[UA] Active Users [Legacy] - Analytics Help (2024)

This article is about how to track the number of active users on your site or app in Universal Analytics. For information about tracking how users arrive at your site or app in Google Analytics 4, go to [GA4] User acquisition report.

In this article:

See Active Users data

To open the Active Users report:

1. Sign in to Google Analytics.
2. Navigate to your view.
3. Open Reports.
4. Select Audience > Active Users.

Active Users data is available in all Analytics accounts. No changes to the tracking code are necessary.

The metrics

The Active Users report lets you see the following metrics:

• 1-Day Active Users
• 7-Day Active Users
• 14-Day Active Users
• 28-Day Active Users

How the metric values relate to your date range

The metrics in the report are relative to the last day in the date range you are using for the report. For example, if your date range is January 1 to January 28:

• 1-Day Active Users: the number of unique users who initiated sessions on your site or app on January 28 (the last day of your date range).
• 7-Day Active Users: the number of unique users who initiated sessions on your site or app from January 22 through January 28 (the last 7 days of your date range).
• 14-Day Active Users: the number of unique users who initiated sessions on your site or app from January 15 through January 28 (the last 14 days of your date range).
• 28-Day Active Users: the number of unique users who initiated sessions on your site or app from January 1 through January 28 (the entire 28 days of your date range).

Display the data

1-Day Active Users is plotted by default, with the additional metrics displayed in the scorecards below the chart.

To plot any of the other metrics, select the metric you want…

...to have that metric appear in the chart:

You may see a change in the chart lines as you add other metrics and the scale of the Y-axis changes to accommodate the new values.

What it all means

Like any business, you want to keep track of the level of user interest.

If the numbers are consistently in line with your expectations, you’ve found your sweet spot.

If the numbers are below expectations, reevaluate your marketing efforts to see whether you’re targeting the appropriate audiences, and whether your ads are winning auctions. You can also look for any negative press or social content that might affect traffic. Even if all the marketing and social buzz are positive, you may be creating technical hurdles for your users with your site or app design.

In cases where you have a lot of 1-Day Active Users but the numbers drop off for longer term users, that can signal things like problems with a new release, or that initial enthusiasm isn't translating into long-term engagement. For example, lots of users might be downloading an app but are finding that it doesn't really meet a need they have or that it doesn't capture their interest.