Google Analytics is digging into mobile apps. Google Inc. has launched Mobile App Analytics, which enables developers and marketers to measure in several ways how shoppers interact with their mobile apps. The new mobile offering, like Google Analytics—which is used by 164 of the retailers in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide and 281 of those in the Second 500—is free for businesses to use.

“They are designed to measure the entire mobile customer journey—from discovery to download to engagement,” JiaJing Wang, Google Analytics product manager, wrote in a blog post. “This enables the creation of app experiences that are more useful and engaging through data-driven decisions at each stage of the app lifecycle.”

Google aims for the tools to offer a holistic view of mobile consumers, wrote Wang. That’s why it offers tools to track three distinct parts of the app lifecycle: acquisition, engagement and outcomes.

The first set of metrics addresses consumers’ initial download of the app, such as the type of device consumers are using. The second set monitors how consumers interact with the app, such as how frequently they use it. The third set focuses on what consumers ultimately do with the app, such as the number of purchases and revenue generated from the app. Google plans to add metrics from Google Play, such as understanding what traffic sources are driving new users and in-app conversions. Google Play is Google’s digital marketplace that offers apps and games.

“As more [marketers and businesses] understand the value of mobile apps, sophisticated measurement tools are becoming core to how marketers and app developers invest, analyze and market their apps,” wrote Wang. 

Google says Google Analytics users can sign up to test Mobile App Analytics. It will be released to all Google Analytics users by the end of the summer.