Calculated Fields in Google Data Studio – Tutorial
What is a calculated field?
A calculated field is a field that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your data source or chart via a formula.
These actions could be:
- Arithmetic and math operations
- Manipulating text, date and geographic information
- Using branching logic to evaluate data
Through calculated fields, you can create new metrics and dimensions from your derived data.
Types of calculated fields
Calculated fields can be further categorized into:
- Data source specific calculated field – It is the calculated field created in a data source. When you create a calculated field in a data source, the calculated field is available in any report that uses that data source. However, you can’t use a data source specific calculated field with blended data.
- Chart specific (or chart level) calculated field – It is the calculated field created in a specific chart in a report. When you create a calculated field in a chart, the calculated field is available only in the chart in which you create it. However, you can use a chart specific calculated field with blended data.
Note: When using a chart specific calculated field, you can not reference other chart-specific calculated fields in your formula, even if those fields are defined in the same chart. If you want to reference other calculated fields, use a data source calculated field.
Types of data source specific calculated fields
Data source specific calculated field can be further categorized into:
- Data source specific calculated dimension – It is a dimension that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your data source via a formula.
- Data source specific calculated metric – It is a metric that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your data source via a formula.
Get the ebook on Google Data Studio (50+ Pages)
Types of chart specific calculated fields
Chart specific calculated field can be further categorized into:
- Chart specific calculated dimension – It is a dimension that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your chart via a formula.
- Chart specific calculated metric – It is a metric that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your chart via a formula.
How to identify calculated fields
All calculated dimensions appear in the data source editor with an ‘fx’ symbol:
All calculated metrics appear in the data source editor with an ‘fx’ symbol:
How to identify calculated fields in the report editor
It is not easy to identify calculated fields (whether calculated dimension or calculated metrics) in a report editor as they do not appear with an ‘fx’ symbol:
If the calculated field is created in a data source then you can not easily identify it in the report editor.
But if the calculated field is created in a specific chart then you can identify it by hovering your mouse over the edit section of the field:
Calculated field data types
The data type assigned to a calculated field depends upon the type of action(s) it performs on another field(s) in your data source or chart.
If your calculated field performs an arithmetic operation on another field(s) then it returns data of type ‘number’. So the data type assigned to the calculated field would be ‘Number’.
Similarly, if your calculated field performs text operation on another field(s) then it returns data of type ‘text’. So the data type assigned to the calculated field would be ‘text’.
However, this is not always the case and sometimes you may need to manually change the data type of the calculated field.
Note: You can change the data type of your calculated fields using the ‘Type’ drop-down menu in the data source editor:
Creating and using calculated fields in Google Data Studio
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Attribution Modelling in Google Analytics and Beyond
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What is a calculated field?
A calculated field is a field that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your data source or chart via a formula.
These actions could be:
- Arithmetic and math operations
- Manipulating text, date and geographic information
- Using branching logic to evaluate data
Through calculated fields, you can create new metrics and dimensions from your derived data.
Types of calculated fields
Calculated fields can be further categorized into:
- Data source specific calculated field – It is the calculated field created in a data source. When you create a calculated field in a data source, the calculated field is available in any report that uses that data source. However, you can’t use a data source specific calculated field with blended data.
- Chart specific (or chart level) calculated field – It is the calculated field created in a specific chart in a report. When you create a calculated field in a chart, the calculated field is available only in the chart in which you create it. However, you can use a chart specific calculated field with blended data.
Note: When using a chart specific calculated field, you can not reference other chart-specific calculated fields in your formula, even if those fields are defined in the same chart. If you want to reference other calculated fields, use a data source calculated field.
Types of data source specific calculated fields
Data source specific calculated field can be further categorized into:
- Data source specific calculated dimension – It is a dimension that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your data source via a formula.
- Data source specific calculated metric – It is a metric that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your data source via a formula.
Get the ebook on Google Data Studio (50+ Pages)
Types of chart specific calculated fields
Chart specific calculated field can be further categorized into:
- Chart specific calculated dimension – It is a dimension that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your chart via a formula.
- Chart specific calculated metric – It is a metric that performs some action(s) on another field(s) in your chart via a formula.
How to identify calculated fields
All calculated dimensions appear in the data source editor with an ‘fx’ symbol:
All calculated metrics appear in the data source editor with an ‘fx’ symbol:
How to identify calculated fields in the report editor
It is not easy to identify calculated fields (whether calculated dimension or calculated metrics) in a report editor as they do not appear with an ‘fx’ symbol:
If the calculated field is created in a data source then you can not easily identify it in the report editor.
But if the calculated field is created in a specific chart then you can identify it by hovering your mouse over the edit section of the field:
Calculated field data types
The data type assigned to a calculated field depends upon the type of action(s) it performs on another field(s) in your data source or chart.
If your calculated field performs an arithmetic operation on another field(s) then it returns data of type ‘number’. So the data type assigned to the calculated field would be ‘Number’.
Similarly, if your calculated field performs text operation on another field(s) then it returns data of type ‘text’. So the data type assigned to the calculated field would be ‘text’.
However, this is not always the case and sometimes you may need to manually change the data type of the calculated field.
Note: You can change the data type of your calculated fields using the ‘Type’ drop-down menu in the data source editor:
Creating and using calculated fields in Google Data Studio
Register for the FREE TRAINING...
"How to use Digital Analytics to generate floods of new Sales and Customers without spending years figuring everything out on your own."
Here’s what we’re going to cover in this training…
#1 Why digital analytics is the key to online business success.
#2 The number 1 reason why most marketers are not able to scale their advertising and maximize sales.
#3 Why Google and Facebook ads don’t work for most businesses & how to make them work.
#4 Why you won’t get any competitive advantage in the marketplace just by knowing Google Analytics.
#5 The number 1 reason why conversion optimization is not working for your business.
#6 How to advertise on any marketing platform for FREE with an unlimited budget.
#7 How to learn and master digital analytics and conversion optimization in record time.
My best selling books on Digital Analytics and Conversion Optimization
Maths and Stats for Web Analytics and Conversion Optimization
This expert guide will teach you how to leverage the knowledge of maths and statistics in order to accurately interpret data and take actions, which can quickly improve the bottom-line of your online business.
Master the Essentials of Email Marketing Analytics
This book focuses solely on the ‘analytics’ that power your email marketing optimization program and will help you dramatically reduce your cost per acquisition and increase marketing ROI by tracking the performance of the various KPIs and metrics used for email marketing.
Attribution Modelling in Google Analytics and Beyond
Attribution modelling is the process of determining the most effective marketing channels for investment. This book has been written to help you implement attribution modelling. It will teach you how to leverage the knowledge of attribution modelling in order to allocate marketing budget and understand buying behaviour.
Attribution Modelling in Google Ads and Facebook
This book has been written to help you implement attribution modelling in Google Ads (Google AdWords) and Facebook. It will teach you, how to leverage the knowledge of attribution modelling in order to understand the customer purchasing journey and determine the most effective marketing channels for investment.
Himanshu Sharma
Digital Marketing Consultant and Founder of Optimizesmart.com
