Is Site Kit a simple solution to integrate Google services?

Imagine setting up and managing essential Google services for your WordPress website with just a few clicks—no coding, no complicated settings. That’s the promise of the Google Site Kit plugin, now installed on over 4 million websites. But does it truly deliver? And is it the ultimate solution for optimizing and monetizing your site?

Let’s explore Site Kit’s capabilities, see where it shines, and uncover its limitations.

What is the Google Site Kit plugin capable of doing?

Google Site Kit isn’t Google’s first official WordPress plugin. Years ago, the Google Publisher plugin offered an AdSense integration with more control over ad placement. However, the software has since been deprecated. Site Kit takes a different approach, bridging your WordPress website and key Google services like Analytics, Search Console, AdSense, and PageSpeed Insights.

Google Site Kit audience view
Google Sit Kit provides you with basic metrics about your website’s performance

With Site Kit, you can:

  • View essential metrics directly in your WordPress dashboard.
  • Set up multiple Google tools without modifying code.
  • Access performance data for your entire site or individual posts.
  • Manage permissions for different Google products effortlessly.

Google Services with Site Kit

Google Analytics integration

Site Kit makes adding Google Analytics to your WordPress site incredibly easy. After a quick setup, the tracking code is implemented correctly.

You’ll find a dashboard that displays key metrics, such as top-performing content over a chosen period, including pageviews, sessions, engagement rate, and session duration. At the bottom of the Site Kit dashboard, you can also find a list of your top 10 pages.

Google Site Kit Top content
Google Site Kit shows you a table with your top pages

While these summaries are helpful for a quick overview, I recommend using the actual and much more detailed Google Analytics reports for in-depth analysis.

Google Search Console integration

Site Kit smoothly connects your site to Google Search Console. Once set up, the dashboard provides detailed insights into your search performance, including graphs and tables showing search traffic over time and the top 10 search queries that drive clicks and impressions to your site.

Google Sit Kit data from Google Analytics
Google Site Kit provides you with basic statistics from Google Analytics
Google Search Console top queries
See the top queries from the Google search in your dashboard

These insights help you identify trends, successful keywords, and areas for improvement, enabling you to refine your content strategy effectively.

Page Speed Insights integration

Site Kit integrates with PageSpeed Insights to deliver detailed performance reports directly to your dashboard. You’ll get metrics on loading speed and user experience, including Core Web Vitals like Largest Contentful Paint, Cumulative Layout Shift, and Total Blocking Time.

Google Site Kit Page Speed Insights
Integrate Page Speed Insights via Google Site Kit to quickly monitor the user experience on your website

With just one click, you can refresh these metrics and receive actionable recommendations to improve your site’s speed and usability, which also benefits your search engine rankings.

Google Ads integration

Site Kit connects to Google Ads, allowing you to set up conversion tracking directly within WordPress. This feature enables you to monitor the performance of your paid search campaigns, viewing metrics like clicks, impressions, and conversions in your dashboard.

To enable this functionality, enter your Google Ads Tag ID (starting with “AW-”) in Site Kit. Note that the plugin requires a configured Google Analytics account for full integration.

Integration of Google Site Kit and Google Ads
Enter your Google Ads conversion tracking ID to see the performance of your ad campaigns

Google Tag Manager integration

With Site Kit, you can easily integrate Google Tag Manager without manually editing code. After authorizing the plugin, you can select an existing container or create a new one. Site Kit automatically adds the necessary snippets to your site, simplifying implementation and reducing errors.

This feature is ideal for users who want to manage marketing tags efficiently without delving into technical complexities.

Google AdSense integration

Site Kit supports integration with Google AdSense—but it is limited exclusively to Auto ads. The constraints of other Google services integrated through Site Kit primarily affect the scope of reporting (e.g., showing only the top 10 queries or traffic metrics). With the Google AdSense integration, the restriction on Auto ads is more profound—it impacts the very implementation of ads.

When using Site Kit, you cannot manually place or customize ad units from your AdSense account. Thus, you cannot control where and how ads appear on your website. This significant drawback makes it difficult to tailor your monetization strategy to your site’s unique needs.

Google AdSense settings in Site Kit
The Site Kit settings for the AdSense integration are very limited

Once you’ve connected your AdSense account, the dashboard provides performance graphs and aggregated data, including earnings, impressions, page RPM, and CTR. Besides this data, Site Kit also pulls a list of your five top-earnings pages.

Google Site Kit AdSense earnings
After connecting Site Kit with your AdSense account, you will see your AdSense earnings in the dashboard
Google AdSense top earning pages
See the five best earning pages

Is Site Kit a complete solution for embedding ads?

This is where Site Kit has limitations. While it simplifies AdSense Auto ads integration, it lacks the flexibility for improved ad strategies. If you’re looking for quick results, it works well. However, it falls short of a truly optimized ad setup.

Dedicated ad management plugins like Advanced Ads offer far more control, including:

  • Precise ad placement: Decide where exactly ads appear, such as in the header, within posts, or in the sidebar.
  • Advanced targeting: Display ads to specific users or groups based on location, device, or behavior.
  • A/B testing and ad rotation: Experiment with formats and placements to maximize results.
  • Support for multiple ad networks: Besides AdSense, you can integrate ads from any ad network, such as AWIN, Amazon and other affiliate ads, Booking.com, GetYourGuide, Mediavine, or custom banners.

Site Kit is limited to AdSense Auto ads, leaving little room for customization. Advanced Ads, on the other hand, lets you define detailed rules to control who sees which ads and when—making it indispensable for committed and strategic monetization.

Conclusion

Google Site Kit is a powerful tool for integrating Google services into WordPress. Its strengths lie in the seamless setup of Analytics, Search Console, and PageSpeed Insights and its user-friendly dashboard.

However, it offers only basic functionality for monetizing ads. If you need precise control over ad placement or plan to monetize beyond Auto ads, consider adding a specialized ad plugin like Advanced Ads to your toolkit.

In summary, Site Kit is an excellent starting point for WordPress users who want to optimize their sites and take the first steps toward monetization. However, additional tools are essential for more advanced strategies.

Author image Joachim

Joachim started marketing his first local news website in 2009. Shortly after, he successfully monetized his travel blogs about Morocco. He is an expert in affiliate marketing in the tourism and travel industry. When he's not writing tutorials for Advanced Ads or supporting other users, he prefers staying in Marrakech or at the Baltic Sea.

With over a decade of industry expertise, Advanced Ads is your surefooted ally in the ad tech realm. Their array of WordPress ad manager plugins enhances your advertising strategy, ensuring effective ad placements. Rely on their ad tech proficiency to stay ahead in the dynamic world of digital advertising. Contact info

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