find the tag ID in GA4

If you just created GA4, click Start collecting data in the last step and select your website.

If GA4 already exists, log in and click the gear icon in the bottom left to open Admin.

Click Data streams, and your website appears on the right; click it.

In Web stream details, copy the MEASUREMENT ID and paste it into GTM’s Tag ID field.

Step 15: Set the trigger

Back in GTM, click Triggering.

Step 16: Choose Initialization – All Pages

Select Initialization – All Pages. This is the basic setup for connecting GA4 through GTM and collects all regular behavior data as visitors browse.

Step 17: Save

Save the GA4 initialization configuration.

Verify the data is flowing

Before publishing, verify the configuration with preview mode and Google Tag Assistant to confirm data is actually being collected.

Step 18: Preview

Preview the configuration live to see if it works.

Step 19: Connect Google Tag Assistant

Click Connect to link Google Tag Assistant to your website.

Step 20: Connecting

It shows connecting; wait a moment.

Step 21: Connected

When it shows Connected, the connection is live. Maximize the site preview window.

Step 22: Browse your website

Browse your site and click around; a Tag Assistant connected notice appears at the bottom right.

Step 23: View activity in Tag Assistant

Back in Google Tag Assistant, the left panel records the browsing activity you just did.

Step 24: View activity in GA4

Log in to GA4, click the gear icon in the bottom left, choose DebugView, and you’ll see the same activity. That confirms the GA4 initialization works.

Submit and publish

After verification, submit the configuration for publishing.

Step 25: Submit

Back in GTM, click Submit to send your configuration.

Step 26: Publish

Name this configuration and add a short description so you can recognize it later.

Step 27: Configuration summary

After publishing, a configuration summary shows the details of this setup.

GTM is now installed and connected to GA4. Events and conversion goals can be added from the GTM dashboard from here on, without touching the site code. With behavior data in place, combine it with Search Console indexing data and the data loop for your site is complete.