What are UTM parameters?

UTM parameters are tags appended to a URL that tell analytics tools (like Google Analytics) where your traffic came from. The five standard parameters are utm_source (traffic origin), utm_medium (marketing channel), utm_campaign (campaign name), utm_term (paid keyword), and utm_content (differentiates ad variations).

Which UTM parameters are required?

For Google Analytics to track a campaign, only utm_source is technically required — but best practice is to always include utm_source, utm_medium, and utm_campaign together. The utm_term and utm_content parameters are optional and used for more granular tracking.

Do UTM parameters affect SEO?

UTM parameters do not directly affect search rankings. However, if UTM-tagged URLs get indexed by Google, they can create duplicate content issues. Use a canonical tag on the destination page pointing to the clean URL, or configure Google Analytics to strip UTM parameters from indexed URLs.

UTM Builder

Build UTM-tagged campaign URLs for accurate traffic attribution in Google Analytics and other analytics platforms. Fill in the fields below and copy the generated tracking link — no sign-up required.

UTM Builder

URL (destination page)

Source (e.g. google, newsletter, facebook)

utm_source

Medium (e.g. cpc, email, social)

utm_medium

Campaign (e.g. spring-sale-2025)

utm_campaign

Term (optional — paid keyword)

utm_term

Content (optional — differentiates ad variations)

utm_content

Reset

UTM Parameters Reference Guide

Parameter	Required?	Purpose	Example Value
`utm_source`	Yes	Where the traffic originates	google, newsletter, twitter
`utm_medium`	Yes	Marketing channel type	cpc, email, social, organic
`utm_campaign`	Yes	Specific campaign name or ID	spring-sale, product-launch
`utm_term`	Optional	Paid search keyword	running+shoes, seo+tool
`utm_content`	Optional	Differentiates ads or links	banner-top, text-link, version-a

UTM Parameter Best Practices

Use consistent naming conventions. Decide on a format (e.g., lowercase, hyphens) and stick to it across all campaigns. Mixed capitalization creates separate entries in analytics reports.
Be specific with campaign names. Use descriptive, date-aware names like email-welcome-series-jan2025 rather than just email.
Never use UTM on internal links. Adding UTM parameters to internal links resets the traffic source attribution in analytics, making it appear as if users came from an external source mid-session.
Tag every external marketing link. Social posts, email campaigns, display ads, and paid search should all have UTM parameters to separate them in your analytics data.
Store your UTM links in a tracking spreadsheet. Document every campaign URL so your team can reference and reuse consistent naming without creating duplicates.

Example UTM URL

Here is what a complete UTM-tagged URL looks like:

https://example.com/landing?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=spring-sale-2025&utm_content=header-cta

This tells analytics: a visitor arrived from the newsletter source, via the email channel, as part of the spring-sale-2025 campaign, by clicking the header-cta link.

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Frequently Asked Questions

UTM parameters are URL tags that tell analytics tools where traffic originated. The five parameters — source, medium, campaign, term, and content — let you break down traffic by channel, campaign, and creative in reports.

UTM parameters don't directly affect rankings, but if Google indexes UTM-tagged URLs it can create duplicate content. Use canonical tags on destination pages pointing to the clean URL to prevent this.