Google Search Console: what it is, how it works, and why use it

SEO admin 10 December 2024 Reading time : 29 minutes

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It is much more than a collection of simple webmaster tools. Google Search Console has become an invaluable resource for anyone who manages a website, from the technical administrator to the SEO professional to small business owners, and wants to monitor its Search returns and strengthen their online presence. Designed to provide direct access to data and reports collected by Google itself, this free platform allows us to identify issues, monitor page performance, and optimize content and strategies for better search engine results. Its usefulness is not limited to troubleshooting technical issues or monitoring indexing: Google Search Console is a strategic tool for interpreting key data on site performance, such as clicks received, impressions generated, and search queries that attract organic traffic. With this information, we can make informed decisions to improve rankings, increase visibility, and get higher quality traffic.

What is Google Search Console

Google Search Console is a free platform developed by Google to help site owners, SEO professionals and developers monitor, analyze and optimize their site’s presence in Google search results .

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Often abbreviated to the acronym GSC, this tool provides a comprehensive overview of the site’s status from the search engine’s perspective, through unique data that helps us improve performance, correct technical issues and optimize SEO strategy.

Through Google Search Console, we have direct access to a wide range of information: search queries that bring organic traffic to the site, impressions generated in search results, indexing status of pages, and technical issues that might hinder visibility.

One of the key aspects to clarify is that the use of Google Search Console is not mandatory for a site’s inclusion in Google search results. In fact, Google is able to automatically detect, crawl, and index publicly accessible content without any necessary action on our part. However, access to GSC offers exclusive and official benefits, including the ability to understand how Google “sees” the site and to take direct action to improve visibility by correcting technical issues or optimizing SEO performance.

What are the main features of Google Search Console

Google’s tool offers a wide range of features that help monitor, analyze and optimize the main aspects of a website, and is distinguished by its ability to provide detailed and reliable data, useful for identifying problems and seizing opportunities for improvement.

The first and most well-known function concerns the analysis of organic traffic: through the Performance Report, we can examine key data such as the number of clicks, impressions, CTR (Click-Through Rate) and average keyword position. This data allows us to understand:

Which queries bring traffic to the site.
Which pages perform best in search results.
The effectiveness of titles and descriptions in attracting clicks from users.

With this information, we can optimize SEO strategies and intervene on pages that have room for improvement, increasing engagement and improving rankings.

The Google Search Console also proves to be a valuable ally in monitoring technical problems and detecting and correcting errors that make the site not easily accessible to Google’s crawlers and that, therefore, could negatively affect visibility and user experience. Among the most common problems we can detect are:

Crawler errors: pages that Google cannot read or index for technical reasons.
Indexing status: a comprehensive overview of which URLs were indexed correctly, which were excluded and why.
Specific reporting to optimize aspects such as Core Web Vitals or mobile usability.

Another crucial element of Google Search Console is the analysis of links, both external and internal. The platform provides detailed reports that allow us to:

Visualize backlinks received from external sites, with an analysis of authority and frequency.
Examine the structure of internal links, to ensure intuitive and consistent site navigation. These reports are useful for strengthening our linking strategy, increasing authority and improving PageRank distribution within the site itself.

Although Google Search Console already provides a great deal of data, its potential increases when used in conjunction with other tools, such as Google Analytics. By linking GSC to Google Analytics, we can gain an all-encompassing view, combining data on search queries and SEO performance with details on user behavior on the site (e.g., session duration, pages viewed, conversion rates). This integrated approach helps us turn the information gathered into concrete strategies, increasing the effectiveness of our optimization activities.

The main GSC tools and reports

Going into a bit of technical detail, Google’s Search Console provides a number of useful tools and reports for wide-ranging interventions on the site, allowing in particular to check whether and how Google’s spiders are finding the site and crawling, to solve indexing problems, to ask for re-indexing of updated or recreated content, to receive alerts when the search engine finds indexing, spam or other problems on the site. Also very useful is the ability to view Google Search traffic data related to the site (such as frequency of display in searches, search queries for which the site is ranked, frequency of user click-throughs) and to obtain information to troubleshoot issues related to AMP (although this technology is now in heavy disuse), usability on mobile devices, and other search features.

