Pinterest Automatically Adds epik But Your GA4 Reports Are Still Broken

You're promoting pins on Pinterest. The clicks are happening. The epik parameter is showing up in your URLs. But GA4 reports show everything as "pinterest.com / referral" with no campaign information.

You can't tell which pins drive sales. You can't measure Pinterest's actual ROI. Your marketing director is asking for Pinterest performance data you don't have.

The epik Disconnect

Pinterest automatically adds epik (Enhanced Partner Integration Key) to every promoted pin click:

yoursite.com/product?epik=dj0yJnU9abc123xyz

This parameter powers Pinterest's tracking:

• Conversion attribution in Pinterest Ads Manager
• Pinterest Tag event optimization
• Campaign performance measurement
• Shopping catalog product tracking
• Audience building for retargeting

But GA4 ignores the epik parameter completely.

Pinterest's tracking identifier is invisible to Google Analytics. GA4 can't use it for traffic classification or campaign attribution.

Why Your Promoted Pins Show as Referral

When someone clicks your Pinterest ad, GA4's classification logic:

1. Sees referrer: pinterest.com
2. Looks for UTM parameters: Not found
3. Sees unfamiliar parameter: epik
4. Decision: Classify as referral traffic

The result:

Your paid Pinterest campaign gets mixed with:

• Organic pin saves and repins
• Unpromoted board traffic
• Random Pinterest mentions
• Idea Pin shares
• Profile link clicks

All showing as generic "pinterest.com / referral" in GA4.

What You're Missing

Without proper tracking:

• Can't measure campaign ROI
• Can't compare pin performance
• Can't track product catalog sales
• Can't optimize ad spend
• Can't prove Pinterest value

What GA4 shows:

Traffic Acquisition Report:
Source/Medium: pinterest.com / referral
Campaign: (not set)
Ad Content: (not set)
Revenue: $5,234 (but from what campaigns?)

You know Pinterest drives revenue, but have no idea which campaigns work.

The Fix: Add UTM Parameters

Pinterest's epik and UTM parameters don't conflict. You need both:

• epik → Pinterest Ads Manager conversion tracking
• UTM parameters → GA4 campaign attribution

Step-by-Step Fix

In Pinterest Ads Manager:

1. Navigate to Ads → Campaigns
2. Select campaign to edit
3. Click campaign name → Settings
4. Find Destination URL field
5. Add UTM parameters to destination URL

Recommended UTM structure:

?utm_source=pinterest
&utm_medium=paid-social
&utm_campaign=holiday_shopping
&utm_content=product_pin_1

For Shopping Campaigns:

?utm_source=pinterest
&utm_medium=shopping
&utm_campaign=catalog_summer
&utm_content={product_id}

6. Save campaign

What happens when user clicks:

Pinterest adds epik automatically:

yoursite.com/product?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=paid-social&utm_campaign=holiday_shopping&epik=dj0yJnU9abc123

Result:

• Pinterest reads epik for its conversion tracking
• GA4 reads the UTMs for campaign attribution
• Both platforms work correctly with complete data

What Changes in GA4

Before (epik only):

• Source/Medium: pinterest.com / referral
• Channel: Referral
• Campaign: (not set)
• Content: (not set)
• No campaign-level insights

After (epik + UTMs):

• Source/Medium: pinterest / paid-social
• Channel: Paid Social
• Campaign: holiday_shopping
• Content: product_pin_1
• Full attribution and revenue tracking

You can finally see:

• Which Pinterest campaigns drive revenue
• Which pin types convert best (static, carousel, video)
• Which products get most sales from Pinterest
• Actual ROI per campaign

Advanced: Install Pinterest Tag

Pinterest Tag tracks conversions for Pinterest Ads Manager (uses epik, separate from GA4).

Base code (add to all pages):

<!-- Pinterest Tag Base Code -->
<script>
!function(e){if(!window.pintrk){window.pintrk = function () {
window.pintrk.queue.push(Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments))};var
  n=window.pintrk;n.queue=[],n.version="3.0";var
  t=document.createElement("script");t.async=!0,t.src=e;var
  r=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];
  r.parentNode.insertBefore(t,r)}}("https://s.pinimg.com/ct/core.js");
pintrk('load', 'YOUR_TAG_ID');
pintrk('page');
</script>
<noscript>
  <img height="1" width="1" style="display:none;" alt=""
    src="https://ct.pinterest.com/v3/?tid=YOUR_TAG_ID&event=pagevisit&noscript=1" />
</noscript>

Conversion events (add to confirmation/thank-you pages):

// Purchase event
pintrk('track', 'checkout', {
  value: 99.99,
  currency: 'USD',
  order_quantity: 1,
  order_id: 'ORDER-12345',
  line_items: [{
    product_name: 'Product Name',
    product_id: 'PROD-123',
    product_price: 99.99,
    product_quantity: 1
  }]
});
 
// Add to cart
pintrk('track', 'addtocart', {
  value: 49.99,
  currency: 'USD',
  product_name: 'Product Name',
  product_id: 'PROD-123'
});
 
// Signup
pintrk('track', 'signup', {
  lead_type: 'Newsletter'
});
 
// Search
pintrk('track', 'search', {
  search_query: 'summer dresses'
});

Troubleshooting

Issue 1: UTMs Not Appearing in GA4

Problem: Added UTMs to Pinterest Ads but GA4 still shows "pinterest.com / referral".

