Will removing Google Analytics hurt my SEO?

Short answer: no. Removing Google Analytics does not lower your position in Google's results.

What Google has said

Google has said repeatedly, in its documentation and through its search advocates, that it does not use Google Analytics data to rank pages. Search does not look at whether a site has the Analytics tag, how many visitors it reports or how long they stay according to Analytics. Many sites that rank very well have never installed it.

What does affect rankings

What Google evaluates is the page itself and how it is served: the content, links to it, how fast it loads and whether it works on phones. Removing a heavy analytics tag, a tag manager and a consent banner can, if anything, make pages lighter and faster.

What you should keep: Search Console

Search Console is a different tool. It does not track visitors; it shows how Google sees your site: which searches show it, which pages are indexed, errors and manual actions. It does not need a script or a cookie on your pages. Keep it when you remove Analytics, and if you want its searches next to your visits, connect it to Statsdot.

What you lose

• The Analytics reports themselves. Export or import your history before you close the property: see How to remove Google Analytics without losing data.
• Google Ads conversion import and remarketing audiences, if you use them. Those rely on Google's tags, not on rankings.

The safe sequence

Install your new analytics, run both for a couple of weeks, import or export the history, then remove the Google Analytics tag. Your rankings will not notice; your visitors may notice the missing banner.