Briefly, the service includes a number of features and reports, including:

Sending and checking website sitemaps – in the Sitemap Report.
Analysis of a single page, to check factors such as Googlebot access statistics, technical data such as total number, byte size, time to load, HTTP status codes – in the URL Inspection Tool.
Viewing the current indexing status of pages, any technical problems and the last crawler access – in the Coverage Status Report in the Index.
Checking the robots.txt file to discover accidentally blocked pages and coverage statistics.
List of internal site links and backlinks from other sites that link back to pages on the site under review.
List of pages that Googlebot has trouble scanning, including errors – in the Scan Statistics Report.
List of keywords searched via Google in the SERP, total clicks, total views (impressions), and average CTR, for different pages of the site – in the Performance Report.
Management of “Page Experience”, to check Core Web Vitals parameters, security (use of HTTPS), and any problems with intrusive banners and advertisements.
Management of structured data (Schema.org) used to enable enriched features in SERPs, so-called rich results – in the Media Results Report.
Notifications from Google for “manual actions,” penalties for various causes – in the Manual Actions Report.
Access to API for adding and managing crawler status (an alternative to manually crawling a page) and URL Inspection API.
Temporary and temporary removal of a site’s pages from Search results and Google Index – with the URL Removal Tool.
Reporting any security issues (e.g., hacked site or malware attacks) – in the Security Issues Report.
Adding or removing new users for management to the property.
Information on any Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) – in the AMP Pages Status Report.

In addition, the work of updating the GSC is constant and continuous, and frequent are the interventions put in place by Google engineers, with reports being added, modified or (in some cases) deprecated to keep the platform up-to-date and efficient.

From Google Webmaster Tools to Google Search Console: the evolution of webmaster tools

As evidence of this dynamism, Google Search Console that we know today is the result of a long evolution that has seen gradual but substantial improvements and changes over the years.

The first official version of this platform dates back to 2006, when it was launched under the name Google Webmaster Tools. As Jennifer Slegg reconstructs , the name was practically imposed by the international community: back in 2001, Google first launched a portal with advice for webmasters (Google Information for Webmasters), which was renewed precisely in 2006 under the name Google Webmaster Central (a name that the site then kept until 2021, with the transition to Google Search Central).

It was at this stage that the diagnostic and usability tools introduced by Google to assist webmasters began to be called precisely “Webmaster tools” or “Tools for Webmasters, ” until the company decided to officially adopt this name for the platform, maintained until May 20, 2015, when the name Google Search Console debuted.

Even then, the goal was to provide site administrators with a set of tools to monitor their site’s presence and performance in Google search. However, the focus was primarily technical, aimed at an audience composed mainly of webmasters.

The evolution was significant in 2015, when Google decided to rename the suite to Google Search Console to make it more inclusive and accessible to diverse figures, such as SEO specialists, marketers, and site owners. This change was not just in name: there was a complete graphical and functional revamp, with a greater focus on data and user experience. The platform began to offer advanced tools for ranking optimization, technical troubleshooting, and performance monitoring.

The first, new version of Search Console began rolling out in 2018, with changes in the user interface, and gradually the platform replaced the previous one almost completely, until the official farewell to the old suite in September 2019, with the final removal of the old Webmaster Tools reports and the first Search Console. However, some of the old Google webmaster tools features were incorporated into the recent version, others excluded because they were inefficient or underutilized, plus sections were added dedicated more specifically to some more “modern” areas of work.

In the intervening years, the tool has continued to be enriched with more and more advanced features, such as the introduction of support for HTTPS protocol verification , new reports for structured data (rich results), and data related to Core Web Vitals, the pillars of user experience.

The latest additions include the arrival of personalized recommendations, a feature that helps identify areas for technical or content improvement, and greater integration with products such as Google Analytics 4 and Merchant Center, particularly useful for managing e-commerce and multimedia content.

Today, Google Search Console represents the natural convergence of technical and strategic tools, offering support to a diverse range of users from beginners to advanced professionals.

What Google Search Console is for.

