Using Google Data Studio (Looker Studio) for Great Easy Data Reporting

Information is the fuel of any organization, whether that information relates to traffic on your website, how your customers responded to your marketing, how many products you sold … basically, information is everywhere. Information can be easily collected, but it is what you do with it that really matters.

This is where Google Data Studio (now Looker Studio) can come in handy to your organization. Looker Studio is a free application that makes it simple to turn numbers into a report or dashboard that can be scanned quickly and shared easily. You can use Looker Studio to manage KPIs, or see traffic visiting a campaign, or other metrics, and we will walk you through Looker Studio in simple steps in this document.

What is Google Data Studio (Looker Studio)?

Looker Studio is the new name for Google Data Studio and is Google's cloud-based data visualization platform. You can connect more than one data source (Google Analytics, Google Ads, YouTube, Big Query and more) and use those to create interactive dashboards and charts.

And, you can most importantly view performance over a period of time, compare important performance metrics, and create reports that will automatically update!

The amazing thing is that you don’t need any programming or design experience.

Why You Should Use Looker Studio

800+ Data Source Connections

You can connect data from sources like Shopify, Facebook Ads, Google Analytics, Google Sheets, SQL databases, and more. That means you can have all your website, sales, and marketing data in one place.

Example: A marketing department can analyze ad performance between Facebook and Google together, analyze their return on investment, and make an on-the-fly decision from a single dashboard.

Create Visual Story Reports Without Code

You can make charts, graphs, and tables to your own specifications easily by dragging and dropping. Dashboards are real-time and can display trends, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and comparisons.

Example: A small retailer can look at daily sales and product trends on their dashboard and drill down on their findings by date or product category.

Easy Sharing and Collaboration with Reports

You can share your dashboards the same way you would share a Google doc - with a link. Unlimited users can comment or edit dashboards collaboratively at the same time.

Example: A remote marketing team is able to work online on a campaign report and collaborate without ever passing files back and forth physically.

Optimize Your Workflows With Looker Studio API

The API can allow large teams to automate your reports so they are always current, define roles, and establish access control.

Example: A business organization provides weekly sales reports that can automatically refresh, or assigns the editor role to many dashboards simultaneously.

Cloud and Free

Looker Studio is free, unlike paid data visualization tools, and it is cloud-based so you can view your dashboards from anywhere.

Limitations to Keep in Mind

While it is an excellent tool, there are limitations to Looker Studio to keep in mind:

• Requires the internet

• Some data connectors are paid connectors

• Limited connector support for third parties

• Conditional formatting is limited to only 20

• Each report page is limited to 50 elements

• Widget and data point limitations within large reports

Get Started with Google Data Studio

Step 1: Sign In

Go to Looker Studio to login with your Google account. You may use the same sign-in you use for Search Console or Google Analytics and effectively access and manage both tools directly from Looker Studio.

Step 2: Walk Around the Dashboard

You will see some sample reports on the home page represented in bar charts, tables, or time series charts. If you are unfamiliar with Data Studio, check out the Welcome to Data Studio tutorial.

Stage 3: Learn About Reports and Data Sources

• Reports are dashboards where you view and create visualisations.

• Data Sources link your report to actual data (for example, Google Analytics, BigQuery, or Sheets).

Example: If you want to see website traffic, your data source would be linked through Google Analytics.

Step 4: Link Your Data Source

Here's how to set up your data connection:

• Click on Add Data

• Choose your data source (e.g., Google Ads, YouTube Analytics)

• Authorize Looker Studio to access your account

• Choose which measures and dimensions you want to have

• Hit the Add to Report button

Your report will now pull in real-time data and update automatically.

Step 5: Add Visual Widgets

These are the graphics you will design to present your data.

Widget types include:

• Bar Charts – Good for comparing values such as devices, or areas

• Time Series – Info over time

• Tables – Look at multiple metrics at once

• Scorecards – Glance at important operation metrics as KPIs such as conversions or main page views

• Maps – Location-based data such as location of users

Example: To see how the traffic is changing across a period of time, you can add a time series chart by setting "Date" as the dimension and "Sessions" as the metric.

Step 6: Customize Look

There is an area to create your report to match the branding or messaging you want:

• Click Theme and Layout

• Choose a built-in theme or create your own

• Change your fonts, colours, borders, backgrounds

• Use layout options to line up or space out objects

Example: If you need to forward it to a client, use their logo and colors to produce a polished report.

Step 7: Add External Content (Optional)

You can add Google Docs, YouTube videos, or strategy sheets directly into the report:

• Click Insert → URL Embed

• Paste the URL

• Resize and format to your preference

Step 8: Have Your Report in Hand

Once your report is complete:

• Click Share

• Select recipients via email or a public link

• Set your permission (view, comment, edit)

Now, sharing updates with your team or clients will be a breeze—no more PDFs every week!

Conclusion

You don’t need to be a data genius to make the best business decisions! With Looker Studio, you can connect to your data, generate interactive reports, and share your result with your boss — for free!

Whether you are an analyst, marketer, or founder of a startup, Google Data Studio gives you the capability to turn intimidating data into visually simple, informed stories.

FAQs

Q: Is Google Data Studio free now?
Yes, Looker Studio (formerly Google Data Studio) is still 100% free.
What had formerly been called "Google Data Studio" is now Looker Studio, under the umbrella of Google's data analytics tools.

Q: Is Looker Studio better for business than Tableau?
Looker Studio is the best option for Google data and small-to-medium-enterprise budgets, but Tableau brings business features to a wider array of capabilities.

Q: What does Looker Studio do?
The tool helps organizations design live dashboards and live reports with multiple data sources to track performance.

Q: Is Looker Studio free or paid?
Looker Studio gives both free and premium versions. The free version has got most of the features needed by small- and moderate-sized users.