GTM template: Shopify conversion tracking with Google Ads
A free GTM container for Shopify stores: Google Ads conversion tracking, enhanced conversions and remarketing, wired up the way it should be.
Originally written in German — read it on visnakovs.de.
Shopify’s own tracking isn’t enough for serious Google Ads, and getting GTM onto a Shopify store cleanly frustrates most store owners. This template hands you a finished setup with conversion tracking, enhanced conversions and remarketing.
What’s in the template
Tags (4)
- Google tag — base tag with conversion linker
- Conversion Linker — for correct click attribution
- Google Ads remarketing — fires on
view_itemandadd_to_cartfor dynamic remarketing - Google Ads enhanced conversion — passes customer data on
checkout_completed
Triggers (2)
- view_item | add_to_cart — for remarketing audiences
- checkout_completed — for the purchase conversion
Variables (13)
- Order data:
orderId,subtotal,currency,tax,shipping - Customer data:
email,phone,firstName,lastName,street,city,region,countryCode - Google Ads IDs: conversion ID, conversion label
Shopify + GTM: the awkward part
Shopify won’t let GTM run natively on the checkout page unless you’re on Shopify Plus. Custom Pixels (the Web Pixels API) gave that an official route:
- Shopify admin → Settings → Customer events
- Create a custom pixel
- Push dataLayer events on the checkout page
checkout_completed, view_item and add_to_cart then reach GTM through the dataLayer.
Setup
1. Import the template
Import container → upload the JSON → merge.
2. Swap the IDs
Search for XXXXX in the container and replace:
G-XXXXX→ your Google tag IDConv ID XXXXX→ your Google Ads conversion ID- Conversion label → your specific label
3. Set up the Shopify custom pixel
In Shopify, under Customer events, create a pixel that implements the e-commerce events as dataLayer pushes.
4. Switch on enhanced conversions
In Google Ads under Conversions → Settings → Enhanced conversions. The customer data (email, address) is passed hashed.
Why enhanced conversions matter on Shopify
Without them you lose a meaningful share of your conversions — above all with:
- iOS users (Safari ITP blocks third-party cookies)
- Cross-device purchases (click on the phone, buy on the laptop)
- Consent refusals (the user declines cookies)
Enhanced conversions take the first-party data the customer types into checkout anyway and match it, hashed, against Google accounts. Google puts the gain at 10–20% more recorded conversions.
Download the template
The configurator that generates this container — along with the other six templates — sits on my German site: GTM configurator (in German). The interface is German; the JSON it produces is language-neutral.
Grab the container file below and import it into your Google Tag Manager container under Admin → Import Container. No sign-up, no email wall — it’s a plain file.
Downloadgtm-template-shopify-conversion-tracking.jsonGTM container, ~23 KB — import it straight into your containerWant your Shopify tracking set up properly, or checked before you scale spend? Write to me.