The level_up event
level_up is a GA4 recommended gaming event for character or account progression — distinct from completing a stage. You fire it when a player advances a level, passing a level number and optionally a character parameter. It measures long-run progression and retention depth, answering how far players advance rather than whether they finished a single stage.
What this means
level_up is a GA4 recommended gaming event for advancing a character or account level, as opposed to level_start/level_end which bracket a single stage. You fire it when the player's level increases, passing the new level and optionally the character.
This difference matters: level_up is about cumulative progression, while level_start/level_end are about individual stage attempts.
Reading progression depth
The histogram of level values reached over a cohort reveals how deep engagement runs and where progression stalls. Combined with virtual-currency and achievement events, level_up helps explain retention — players who keep leveling are typically your most engaged segment.
- level: the new level reached
- character: optional identifier of the progressing entity
- Distinct from per-stage level_start/level_end
How it appears in analytics and logs
A level_up event means a player advanced a level. The distribution of reached levels shows how deep your engaged player base goes.
Diagnostic use case
Track how far players progress over time, distinguishing account/character leveling from per-stage completion.
What WebmasterID can help detect
WebmasterID can record progression milestones first-party so retention depth is measurable without third-party identifiers.
Common mistakes
- Conflating level_up with level_start/level_end stage events.
- Sending non-numeric or inconsistent level values.
- Linking character to a real-world identity.
Privacy and accuracy notes
level and character parameters describe game state, not real identity. Avoid linking them to personal data. Educational, not legal advice.
Related pages
- The level_start event
level_start is part of GA4's recommended events for games. You fire it when a player begins a level or stage, passing a level_name parameter. Paired with level_end, it lets you measure how many players start versus finish each level — the core of game progression and difficulty analysis. Like all recommended events, its documented name plugs into GA4's gaming-oriented reporting.
- The unlock_achievement event
unlock_achievement is a GA4 recommended gaming event you fire when a player earns an achievement, identified by an achievement_id. Achievements are engagement and goal-completion signals: which ones unlock often, which are rarely reached, and how unlocking relates to retention. It complements progression events by capturing discrete milestones rather than continuous leveling.
- The earn_virtual_currency event
earn_virtual_currency is a GA4 recommended gaming event for in-game economies. You fire it when a player earns soft currency — coins, gems, points — passing virtual_currency_name and value. Paired with spend_virtual_currency, it lets you model the in-game economy: earning and spending balance, currency sinks and faucets, and how the economy relates to real-money purchases.
- Event Explorer
Analyze progression depth.
Sources and verification notes
Last reviewed 2026-06-24. Facts are checked against primary/official sources where available; uncertain specifics are marked “Data not yet verified” rather than guessed.