How to Delete Google Analytics Property

Thinking about deleting a Google Analytics property isn't always a sign of trouble - sometimes it's just good digital housekeeping. Whether you've created a duplicate property, you're sunsetting a website, or you just want to clean up your account, the process is straightforward. This guide will walk you through exactly how to delete a Google Analytics 4 property, what to consider before you do, and how to remove a single data stream without losing all your historical data.

What’s the Difference? Account vs. Property vs. Data Stream

Before you click anything, it’s important to understand the structure of Google Analytics so you delete the right thing. The architecture has three main levels organized in a hierarchy:

• Account: This is the highest level, the main folder that holds everything - your company's container. You might have one Account for your entire business, even if you own multiple websites. You need at least one Account to use Google Analytics. Deleting an Account deletes everything inside it - all Properties and Data Streams.
• Property: A Property lives inside an Account. Typically, businesses create a separate property for each website or application they want to track. So, if you run mycoolbusiness.com and a separate mobile app, you would have two properties under one account. This is the level most people are referring to when they talk about deleting their analytics for a specific site.
• Data Stream: A Data Stream lives inside a Property and is the actual source of your data. For a website Property, you’ll have a Web Data Stream. For an app Property, you’ll have an iOS or Android Data Stream. One Property can technically have multiple data streams (e.g., website traffic and app traffic flowing into the same place).

Understanding this hierarchy is crucial. Trying to delete a "website" from Google Analytics might mean you actually want to delete the Property it belongs to, or perhaps just the Data Stream that's collecting its traffic. We’ll cover both scenarios below.

Before You Delete: 3 Crucial Things to Consider

Moving a property to the trash can is simple, but the consequences can be significant. It’s an action you can't easily undo after a certain point. Before you proceed, take a few minutes to review these critical checks.

1. Data Deletion is Permanent (After 35 Days)

When you delete a property, it first goes into a "trash can" for 35 days. During this grace period, you can restore it. After 35 days, Google begins the permanent deletion process, and your historical data for that property - every session, pageview, event, and conversion - is gone forever. There is no way to get it back. Make absolutely certain that you no longer need any of the data associated with the property.

2. Download Your Data First

If you think you might need the historical data for future reference, benchmarking, or records, export it before deleting the property. You don’t need to download everything, but consider saving your most important reports. You can easily export data from GA4 in several formats:

• As a CSV File: Best for raw data you want to use in spreadsheets like Excel or Google Sheets.
• As a PDF: Best for preserving the visual look of reports.

To export a report, navigate to it in the GA4 interface, click the Share & Export icon (a box with an arrow pointing out of it) in the top right corner, and select Download File. Choose your preferred format, and you're all set.

3. Check for Linked Products and Services

Google Analytics properties often act as a central hub connected to other Google services. Deleting a property can break these integrations, which can cause major reporting issues elsewhere. Before deleting, go to Admin > Product Links and review all connections.

Common integrations include:

• Google Ads: If your property is linked to Google Ads, deleting it will break conversion tracking, audience syncing, and performance reporting. Your ad campaigns could suddenly lose crucial performance data.
• Looker Studio (Formerly Data Studio): Any dashboards or reports you've built in Looker Studio using data from this property will stop working. They’ll show errors because their data source is no longer available.
• Google Search Console: You’ll lose the ability to see combined search query and analytics data within your GA4 reports.
• BigQuery: If you've set up a data export to BigQuery, it will stop once the property is deleted.

If any of these are connected, make sure you understand the effect of removing the property. You may need to update your ad campaigns or a Looker Studio report to point to a different data source.

Step-by-Step: How to Move a Google Analytics 4 Property to the Trash

If you’ve reviewed the considerations above and are ready to proceed, follow these steps to delete your GA4 property.

Step 1: Navigate to the Admin Section

Sign in to your Google Analytics account. In the bottom-left corner of the screen, click on the gear icon labeled Admin.

Step 2: Select the Correct Property

The Admin page is divided into two columns: Account and Property. In the Property column, use the dropdown menu to select the exact property you wish to delete. This is the most important step. Double-check that you have the right one selected to avoid accidentally deleting data you want to keep.

Step 3: Open Property Settings

Once you have the correct property selected, click on Property Settings, which is usually the first option in the Property column list.

Step 4: Move to Trash Can

In the top right corner of the Property Settings screen, you’ll see a blue button that says Move to Trash Can. Click it.

Step 5: Confirm the Deletion

A final confirmation screen will appear. It will remind you of the consequences of deleting the property, including the permanent deletion after 35 days. You will need to tick a checkbox acknowledging this. Read it carefully, then click the final Move to trash button to confirm.

That’s it! Your property has been moved to the trash and is scheduled for permanent deletion in 35 days. A confirmation banner will appear at the top of the screen letting you know it was successful.

Whoops, I Made a Mistake! How to Restore a Property

If you've just deleted a property and realized you made a mistake, don't worry - as long as it’s been less than 35 days, you can easily restore it.

1. Go back to the Admin section.
2. In the Account column, click on Trash Can.
3. You’ll see a list of all properties and views that have been deleted in the past 35 days. Find the property you want to restore and check the box next to it.
4. Click the blue Restore button. Your property and all its data will be reinstated immediately, good as new.

How to Delete Just a Data Stream (And Not the Whole Property)

Sometimes, you don't need to delete the entire property. You might just want to stop collecting data from a specific website or app but preserve the property's historical data. For instance, maybe you've moved your blog from a subdomain to a subfolder and want to stop tracking the old subdomain. In this case, you should delete the Data Stream, not the property.

Here’s how:

1. Navigate to the Admin section.
2. In the Property column, make sure the correct property is selected.
3. Click on Data Streams.
4. You'll see a list of the data streams associated with this property. Click on the one you want to remove.
5. In the top right corner, click the three vertical dots (kebab menu icon).
6. Select Delete stream from the dropdown menu and confirm your choice.

Important: Deleting a data stream prevents any new data from flowing into your property from that source. The data that was already collected will remain in your reports. This action cannot be undone, so if you remove a stream, you will need to create a new one to start tracking that source again.

Final Thoughts

Deleting a Google Analytics property is a simple task that can help you maintain a clean and organized account. However, since the action leads to permanent data loss, it's critical to be deliberate. Remember to back up important data and check for product integrations before you move a property to the trash.

Dealing with multiple GA properties, downloading CSVs, and manually building reports highlights a common headache - data is scattered and getting answers takes time. We built Graphed to solve this by connecting all your platforms, like Google Analytics and paid ad channels, into one place. From there, you can just ask plain English questions to instantly create dashboards and get real-time insights, automating the manual work so you can focus on strategy, not spreadsheets.