values are trimmed, lowercased, and spaces become underscores — analytics tools treat Google and google as two different sources.
What are UTM parameters?
UTM parameters are short tags added to the end of a URL that tell your analytics tool exactly where a visit came from. When someone clicks a tagged link, tools like GA4, Mixpanel, or Plausible read the tags and group the visit by source, medium, and campaign — so instead of one blob of “traffic,” you can see that your newsletter drove 412 visits and your paid social drove 1,038.
A tagged link looks like this: yourdomain.com/launch?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=spring_launch
| parameter | what it answers | |
|---|---|---|
| utm_source | Where did the click come from? — google, newsletter, linkedin | required |
| utm_medium | How did it travel? — cpc, email, social, referral | required |
| utm_campaign | Which push is it part of? — spring_launch, black_friday | recommended |
| utm_term | Which paid keyword matched? | optional |
| utm_content | Which ad or link variant was clicked? | optional |
Best practices
Agree on one naming convention and never improvise mid‑campaign — consistency is the whole game. Keep everything lowercase, use underscores instead of spaces, and make names readable by a human three months from now (spring_launch, not cmp_0417_v2_final). Tag every external link you control — ads, emails, social posts, partner placements — but never tag internal links on your own site, since that overwrites the visitor’s original source and corrupts your data.
FAQ
What does UTM stand for?
What does UTM stand for?
Urchin Tracking Module. The parameters come from Urchin Software, the analytics company Google acquired in 2005 and turned into Google Analytics. The product is long gone; the parameter names stuck.
What is the difference between utm_source and utm_medium?
What is the difference between utm_source and utm_medium?
Source is the specific place traffic comes from — google, newsletter, linkedin. Medium is the channel it travels through — cpc, email, social. Read together, google / cpc means paid search on Google, while google / organic is a free search click.
Should UTM parameters be lowercase?
Should UTM parameters be lowercase?
Yes. Analytics tools are case‑sensitive, so Google and google show up as two separate sources and split your reports. This builder lowercases values automatically.
Do UTM parameters affect SEO?
Do UTM parameters affect SEO?
They carry no ranking penalty — they exist purely for analytics. To keep tagged URLs from being indexed as duplicates, make sure the destination page has a canonical tag (nearly every CMS adds one by default), and never use UTMs on internal links.
Is this UTM builder free?
Is this UTM builder free?
Completely. There is no sign‑up, no tracking of what you type, and nothing leaves your browser — the link is assembled locally with JavaScript.
Can I create a QR code for my UTM link?
Can I create a QR code for my UTM link?
Yes — a QR code renders automatically for every generated link and downloads as a PNG. The link preview panel also fetches the destination page’s title, description, and social image so you can see how the link will unfurl before you share it.