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UTM Parameters on Recart Links

Recart tags every link it sends with UTM parameters, so your SMS traffic and revenue show up correctly in Google Analytics and attribution tools.

Table of contents:

Recart adds UTM parameters to every link in your messages automatically, so traffic and revenue from SMS are attributed correctly in Google Analytics and any other analytics or attribution platform you use. You don't need to build tracking links yourself.

This article covers which parameters Recart adds, what each one contains, the other parameters you may see in a Recart link, and whether any of them can be changed.

What Recart adds to every link

Every link you add to a Recart message is shortened, and the destination it points to carries three UTM parameters:

Parameter Value
utm_source recart
utm_medium recart-sms
utm_campaign the name of the campaign or flow the message was sent from

This happens on every link type you can add to a message — custom links, site links, product and cart links, and order status and fulfilment tracking links. It also applies when you use a Branded URL: the short link is branded, and the page it opens carries the parameters.

A Recart link resolves to something like https://yourstore.com/products/example-product?utm_campaign=05.12-summer-sale&utm_medium=recart-sms&utm_source=recart

Note: These parameters are added for you. You don't need to append UTMs to a link before pasting it into a message.

For more on the links you can add to a message, see Add Links to SMS Flows and Add Branded URLs to SMS Messages. To see how Recart attributes revenue inside the app, see Recart Reports.

What the campaign parameter contains

utm_campaign is generated from the name you gave the campaign or flow, converted into a URL-friendly format — lowercase, spaces replaced with dashes, and special characters removed. Letters, digits, full stops, underscores and hyphens are kept; anything else is stripped out.

A campaign named 04.17. Summer Sale (A and B) arrives in your analytics as 04.17.-summer-sale-a-and-b.

Because the value comes from the name you set in Recart, clear and consistent campaign naming gives you cleaner reporting downstream.

Note: The value always comes from the campaign or flow name, never from the name of an individual message inside it. Campaigns and automated flows work the same way.

Other parameters you may see

Alongside the UTM parameters, Recart links carry a few of their own. These are used by Recart and need no action from you:

  • r_sub_id — identifies the subscriber who clicked
  • recart_mid — identifies the message
  • sequence_item_id — identifies the individual message within a flow or campaign
  • ghostmonitor_session_id — used for session tracking
  • disable_cart_recovery — tells Recart's on-site script not to run its cart-restore behaviour on that visit

Changing the parameters

The three UTM parameters are set by Recart and can't be edited in the app. There's no UTM section in SMS Settings, and the values can't be overridden on an individual campaign or flow.

If you're standardising UTMs across your marketing platforms, or your attribution tool expects a different format, get in touch and tell us what you're trying to match — we'll let you know what's possible.

Frequently asked questions

Can I turn the UTM parameters off?

No. They're added automatically to every Recart link and can't be disabled.

Will they work with Google Analytics 4?

Yes. They're standard UTM parameters, so GA4 and other analytics tools pick them up with no extra setup. Recart traffic appears under the source recart and the medium recart-sms.

Why doesn't my campaign name match what I see in analytics?

The name is converted into a URL-friendly format — lowercase, dashes instead of spaces, and special characters removed. It's the same campaign, just reformatted. If you see encoded characters like %28 in a campaign value, that name was set before 19 August 2026 — it picks up the current format the next time the campaign or flow is renamed.

Do campaigns and automated flows use the same parameters?

Yes. The source and medium are the same across both; only the campaign value changes.

Can I use these to build segments or audiences in another tool?

Yes. Any platform that reads UTM parameters can filter on utm_source=recart to isolate traffic that came from your Recart messages.

 

Need help?

If you have any questions or need support with UTM tracking, feel free to reach out to us at support@recart.com — we're happy to help.