# Server-side tagging

> Running marketing and analytics tags on a server you control, which then forwards data to each vendor.

Source: https://datacenter.so/glossary/server-side-tagging
Also called: server-side GTM, sGTM, server container.

In a normal setup, the browser loads each vendor's tag and sends data to each vendor directly. With server-side tagging, the browser sends events to one endpoint you run, usually on your own subdomain, and a server container decides what to forward to GA4, Google Ads, Meta and others. Google Tag Manager's server-side containers are the best-known version ([Google](https://developers.google.com/tag-platform/tag-manager/server-side)).

What it changes: fewer scripts in the page, one place to remove fields before they leave, and requests to your own domain rather than to a dozen vendors. What it does not change: you still need consent where the law asks for it, and data you forward is still shared.

It is related to, but not the same as, [server-side tracking](https://datacenter.so/glossary/server-side-tracking): sending events like orders from your backend. Google also advises against running a server-side and a standalone browser setup for the same GA4 property on one page ([Google](https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/14847402)). See [server-side vs client-side tracking](https://datacenter.so/guides/server-side-vs-client-side-tracking).

## Related terms

- https://datacenter.so/glossary/server-side-tracking
- https://datacenter.so/glossary/conversions-api
- https://datacenter.so/glossary/first-party-cookie