Google Search Console represents a direct link between our website and the world’s most widely used search engine and is therefore a reliable tool for obtaining official data and making informed strategic decisions.

In addition to monitoring the health of the site, GSC gives us access to in-depth analysis, such as the number and quality of backlinks, the performance of individual pages, and potential problems that could affect indexing or user experience. With this data, we can find out which queries bring traffic, which pages perform best and which, on the other hand, need interventions to increase their effectiveness.

The platform obviously devotes a lot of care to the graphic interface, which in recent years has been significantly lightened compared to the past and simplified to make it more user-friendly, but the heart of the project remains the parts dedicated to site management and optimization.

As mentioned, the original mission of the GSC is to enable all webmasters (and others) to simplify the process of optimizing a site’s presence on Google Search, with reports that inform about the status of indexing and page ranking, the number of total clicks, impressions, average CTR, and average position.

Why Google Search Console is useful

Google Search Console is not just a technical tool, but a true pillar for any website management and development strategy. Its strategic value is evident in the many benefits it offers, making it indispensable both for those managing a small portal and for those dealing with more complex and articulated projects.

One of the most important aspects of Google Search Console is its ability to identify and report technical errors that could negatively affect a site’s SEO performance. From identifying non-indexed pages to crawling errors, GSC provides detailed reports that allow us to quickly act on issues that may slow or hinder ranking in search results. For example:

Pages with HTTP errors (such as 404 or 500).
Problems related to HTTPS protocol or missing or expired SSL certificates.
Duplicate pages or content accidentally blocked by robots.txt files. These interventions not only improve the accessibility of our site to Google crawlers, but also help build a solid technical base for all SEO activities.

On the side related instead to content production and optimization, GSC provides exclusive data that allows us to identify the keywords that generate traffic and understand which queries have the greatest growth potential. Such information becomes strategic for an informed and targeted use of search queries, taking action to refine content to better intercept users’ intentions, optimizing elements such as

Meta title and description.
Content structure and length.
Internal links and anchor text.

Through in-depth analysis of queries that bring clicks and impressions, we can also optimize pages that are in “borderline” positions (e.g., sixth to fifteenth position), bringing them into the top search results and improving their CTR.

The data provided by the reports then allow us to track the progress of SEO strategies over time and see how well the optimizations implemented are bringing results, monitoring key aspects such as organic traffic, indexing of new pages, and reduction of technical errors. In addition, for large projects GSC makes it easy to manage complex properties, such as subdomains or multilingual sites, offering aggregated or segmented data for greater insight.

The benefits of Google Search Console: exclusive access to Google’s internal data.

Search Console doesn’t just act as an intermediary: it is one of the few resources that can provide direct, official access to the data Google collects about a website, so we can explore how the search engine sees and interprets our site. The value of the platform is not limited to its free nature or the fact that it allows us to measure organic traffic: using it means taking control of crucial aspects that would otherwise remain invisible.

For those who technically manage the site, Google Search Console helps detect issues that could penalize visibility, such as crawl errors, broken links, or incorrect configurations of the robots.txt file. For SEO professionals, the platform allows them to optimize content and strategies through in-depth analysis of search queries, clicks and impressions recorded from each page. Small site owners also find practical support, as alerts and automatic messages sent by GSC alert them to any difficulties in technical configuration or indexing.

But the real strength of Search Console is its ability to unveil the hidden dynamics of our ranking. Not only does it allow us to identify queries that are bringing in traffic or that could grow through appropriate optimization efforts, but it also helps us diagnose and correct issues that are often not obvious: an invisible lens shows us what is working on our site and what needs immediate attention. For example, if a page receives a lot of impressions but few clicks, we may realize that the snippet shown is not attractive enough or aligned with user intent.

In addition, Google increasingly expects sites not only to be technically optimized, but also to provide the best possible user experience. GSC puts us in a position to monitor key indicators such as Core Web Vitals, which assess the speed, interactivity, and visual stability of pages; problems in these areas not only reduce user satisfaction, but also negatively impact rankings.

