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Does GA4 count your revenue with or without VAT? Google's rule, and a check for your own property

Google's rule for the GA4 purchase event is that value is the sum of the items' price times quantity, and "Don't include shipping or tax"; tax and shipping are their own parameters beside it. GA4 reports whatever your shop's integration sends as value, so whether your revenue holds VAT depends on that integration, and the eight steps below tell you in one exploration.

Last checked 5 November 2026. The PDF has the eight steps with where to click and what each result means, Google's example event, and a table for ten orders.

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Google’s rule for the purchase event

For value: “The monetary value of the event.” and “Set value to the sum of (price * quantity) for all items in items. Don't include shipping or tax.” Beside it, tax is “Tax cost associated with a transaction.” and shipping is “Shipping cost associated with a transaction.” “If you set value then currency is required for revenue metrics to be computed accurately.”

Google’s own example sends value: 72.05, tax: 3.60, shipping: 5.99 and currency: "USD" for one order: the items in value, the tax and shipping next to it, never inside it.

That is the rule for whoever writes the integration. GA4 itself adds up what it is sent: Purchase revenue is “The sum of revenue from purchases made on your website or app, minus any refunds given. Purchase revenue = purchases + in-app purchases + subscriptions - refund” So if your shop app or tag sends the VAT-inclusive total as value, your GA4 revenue holds VAT, and nothing in GA4 says so.

Sources, read 5 November 2026: Google for Developers: Recommended events, purchase (gtag.js); Google, Analytics Help: GA4 dimensions and metrics (9143382)

The four GA4 metrics the check reads

Purchase revenue
“The sum of revenue from purchases made on your website or app, minus any refunds given. Purchase revenue = purchases + in-app purchases + subscriptions - refund”
Tax amount
“The tax amount associated with a transaction. Populate this event-level dimension by sending the event-level tax parameter in the purchase event.”
Shipping amount
“The shipping amount associated with a transaction. Populate this dimension by sending the event-level shipping parameter in the purchase event.”
Item revenue
“The total revenue from items only, excluding tax and shipping, subtracted by refunds. Item revenue = price x quantity - refunds”

Source: Google, Analytics Help: GA4 dimensions and metrics (9143382)

The check, in 8 steps

  1. 1

    Pick one order from the last few weeks and write down five numbers from your shop: the order number, the items' total excl. VAT, the VAT, the shipping charged, and the total the customer paid.

  2. 2

    In GA4, find the same order by its transaction ID and read Purchase revenue, Tax amount and Shipping amount for it.

    Google for Developers: Recommended events, purchase (gtag.js); Google, Analytics Help: Data retention (7667196)

  3. 3

    Compare GA4's Purchase revenue with the shop's numbers. Equal to the items excl. VAT: Google's definition. Equal to the items incl. VAT: VAT is inside your revenue. Equal to the total paid: VAT and shipping are both inside.

    Google for Developers: Recommended events, purchase (gtag.js)

  4. 4

    Read Tax amount and Shipping amount. If both are empty or zero while the shop charged VAT and shipping, the integration sends neither parameter.

    Google for Developers: Recommended events, purchase (gtag.js); Google, Analytics Help: GA4 dimensions and metrics (9143382)

  5. 5

    Repeat for ten orders, including one with a discount code, one with free shipping and one that was partly refunded.

    Google, Analytics Help: GA4 dimensions and metrics (9143382)

  6. 6

    Write the definition down with the date: "GA4 purchase revenue = items excl. VAT", or "= items incl. VAT", or "= total paid incl. VAT and shipping". If VAT is inside, note the factor to take it out: revenue incl. VAT ÷ (1 + rate).

    Belastingdienst (Netherlands): VAT tariffs

  7. 7

    Before you compare a ROAS from GA4 with one from an ad platform, check the platforms' conversion value the same way: one order, its value in Meta Events Manager or the Google Ads conversion, against the shop's lines.

  8. 8

    If value includes VAT or shipping, ask your developer or the app's support to send value as the items excl. tax, and to send tax and shipping as their own parameters.

    Google for Developers: Recommended events, purchase (gtag.js)

The VAT rate, from the tax authority

Netherlands, 21%. “The 21% tariff is also called the high or general tariff. Is there no reason for an exemption, the reverse-charge mechanism, the 0% tariff or the 9% tariff? Then you must charge 21% VAT.”

Source: Belastingdienst (Netherlands): VAT tariffs

Belgium’s and France’s tax-authority pages could not be read on 5 November 2026, so their rates are not quoted here; use the rate on your own invoices.

What merchants wrote

  • “Also Triple Whale just casually leaves includes VAT in your revenue (revenue should never be including VAT).”

    Shopify merchant. AppNavigator (mirror of Shopify App Store reviews, Triple Whale), rating 1/5, 6 Jul 2026. Source

  • “it doesn't track VAT collection which is useless for EU businesses.”

    Shopify merchant, Portugal. Shopify App Store (TrueProfit), rating 1/5, 4 Jul 2026. Source

What the check can't tell you

Knowing what is inside your revenue tells you nothing about which channel caused it. The free first finding on /start reads your own GA4 Attribution paths export in your browser and shows what last click gave each channel; the read shows what each channel caused, on the revenue definition you just checked.

€99 excl. VAT, once, with a full refund within 30 days, and you keep the read. See the first finding free