Fix:

1. Check for URL redirects stripping parameters
2. Ensure redirects preserve query parameters:

   JavascriptCopy

   // ❌ Wrong (loses UTMs)
   window.location = '/new-page';
    
   // ✅ Correct (preserves UTMs)
   window.location = '/new-page' + window.location.search;

3. Verify UTMs in browser address bar after clicking promoted pin
4. Test with GA4 Real-time report

Issue 2: Pinterest Conversions Stopped

Problem: After adding UTMs, Pinterest Ads Manager shows zero conversions.

Cause: Pinterest Tag not installed or misconfigured.

Fix:

1. Verify Pinterest Tag installed on all pages
2. Add conversion events to confirmation pages
3. Test with Pinterest Tag Helper Chrome extension
4. Check Events Manager in Pinterest Ads Manager

Issue 3: Shopping Catalog Products Not Tracking

Problem: Individual product performance not showing in GA4.

Cause: Missing product-level UTM parameters.

Fix: Add product ID to utm_content:

?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=shopping&utm_campaign=catalog_fall&utm_content={product_id}

Issue 4: Organic vs Paid Pinterest Mixed

Problem: Can't differentiate organic Pinterest traffic from paid ads.

Cause: Both show as pinterest.com referral without UTMs.

Fix:

• Paid: Add UTMs as shown above
• Organic: Use different UTMs for organic shares:

  CodeCopy

  ?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic
  

FAQ

Does this affect Pinterest Tag?

No. Pinterest Tag operates independently using epik for conversion tracking. UTMs are only for GA4 attribution. Both work simultaneously without conflicts.

Will this work for Shopping Ads?

Yes. All promoted pins (standard ads, shopping ads, carousel ads, video ads) need UTM parameters for proper GA4 tracking. Add UTMs to destination URLs in Pinterest Ads Manager.

Do organic pins need UTMs?

Only if you want to track them separately in GA4. For organic pins you manually share with links, add UTMs like:

utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic_content

This helps differentiate organic from paid in GA4.

Can I track which pin format performs best?

Yes, use utm_content to identify pin types:

utm_content=static_pin
utm_content=carousel_pin
utm_content=video_pin
utm_content=idea_pin

Then filter GA4 reports by utm_content.

What utm_medium should I use?

Recommended options:

• paid-social (best - GA4 classifies as "Paid Social")
• shopping (for Shopping Campaigns - classified as "Paid Shopping")
• cpc (also works - classified as "Paid Search")

Why don't Pinterest and GA4 numbers match?

Expect 5-15% variance due to:

• Ad blockers (block GA4, not Pinterest Tag)
• iOS 14+ privacy restrictions
• Attribution windows (Pinterest: 30-day click/1-day view, GA4: last-click)
• View-through conversions (Pinterest tracks these, GA4 doesn't)

How long until UTMs appear in GA4?

Immediate in Real-time reports. Standard reports update within 24-48 hours.

Can I use Pinterest's dynamic parameters?

Pinterest doesn't support dynamic UTM parameters like {campaign_name}. You must manually set UTMs for each campaign.

What about Pinterest Collections?

Collections (multi-product pins) need UTMs on the collection landing page URL. Each product should also have UTMs when clicked.

Does epik track view-through conversions?

Yes, for Pinterest Ads Manager. But GA4 only tracks click-through attribution via UTMs, not view-through.

Related Resources

Internal Guides

• Pinterest Ads Tracking Issues - Complete Pinterest tracking guide
• Platform Click ID Conflicts - Auto-tagging across all platforms
• Complete UTM Tracking Guide (GA4 2025) - UTM fundamentals
• Prevent Pinterest Tracking Errors - Best practices

Pinterest Official Documentation

• Pinterest Tag Setup - Official tag guide
• Pinterest Conversions API - Server-side tracking
• Pinterest Analytics - Performance measurement

Conclusion

Pinterest's epik is invisible to GA4. Without manual UTM parameters, all Pinterest Ads show as generic referral traffic with no campaign attribution.

The solution:

• ✅ Pinterest automatically adds epik (for Pinterest Tag tracking)
• ✅ You manually add UTMs (for GA4 attribution)
• ✅ Both parameters coexist on same URL without conflicts
• ✅ Pinterest Ads Manager uses epik for optimization and conversions
• ✅ GA4 uses UTMs for campaign tracking and revenue attribution
• ✅ Complete tracking across both platforms

Result: Know which Pinterest campaigns drive sales, measure true ROI, optimize ad spend, and prove Pinterest's value with real GA4 data.

Related Documentation:

• Platform Click ID Conflicts
• Pinterest Ads Tracking Validation