Finally, the importance of Search Console extends to its long-term management capabilities. It maintains a central role in supporting the site in constantly adapting to Google’s requirements, flagging algorithm changes and new optimization opportunities. Its accuracy in pointing out the causes of specific errors enables targeted interventions, preventing us from wasting time and resources. This makes GSC not just a technical toolkit, but the foundation on which to build a consistently competitive and optimized digital presence.

Who needs the Google Search Console

To better understand what types of professionals may need GSC we can refer to Search Console Training, a useful introductory guide series on the use of Search Console that Daniel Waisberg, Google’s Search Advocate, has created on YouTube.

In the very first episode, in which he explains the basic concepts of the platform and introduces the first webmaster tools, Waisberg points out in turn how the Search Console is not a requirement or a prerequisite for appearing in the organic search results pages, but for sure, it helps to monitor and optimize the way Google crawls and indexes your site and shows it to the public. Moreover, he tells us that using these tools can help us succeed on the search engine and the web in general regardless of “role” and professional skills, because the GSC (and these tips!) are useful to owners of small sites, those responsible for creating or maintaining large sites, and even SEO professionals.

Specifically, Waisberg recalls the main tasks that can be performed with Google’s free tool:

Check how Google crawls, indexes and discovers pages on your site.
Correct errors on pages that Google detects in crawling.
Report updated content to the Google Index.
Monitor site performance trends on Google Search by studying queries, countries of origin of traffic, most viewed pages, and so on.

At this point, the Googler says, “you may be asking yourself how to use Search Console for your needs and what information is most important to you,” and then tosses out some ideas that may come in handy as appropriate.

Broadly speaking and rather intuitively, the GSC can come in handy for anyone who owns a website or works in this field, and also for digital marketers and SEO professionals, who can use the reports to monitor website traffic (their own or managed), optimize rankings, and make technical decisions in case of errors or issues that negatively affect performance, leveraging in support Google’s other tools such as Analytics, Google Trends, Google Ads, and the new Google Search Console Insights platform .

More specifically, the platform offers support to:

Those who own or manage small sites. Owners or people in charge of small sites who don’t have much expertise should “start with simple things”: checking organic traffic in the Performance Report , trying to figure out which queries, pages and countries are bringing in the most traffic.
Those who own or manage large sites. For owners or managers of large sites (500 pages and up, according to the official GSC guide), the first key step is to check in Search Console whether all pages are indexed correctly and that there are no errors. Tools to use are the Index Coverage Status Report, Mobile Usability Report, AMP Page Status Report, and other improvement reports relevant to the site.
SEOS. If you are an SEO professional, “you can have a lot of fun with GSC!” says Waisberg again. Much depends on skills, but “if you are focused on technical SEO, content production and optimization, strategies or other fields, you will find important insightswithin the tool.”

The official introductory guide adds other useful tips tailored to certain Web-related professional types, namely:

Business owners. Even if they will not personally use the platform, those who drive a site active in e-Commerce or otherwise in business should still be familiar with the service, the basics of site optimization for search engines, and know what features are available in Google Search.
Marketing professionals or SEO experts. For those involved in online marketing, Search Console allows you to monitor your website traffic, optimize rankings, and make informed decisions about the appearance of search results related to your site. You can use the information available in Search Console to make technical decisions about your site and perform sophisticated market analysis using other Google tools such as Analytics, Google Trends and Google Ads as well.
Site Administrators. A site administrator is interested in ensuring that pages are functioning properly; Search Console supports in monitoring activity and, in some cases, easily resolving server errors, loading problems, and security issues such as compromise and malware. You can also use this service to verify that any site maintenance or changes performed occur without any problems in search performance.
Web Developers. Those who are creating the actual markup and/or code for the site can use the GSC to check and fix frequent problems with the markup, such as errors in structured data.

Who shouldn’t do without Google Search Console.

With its ability to offer official data on user behavior and site health, the GSC spans sectors ranging from commercial entities to institutional projects to nonprofit initiatives.

Its tools are therefore designed multiple types of sites and professional figures: webmasters, web developers, specialists and experts, but also for SEO beginners and those who do not (yet) have specific skills and, even, for institutional and governmental sites and non-profit organizations. Clearly, even

In particular, Google Search Console supports the specific needs of news sites, for which visibility and speed of indexing new content are top priorities, thanks in part to reports that allow you to optimize interaction with Google News and ensure that readers find updated content in a timely manner.

