What UTM Parameters Are
UTM parameters are short tags you add to the end of a link so your analytics and tracking tools know exactly where a click came from. When someone clicks the link, the tags travel with them to your site:
https://yoursite.com/offer?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=paid_social&utm_campaign=spring_launch&utm_content=video_aWithout UTMs, a visit from your Facebook ad, your newsletter and a YouTube description might all look like generic "social" or "direct" traffic. With them, every click is labeled.
The Five Standard UTM Parameters
| Parameter | Answers | Example | Required? |
|---|---|---|---|
utm_source | Who sent the traffic? | facebook, google, newsletter, vendor_name | Yes |
utm_medium | What type of traffic? | paid_social, cpc, email, solo_ad | Yes |
utm_campaign | Which campaign? | spring_launch, webinar_oct | Yes |
utm_term | Which keyword or ad set? | click_tracking_software, lookalike_1pct | Optional |
utm_content | Which ad or link variation? | video_a, banner_blue, header_link | Optional |
Google Analytics 4 also recognizes a few newer parameters, including utm_id (a campaign ID), utm_source_platform, utm_creative_format and utm_marketing_tactic. Most advertisers don't need them, but utm_id is handy if you import cost data.
A Naming Convention That Scales
The most common UTM problem isn't missing tags; it's inconsistent ones. "Facebook", "facebook" and "fb" become three separate sources in your reports. Set rules once and write them down:
- All lowercase, always.
- Underscores instead of spaces (spaces turn into
%20). - A fixed list of sources and mediums. Decide once that Meta is
facebookand paid social ispaid_social. - Campaign names that sort well, such as
2026_10_webinar. - No personal data (no emails or names) in UTMs.
| Channel | utm_source | utm_medium |
|---|---|---|
| Meta ads | paid_social | |
| Google Search ads | cpc | |
| YouTube ads | youtube | paid_video |
| TikTok ads | tiktok | paid_social |
| Your newsletter | newsletter | |
| Solo ad | vendor_name | solo_ad |
| YouTube description (organic) | youtube | organic_video |
Template: Facebook and Instagram Ads
Meta supports dynamic URL parameters that fill in automatically for each ad. Add this to the URL parameters field of your ad:
utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=paid_social&utm_campaign={{campaign.name}}&utm_term={{adset.name}}&utm_content={{ad.name}}Meta also offers {{campaign.id}}, {{adset.id}}, {{ad.id}}, {{placement}} and {{site_source_name}}. IDs are more reliable than names if you rename ads later. Consider passing IDs in a separate parameter your tracker reads.
Template: Google Ads
Google Ads auto-tagging adds a gclid to every click for Google Analytics. To make campaign details readable by other tools too, add a final URL suffix (at account, campaign or ad group level) using ValueTrack parameters:
utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign={campaignid}&utm_term={keyword}&utm_content={creative}Note Google uses single braces, Meta double braces. Mixing them up is a common mistake.
Template: Email and Solo Ads
?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2026_10_webinar&utm_content=main_buttonFor solo ads, put the vendor's name in utm_source and send the vendor a tracking link rather than a raw URL, so you can also filter bot clicks. See our solo ads tracking guide.
Common UTM Mistakes
| Mistake | What happens | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| UTMs on internal links | Overwrites the visitor's real source; inflates sessions | Only tag links that point to your site from elsewhere |
| Inconsistent capitalization | One channel split into several rows | Lowercase everything |
| Redirects that drop parameters | UTMs vanish before the page loads | Test the final URL after every redirect |
| Wrong brace style | Literal text like {{campaign.name}} in reports | Double braces on Meta, single on Google |
| No documented rules | Every team member invents their own names | Keep a shared naming sheet |
From UTMs to Sales
UTMs tell you where visits come from. To see which sources make money, you need a tool that connects the tagged click to the sale, including sales that happen days later, on another device or on a checkout on another domain. GA4 does this partially. Independent trackers like ClickMagick read your UTMs and attribute leads and revenue to every source, campaign and ad, with a UTM Performance report built in.
Next, read our marketing attribution guide or set up tracking with our ClickMagick tutorial. More guides are on the Click Tracking Guide homepage.