---
title: "What is Default channel group in GA4? | Kodalogic"
description: "The default channel group is the set of rules Google Analytics 4 uses to sort traffic into channels such as Organic Search, Paid Search, Direct, Referral."
url: https://kodalogic.com/glossary/default-channel-group
---

[Glossary](/glossary)/Default channel group

Google Analytics 4 · Dimension

# What is Default channel group?

The default channel group is the set of rules [Google Analytics 4](/glossary/ga4) uses to sort traffic into channels such as Organic Search, Paid Search, Direct, Referral, Organic Social, Email and Cross-network, based on the source, medium and campaign of each session.

Sessions · 100%Organic Search58%

* Organic Search58%
* Direct21%
* Paid Search11%
* Referral6%
* Email4%

Every session sorted into a channel by its source and medium.

Data source

Google Analytics 4

Type

Dimension

API field

[sessionDefaultChannelGroup](/reference/ga4-fields)

## Why it matters

It is the first split of any traffic report and the one stakeholders understand: not "google / cpc" but "Paid Search". The rules are Google's and cannot be edited, which is what makes channel reports comparable across sites.

## How to read it

The channel you see depends on tagging. Untagged email lands in Direct, a social post with utm\_medium=social becomes Organic Social, and an unrecognised medium goes to Unassigned. A large Unassigned or Direct slice is almost always a tagging problem, not a marketing insight.

## In a Data Studio report

In a Data Studio (formerly [Looker Studio](/glossary/looker-studio)) report the channels page is a donut of users and [key events](/glossary/key-events) by channel, an organic-versus-paid line over time, and a table with [sessions](/glossary/sessions), [bounce rate](/glossary/bounce-rate) and key events per channel. It is usually the page a client opens first.

## Where to find it in Google Analytics 4

Google Analytics 4: Reports, then Acquisition, then Traffic acquisition (dimension Session default channel group); the rules under Admin, then Channel groups.

Shown in these dashboards

* [![Google Analytics 4 Dashboard for Data Studio dashboard](https://kodalogic.com/cdn/templates_images/0222_0WG5IECFKCHKAUTGY4O1AIO8L0YIM9D5_0000.webp)](/template/google-analytics-4-template-for-looker-studio)  
[Google Analytics 4 Dashboard for Data Studio](/template/google-analytics-4-template-for-looker-studio)$129
* [![Web & SEO Dashboard for Data Studio — GA4 + Search Console dashboard](https://kodalogic.com/cdn/templates_images/0234_OWGD0CDWC95GHLYIXC8I0K97PT5ZRQVE_0000.webp)](/template/web--seo-performance-dashboard)  
[Web & SEO Dashboard for Data Studio — GA4 + Search Console](/template/web--seo-performance-dashboard)$214
* [![GA4 + Google Ads Dashboard for Data Studio dashboard](https://kodalogic.com/cdn/templates_images/0531_BAM0ZAK8YRLTQ9O5W39RPBLKDSW1GBON_0000.png)](/template/ga4--google-ads-dashboard)  
[GA4 + Google Ads Dashboard for Data Studio](/template/ga4--google-ads-dashboard)$214
* [![All-in-One Marketing Dashboard for Data Studio dashboard](https://kodalogic.com/cdn/templates_images/0235_VE78OLDV9VA3KZRHCCPIEFB0MQ7ZW8Y7_0000.webp)](/template/all-in-one-dashboard-looker-studio-web-seo-ads)  
[All-in-One Marketing Dashboard for Data Studio](/template/all-in-one-dashboard-looker-studio-web-seo-ads)$289
[See the dashboards](/templates)

![Default channel group on the Channels page of the Google Analytics 4 Dashboard for Data Studio](/informes/2026-09-02/google-analytics-4-template-for-looker-studio/09.webp)

Page 9, Channels, of the [Google Analytics 4 Dashboard for Data Studio](/template/google-analytics-4-template-for-looker-studio).[Open the live demo](https://lookerstudio.google.com/embed/reporting/fb97e8f9-0817-4b2b-9b0d-16cb50407e13/page/p%5Ffo1dxij6ld) to see it with real data.

## See it in a report

[Google Analytics 4 dashboard](/template/google-analytics-4-template-for-looker-studio)[Marketing report template](/report-templates/marketing-report)

## Related terms

* [Looker Studio](/glossary/looker-studio)
* [GA4](/glossary/ga4)
* [Sessions](/glossary/sessions)
* [Bounce rate](/glossary/bounce-rate)
* [Key events](/glossary/key-events)
* [Referral traffic](/glossary/referral-traffic)

[← Landing page](/glossary/landing-page)[All 49 terms](/glossary)[Source / medium →](/glossary/source-medium)