Not seeing the imported data appearing in your reports, as expected? This article can help you troubleshoot the problem.
There are several basic reasons why Data Import might not be working for you:
- Not reporting on the right view.
- Not using the correct dates.
- Upload file errors.
- Not joining the imported data properly (Data Set schema key issues).
- Not using the correct import mode.
In this article:
Check the basics
When troubleshooting any problem, it's good to start with the simplest solutions ("Is it plugged in?"). Here are a few basic things to check:
Data Import works at the view level. So, make sure you are looking at reports for the right account, property and view.
Data Import requires time to process the uploaded data and add it to your view. You might just need to wait a few hours for the imported data to appear.
Is there actually uploaded data for the requested time period? Make sure your import file contains the dates you expect (if you are uploading date-dependent data, such as Cost Data or Refund Data). For other import types, make sure you are reporting on dates after the upload (unless you are using query time mode).
Did you receive an error? Check the Manage Uploads table for the target Data Set (see below).
Upload file errors
If errors are found in an uploaded file, none of the data in the file will be processed, and the status of the file as shown in the Manage Uploads table for that Data Set will be "Failed."
- Sign in to Google Analytics.
- Click Admin, and navigate to the property to which you want to upload data.
- In the PROPERTY column, click Data Import. This displays the Data Sets table.
- Locate the Data Set you want to manage.
- Click the Manage Uploads link to the right of the Data Set. This displays the Manage Uploads page.
- If an upload has failed, click the view errors link to see the error messages.
- Consult the Data Import error message reference to learn more about the specific message(s) you've received.
There are two main causes of upload file errors:
- Improperly formatted headers
- Unexpected or improperly formatted contents
See Formatting upload files for more information.
File header errors
File header errors occur when the header row in your upload CSV file contains invalid field names, when the field names in the header don't correspond to the Data Set schema, or when the number of fields in the contents differs from the number of fields defined in the header.
File header requirements
Your CSV file header must match the Data Set to which you are uploading. There must be a column for each dimension and metric defined in the Data Set schema. The order in which the CSV file columns appear, however, is not important, as long as there is a column for each dimension/metric.
In addition, the header row must list each field by its internal name, not the dimension or metric names that you selected in the UI when you defined your schema.
File content errors
File content errors occur when the content of the file is incorrectly formatted, for example when there are insufficient cells in a given row (fewer columns than in the header), or when the data in a given cell is not formatted correctly.
Check the Data Set schema key
If you have successfully imported data to your Data Set (no upload errors reported) but you are not seeing that data in your reports, make sure that the Data Set's schema key is defined correctly. Remember, you must be using the internal dimension or metric names (e.g., ga:source instead of Source), and the scope of the key dimensions must be appropriate for the type of data you are importing.
Learn more about Data Set schemas.
Check your import mode
If you have successfully imported data to your Data Set (no upload errors reported) and you are sure your schema is defined properly, but you are not seeing that data in your reports for dates PRIOR to the date of the import, the issue might be that you are using processing time import—which only applies to hits collected AFTER the date of the import. You can double-check this by running a report for a date after the upload. If your imported data appears for this report, but not for earlier reports, then it is likely due to the fact that your Data Set is using processing time mode.
By comparison, query time import applies to historical data. However, this import mode is only avaialable for 360 accounts.
Learn more about query time import mode.