E-Commerce businesses find Google Search Console a key partner in growing and improving their online presence; with the support of Google Shopping-specific features, then, it is possible to interface directly with data from Merchant Center, for detailed control over the performance of shopping tabs.

For institutional and government sites, ensuring a stable and accessible presence is essential for providing reliable information to citizens. With tools such as the security panel and manual actions, these sites can also detect compromise attempts (malware or hacking) and resolve them promptly.

Nonprofit organizations can use GSC to enhance the visibility of their campaigns and ensure that content reaches the right audience, so as to better align the organization’s mission with user behavior in search engines.

Also not to be underestimated is the usefulness of GSC’s integration with technical tools for web developers benefit greatly; in addition to the various basic reports, the management of critical elements is also facilitated by the ability to collectively export technical data for further analysis in non-console environments, an option that is particularly useful in more complex web projects.

How to access Google Search Console: step-by-step instructions

Let us now turn to the more practical aspects of getting started with Google Search Console. The entire setup process is fairly straightforward and takes only a few minutes, partly because it does not require any kind of installation or software download.

The platform can be reached from the official URL: https://search.google.com/search-console. To use it, we need to have a Google account, which allows us to access the main dashboard and add the sites whose performance and technical health we want to monitor.

After logging in, the first step is to verify the ownership of the site in Search Console, a procedure that assures Google that we are authorized to manage the ownership data. Next is time to make some key configurations and make the most of what Google Search Console has to offer.

Here are the key steps to take to start monitoring and optimizing your site.

Insert XML Sitemap. One of the first steps is to submit the site’s XML Sitemap , a file that contains a structured list of all significant pages to report to Google. The Sitemap helps Google’s crawlers explore and index content more quickly and ensure that no important pages are overlooked. The operation is simple: once in the GSC panel, simply go to the “Sitemap” section, enter the link to your site’s XML file (e.g., yoursite.com/sitemap.xml ) and submit it. In a few days, you will be able to start seeing the first statistics regarding indexed content.
Monitor messages and alerts. Google Search Console sends automatic notifications when anomalies or problems are detected on the site. Some of the most common messages include:

Indexing errors, such as excluded or not found pages.
Problems related to Core Web Vitals or mobile usability.
Reports of security issues, such as malware or compromised content.

Frequently accessing the dashboard and monitoring any alerts allows us to quickly resolve issues that could negatively impact site performance.

Configure notifications and access. Finally, it is advisable to properly configure access for other people working on the site, such as developers, SEO consultants, or contributors. Google allows you to set up roles with distinct levels of access (full or limited) to ensure that only authorized people can take action on settings.

Who can access the GSC and how to manage permissions

As mentioned, Google Search Console offers an access management system based on three main levels of permissions, ensuring strict control over who can access site data and what actions they can take. The platform is designed to meet the needs of collaboration among multiple figures, allowing developers, SEO specialists and site owners to work in a coordinated and secure manner.

The highest role is that of the owner (owner), who has complete control over the property, including the ability to add or remove users, change administrative settings, and access all available features and reports.

Other roles, such as users with full access (full user), allow them to review data, submit sitemaps or request indexing, but without administrative powers. Users with restricted access (restricted users), on the other hand, can only view available reports and data, without making any operational changes or interacting with site settings.

This system ensures that each figure involved in site management can access only the information and tools relevant to his or her role, reducing the risks associated with accidental changes or unauthorized access.

The initial owner, who verifies the site through methods such as HTML tagging or DNS, can then assign roles to other team members through the “Users and Permissions” section of Search Console, configuring each access according to actual operational needs. The flexibility of this system allows organizations to manage complex sites without compromising data security or platform functionality.

Only owners can add or edit users of a property on Google Search Console. The process is simple:

Go to the Settings tab .
Select the Users and Permissions item .
Click Add User and enter the email of the person to be authorized.
Select the level of access (Full User or Restricted User).

