How to filter your own IP address from Google Analytics 4

Filtering out your own IP address is essential for maintaining accurate data in Google Analytics 4. Internal traffic—such as visits from your team, developers, or even yourself—can skew user behaviour metrics, making it harder to analyse the real performance of your website. By setting up an internal traffic rule and applying a filter, you can keep your analytics clean and focused on actual users.

Below are the steps to define and filter out internal traffic. You can follow the instructions and add the relevant print screens in each placeholder provided.

To begin, go to your Google Analytics 4 account and open the correct property.

Click Admin in the lower left corner. Then, under the Property column, click Data streams, and choose the web data stream you want to configure.

Then, under the Property column, click Data streams, and choose the web data stream you want to configure.

Once inside the web stream details, locate the Configure tag settings option.

Scroll down and click Show more, then select Define internal traffic.

Click Create, then fill out the following:

Fill out the following:

• A unique name for the rule (e.g., "Office IP").
• The value for the traffic_type parameter (e.g., "internal").
• Your IP address or a range of addresses to be excluded. (see below to find your IP)

To find your IP address, click the What's my IP address button or simply Google “What’s my IP address.” Copy the number that appears—this is the IP you’ll enter.

Under Match type, select IP address equals unless you are using a dynamic IP (in which case you may need to choose a different match method).

Once all details are filled in, click Create to save the rule.

Now that the internal traffic rule is defined, create a filter to exclude that traffic from your reports.

Go back to Admin, click Data settings, then choose Data filters. Click Create filter, select Internal traffic, and fill in the following:

• A descriptive filter name (e.g., "Exclude internal").
• The same traffic_type value as earlier (e.g., "internal").
• Set the filter state to Active.

Click Create to finalise.

To make sure your internal traffic is being filtered correctly, test it using the Realtime report in Google Analytics 4.

So I’ve created this print screen before I made the filter—this is what you should not see if the filter is working correctly.

Here’s how to test it:

• In one browser window, open a page on your site that typically receives little or no traffic—such as a disclaimer page or a technical support page.
• In another window, open the Realtime view in Google Analytics.
• Refresh the low-traffic page you opened.

The page visit should not appear in Realtime. If it still shows up, your IP address might be different from the one you entered, or you may be on a dynamic IP range. In that case, you may need to update the rule or adjust the match type.

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Conclusion

Excluding your own visits from Google Analytics 4 is a simple but important step for keeping your data clean and reliable. By defining internal traffic and applying a proper filter, you ensure that all insights reflect real user behaviour—not internal testing or team activity. Once set up, this filter will continue to work in the background, helping you make better, more accurate decisions based on your analytics. If anything looks off, double-check your IP address or revisit the rule settings to keep things running smoothly.