Log into Google Tag Manager this month and you may spot something new in the left-hand menu: a Settings section. Hover over the Google tag in your container overview and there’s a good chance you’ll see a prompt inviting you to optimise your container for faster, easier tagging.
It’s one of the more meaningful changes to Tag Manager in a while, and it touches the tracking your Google Ads and GA4 reporting depends on. Here’s what it does, what it means for you, and what to check before you click the button.
What’s actually changed
Until now, if you sent data to Google Analytics and Google Ads through Tag Manager, your container loaded a Google tag for each one, and that tag did the sending. Two products usually meant two Google tags, each with its own settings managed somewhere different.
The update removes that middle step. Tag Manager can now send data directly to Google destinations, such as a GA4 data stream or a Google Ads account, using what Google calls destination tags. In Google’s own announcement, it explains that the old approach loaded extra JavaScript to reach each destination, which could slow measurement down.
Three things come with it:
- Destination tags. Your Google tags become product-specific tags, labelled Google Analytics or Google Ads rather than “Google tag”.
- A Settings section. Container-wide settings, such as cross-domain measurement, live in one place in Tag Manager and apply to every Google destination you’ve upgraded.
- Linked accounts. The container can be linked to your GA4 property and Google Ads account, so it’s visible from inside those products.
Your event tags don’t change. A GA4 event tag or a Google Ads conversion tag carries on doing exactly what it did before.
Do you have to upgrade?
No. Google recommends it, but it’s optional and it won’t happen automatically. Your current setup keeps working.
That said, there’s little reason to put it off for long. The benefits are real: fewer scripts loading on the page, settings managed in one place rather than several, and a clearer picture of where your data goes. If you’re in a busy period or halfway through a site rebuild, leave it a few weeks. Otherwise, put it in the diary.
One thing to be aware of: seeing the Settings menu doesn’t mean your container has been upgraded. It can appear before you’ve migrated anything.
Three things to check before you start
The upgrade runs through a short wizard, and it’s straightforward. But three of the choices in it deserve more thought than the wizard gives them.
1. Who gets access. The upgrade links your container to the connected GA4 and Google Ads accounts. By default, it gives anyone with access to those accounts read access to the container. They can see your tags, triggers and variables, but can’t change anything.
For most businesses that’s fine. If you’re an agency, or several people and suppliers have access to your GA4 property, think about whether they should see the container too. You can set it to no access in the wizard. Bear in mind the links are created as soon as you add the changes to your workspace, not when you publish. You can adjust permissions afterwards in Tag Manager’s user management.
2. Which settings become the defaults. If your GA4 and Google Ads tags were set up differently, the wizard asks you to pick one tag’s settings as the defaults for the whole container. It doesn’t merge them. Use View settings to compare, then pick the one with the most complete setup. That’s usually GA4, if your cross-domain and internal traffic settings live there. There’s also an option not to import any settings, but then you’ll need to configure them yourself.
3. What’s installed outside Tag Manager. The upgrade only changes what’s inside the container. If a Google tag has also been hard-coded into your site by a developer, a plugin or a theme, it stays exactly where it is. That’s common on WordPress sites, and it can mean data being sent twice. Worth checking while you’re in there.
How to run the upgrade
- In Tag Manager, open your web container and go to the Overview.
- Find the container quality section, hover over a Google tag in the diagram and click Get started.
- Choose which Google tags to upgrade, and set the access level for each.
- Choose which tag’s settings to use as the container defaults.
- Click Show details to see which tags will change, which settings are being added and which permissions will be granted.
- Add the changes to your workspace.
Nothing goes live at this point. The changes sit in your workspace until you publish, which gives you time to test properly.
Test before you publish
This is the step not to skip. Open Preview mode, connect to your site and go through the actions that matter to your business: submit a form, tap a phone number, complete a booking.
In Tag Assistant, check that:
- the new GA4 and Google Ads destination tags fire on every page
- your conversion and event tags fire when they should, with the right values
- data is reaching the right GA4 property and Google Ads account
Once you’ve published, keep an eye on GA4’s real-time report and your Google Ads conversions over the following week. If conversions drop sharply, roll back to the previous container version and investigate. Tag Manager keeps every published version, so going back takes seconds.
What about the Conversion Linker tag?
For Google Ads destinations connected directly this way, Google indicates that the Conversion Linker’s job is covered by the destination tag and the new Settings, so a separate Conversion Linker tag shouldn’t be needed.
Don’t delete it straight away, though. Upgrade, test, and watch your Google Ads conversions for a couple of weeks. Once you’re confident nothing has changed, tidy it up.
What this means for your tracking
Day to day, not a lot changes, and that’s the point. Your conversions should keep recording as before, with a little less weight on the page.
The bigger win is clarity. One place for settings, one diagram showing where your data goes, and fewer duplicated tags that nobody remembers adding. Containers tend to pass through several hands over the years, and it’s rarely obvious which tag does what. This upgrade is a good excuse to clean that up.
It’s also worth knowing that it only affects Google products. Your Meta pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag and any other third-party tags carry on as they are.
The short version
- The upgrade is optional but worth doing, and Google won’t do it for you.
- Check the access and default settings before you add it to your workspace.
- Look for Google tags installed outside Tag Manager.
- Test in Preview mode before publishing, and watch conversions afterwards.
- Leave the Conversion Linker tag in place until you’ve confirmed everything works.
If you’d rather not touch a container that’s holding your Google Ads tracking together, we’re happy to take a look. Accurate tracking is the foundation of every Google Ads account we run, and a quick review now saves a lot of guesswork later.