For security reasons, Google always recommends assigning access based on strict necessity. For example, a client or stakeholder should not receive Full User rights unless they are directly involved in the technical or SEO implementation.

How to use Google Search Console: the reports you need to know.

GSC reports and tools allow you to monitor and improve your website’s performance in Google search results, as mentioned. The main functionalities focus on four key areas: organic performance monitoring ,page indexing, link analysis and technical optimizations. The platform is structured so that key data can be read at a glance, accompanied by advanced features for those who wish to drill down and take operational action.

But how best to integrate GSC reports and functions into our daily workflow? Let’s try to give an overview of the main operations to be performed, the right timing to use them, and how to interpret the data to turn them into targeted actions.

Daily monitoring of site performance

The performance report is a central resource for understanding how our site is performing in Google SERPs. It includes essential metrics such as clicks, impressions, average CTR and average position, key indicators that track the organic traffic generated by the site. We analyze this data on a regular basis to verify:

What are the top keywords bringing traffic to the site, focusing on queries with high potential for future optimizations.
Pages with low CTR, signaling to us the need to improve meta title or description to make them more impactful and relevant to the users’ intent.
Queries positioned between 6th and 15th, which are in the so-called “striking distance” and can be optimized to reach the first page.

It may be useful at this point to elaborate on the terminology we find in this tool.

The number of clicks represents the amount of times users selected a result linked to our site from the search results. This metric is a direct indicator of the effectiveness of our snippet (the title and description that appear in SERPs) and perceived relevance to the search query. In short, it tells us how attractive our organic result is. A low number of clicks can be associated with problems related to the snippet itself. Titles or descriptions that are unattractive, or that do not properly reflect the users’ intent, can discourage clicking, even if the page ranks well in the results. For example, if a page targets the keyword “SEO strategies 2024” but receives few clicks, it may need to rephrase the title to make it more appealing, adding terms such as “comprehensive guide” or “essential tools” that can communicate immediate value. Similarly, a meta description that emphasizes the practical benefits of the content can make a difference, especially in a competitive environment. Analyzing the number of clicks should always be accompanied by thinking about the quality of the queries detected, the relevance of the snippet, and the competition for that specific keyword.
Impressions indicate the number of times a page was displayed in search results, regardless of whether it generated clicks. This metric is a measure of our site’s overall visibility for specific queries and can help us understand the effectiveness of indexing and ranking. A high number of impressions, combined with few clicks, often signals that the ranking is far from the top results shown to users (e.g., in the top three positions) or that the snippet is not attractive enough. In such situations, we can focus on two main goals: improve the content to push it to a more visible position or optimize the title and description to maximize the click-through rate generated by impressions. For example, adjusting snippet language or enriching page content with more relevant answers to user queries can help supplement and refine coverage.
Average CTR is a strategic metric that represents the ratio of the number of clicks to total impressions. This value measures the effectiveness of results in capturing user interest and transferring it from the SERP to the site. A low CTR often indicates that snippets are not aligned with expectations or search intent, or that the proposed content does not clearly answer implicit questions posed by users. To improve CTR, it is essential to take action on both meta titles and meta descriptions. Titles that contain relevant and attractive keywords or meta descriptions that emphasize practical benefits and include direct calls to action can significantly increase engagement. For example, testing variations in language (such as “Discover…” or “Essential Guide to…”) through A/B experiments can provide valuable data on what works best for our audience. Regular CTR analysis can also reveal opportunities for improvement in specific areas, such as queries with already good visibility but not fully exploited, or URLs with high average position and impressions that do not translate into clicks.
Finally, average position shows us the overall ranking of our site or content for a given query. It is a metric that combines data over time and represents an average of the positions occupied by a page in SERPs. This metric is useful for quickly identifying which pages are in the so-called “striking distance”-between sixth and fifteenth positions-and which, with targeted interventions, can climb to the first page. Pages with an average position that can be improved can be optimized by enriching content with related keywords, improving internal linking to those pages or working on overall authority with link building strategies. In addition, monitoring rankings over time allows you to highlight any ranking losses, flagging instances where stronger competitors may have taken away visibility, requiring timely action to regain ground.

