How to Find Unique Page Views in Google Analytics

Trying to figure out how many different people have viewed a specific page on your website should be simple, but Google Analytics 4 can make it feel surprisingly tricky. Unlike its predecessor, GA4 doesn't have a single metric called "Unique Page Views." This article will show you exactly where to find the equivalent data, what it means, and how to build a simple custom report to get the exact view you need.

Understanding the Key Metrics: Pageviews vs. Unique Views

Before we jump into GA4, it's important to clarify the difference between standard pageviews and the "unique" views you're looking for. These metrics tell you very different stories about your visitor behavior.

What are Pageviews?

A "pageview" is the most straightforward traffic metric. It's counted every single time a page is loaded or reloaded by a browser. If one person visits your homepage, clicks to a blog post, then hits the refresh button twice on that post, that sequence would generate three pageviews for the blog post and one for the homepage.

Pageviews are a good measure of total activity and engagement, but they don't tell you anything about the size of your audience for that page.

What are Unique Page Views (and their GA4 equivalent)?

In the days of Universal Analytics, "Unique Page Views" was a beloved metric. It counted the number of sessions during which a page was viewed at least once. Using the example above, the blog post would have just one unique page view for that session, even though it was loaded three times.

In Google Analytics 4, the language has changed. There is no longer a metric named "Unique Page Views." Instead, GA4 focuses on users and sessions. The closest equivalents that give you the insight you’re looking for are:

• Users: This tells you the number of distinct people who have viewed a page. This is great for understanding your total audience size or reach for a piece of content.
• Sessions: This tells you the number of unique visits during which a page was viewed. This is nearly a direct replacement for the old "Unique Page Views" metric.

Looking at these metrics provides a much clearer picture of your content's reach. A page with 10,000 views and 9,000 users has a much wider audience than a page with 10,000 views and only 1,000 users. The latter suggests a smaller group is returning to that page frequently.

Finding 'Unique Page Views' in Google Analytics 4

If you’ve been hunting around GA4 menus for a simple "Unique Page Views" column, you’ve probably come up empty. Don't worry, the data is there - you just need to know where to look. Here are two methods, one for a quick overview and another for a more powerful, customized view.

Method 1: Using the Standard Reports for a Quick Look

For a fast, easy way to see how many unique users have viewed your pages, the built-in "Pages and screens" report is your best starting point. It doesn't require any custom setup.

Here's how to get there:

1. On the left-hand navigation pane, click on Reports.
2. Under the Life cycle section, open the Engagement dropdown.
3. Select Pages and screens.

By default, this report will show you a table of your most popular pages. The key columns to look at are:

• Views: This is the total number of pageviews for each page.
• Users: This is it! This column tells you the number of unique active users who viewed each page. This is the simplest and fastest way to measure the unique reach of your content.

You can use the dropdown menu at the top of the table to sort by "Users" to quickly see which pages are reaching the most unique visitors. While this report is great for a high-level overview, it might not offer the flexibility you need for deeper analysis, which is where creating a custom report comes in handy.

Method 2: Building a Custom Report in 'Explore' for Precise Data

The "Explore" section of GA4 is where you can build completely custom reports to slice your data exactly how you want. This is the best way to recreate the classic "Pageviews vs. Unique Page Views" report and get a better understanding of user behavior.

Follow these steps to build your custom report:

1. Create a New Exploration

In the left sidebar, click on Explore and then choose Blank + to start a new, untitled exploration report.

2. Import Your Dimensions

Dimensions are the attributes of your data - the "what." In the "Variables" column on the left, click the + icon next to Dimensions.

• Search for Page path and screen class. This shows you the URL of the page after your domain (e.g., /blog/my-latest-post).
• Select it, and click the blue Import button.

3. Import Your Metrics

Metrics are the quantifiable numbers. In the same "Variables" column, click the + icon next to Metrics.

• Search for and select the following metrics:
• Click the Import button.

4. Build the Report Canvas

Now, you'll drag your imported variables over to the "Tab Settings" column to populate the report on the right.

• Drag Page path and screen class from 'Dimensions' over to the Rows section.
• Drag Views, Sessions, and Total users from 'Metrics' over to the Values section.

Your report will instantly appear on the right, neatly organized with columns for each metric you selected. Now you have a powerful, custom view of your page performance!

5. Interpret Your Custom Report

Here’s how to make sense of what you just built:

• Page path: The specific page on your site.
• Views: The total raw pageviews.
• Sessions: This tells you the number of unique sessions a page was viewed in. This number will always be less than or equal to 'Views'. If this number is much lower than Views, it means a small number of users visited the page many times.
• Total users: This tells you the specific count of unique individuals who saw the page. This number will always be less than or equal to 'Sessions'.

For example, if you see a blog post with 1,000 Views, 800 Sessions, and 750 Users, you can conclude that 750 distinct people viewed the page across 800 separate visits, racking up 1,000 total views. Some users clearly came back for a second read in a new session!

Practical Tips for Analyzing Unique Page Views

Once you have your report, you can start gathering valuable insights on the performance of your website content.

Filter Your Report for Specific Content

Your "Page path" list might be cluttered with pages you don't care about. You can use filters in your Explore report to focus on certain areas. In the "Tab Settings" column, drag Page path and screen class into the Filters box. Then, configure it to only show pages that contain "/blog/" or "/products/", for instance. This helps you compare apples to apples.

Compare Your Most Engaging Pages

Sorting your custom report gives you a quick way to rank your content's performance. Ask yourself these questions:

• Sort by Users: Which articles or pages have the widest reach? These are your content pillars and top entry points.
• Sort by Sessions: Which pages attract the most unique visits? This can highlight content that effectively drives traffic from search engines or social media.
• Compare Views to Sessions: Search for pages where Views are much higher than Sessions. This could be a help document users return to, or a core landing page people reference often in their purchase journey.

Use This Data to Guide Your Strategy

This analysis isn’t just an academic exercise. Use your findings to make smarter decisions.

• Which content should we create more of? Your pages with the highest number of unique users are clearly resonating with a broad audience. Analyze their topics and formats to replicate their success.
• Which pages should we promote more heavily? If a page with high engagement has a low number of unique users, it means a loyal few love it, but many others haven't discovered it yet. It could be a perfect candidate for an email campaign or social promotion.
• Are our campaigns working? When you launch a campaign driving traffic to a new landing page, this report tells you precisely how many unique people you reached.

Final Thoughts

While Google Analytics 4 may have done away with the "Unique Page Views" metric by name, a deeper understanding of your content’s reach is still readily available. By using the standard reports to look at unique "Users" or building a simple custom report in the Explore section, you can analyze your content with the same clarity as before, helping you pinpoint what's truly capturing your audience's attention.

Building these reports every time you need an answer can start to feel repetitive, and digging through menus for the right dimensions and metrics takes time you could be using for analysis. We designed Graphed to remove this friction by letting you analyze your data using natural language. Once you connect your Google Analytics account, you can skip the report building and just ask, "Show me a chart of my top 10 pages by total users last month," and get a real-time visualization in seconds.