Integrating performance monitoring into your workflow means checking these reports regularly (at least once a week) and identifying significant changes to include in optimization strategies.

URL checking

URL checking is an indispensable function that allows us to analyze the status of an individual page on the site. Once a URL is entered in the dedicated field, this feature provides information on:

Indexing status: whether the URL is present in Google’s index or not.
Usability on mobile devices: any problems that impair the user experience on smartphones or tablets.
Indexing request: the ability to manually submit a URL to Google crawlers, which is very useful for notifying updates or new content.

In addition, URL checking allows us to view the most recent version of the indexed page, checking details such as rendered HTML code and any errors. This is especially important for checking the correct implementation of structured data or meta information critical for ranking.

Indexing Status

The indexing section provides a comprehensive overview of what Google actually manages to include in its site index. This report is divided into four main categories:

Valid pages: indexed content with no errors.
Valid pages with warnings: Indexed URLs that may have minimal issues, but should be viewed.
Excluded pages: content that has not been included in the index, often due to deliberate settings or technical problems.
Pages with errors: URLs blocked by critical errors that prevent indexing (e.g. 404 or problems in redirects).

Each category allows you to drill down into the individual URLs involved through specific Google explanations, making the indexing status report a valuable tool for uncovering inefficiencies and improving site coverage in the index. Keeping tabs on this section is critical to ensure that all strategic content is uncovered and enhanced.

Link Reports

Links, both internal and external, play a crucial role in determining site visibility. Google Search Console offers a section devoted entirely to link reports, broken down into the following data:

External links: the number of backlinks received from other sites, with indications of which domains send them and which URLs are linked to the most.
Internal links: an overview of the internal structure of the site, useful for ensuring that all important pages are linked together.
Most used anchor texts: analysis of anchor texts associated with backlinks, to assess consistency with content and target keywords.

These reports help us identify any problems (e.g., low-quality backlinks or missing internal links) and optimize site navigation to improve user experience and PageRank distribution.

Improvement reports

Another useful feature of Google Search Console concerns technical improvement opportunities that can be identified through optimization reports. These include:

CoreWeb Vitals: key metrics that measure page speed and stability (such as LCP, INP and CLS).
Structured Data: verification and management of issues related to rich snippets, such as FAQs or breadcrumbs.
Usability on mobile devices identification of errors that prevent optimal viewing on mobile, such as hard-to-click buttons or non-responsive content.

These reports are a starting point for improving both user experience and technical SEO, two increasingly important factors in achieving good rankings.

The latest news from Google Search Console

We said it a few paragraphs ago: Google Search Console continues to evolve to meet the increasingly complex needs of those who manage websites. In 2024 alone, for example, the platform introduced major updates and changes that expanded its usefulness, improved usability, and simplified monitoring of specific areas, such as technical SEO and activities related to e-Commerce or editorial content.

Major new features include the arrival of personalized recommendations, the reorganization of page experience reporting , and new functions designed to increase visibility opportunities on Google Shopping and Discover.

One of the most notable innovations is the introduction of personalized recommendations, which make Search Console even more proactive and accessible. This feature is designed to help site owners quickly identify areas for improvement by providing specific suggestions based on data collected by the platform. Recommendations can range from content optimization (e.g., the ability to improve headlines to increase CTR) to troubleshooting technical issues that may hinder indexing or user experience.

This feature, accessible directly from the main dashboard, is a significant step forward especially for those without advanced technical skills. Indeed, suggestions are presented in an understandable and prioritized manner, allowing immediate action on the most critical issues. It is important to note that not all properties will always have recommendations available: the system only flags them when it detects actual opportunities for improvement.

Another major update concerns the restructuring of the page experience report, which has been split into separate reports for Core Web Vitals and for HTTPS. This decision to separate the data meets the goal of simplifying the platform interface, allowing each key aspect to be monitored in a more direct and detailed manner.

In the Core Web Vitals report, we can continue to examine key user experience metrics such as Largest Contentful Paint (loading speed), Cumulative Layout Shift (visual stability), and Interaction to Next Paint (responsiveness). This approach helps to identify and resolve critical technical issues that slow down the site or create frustration in navigation. In parallel, the HTTPS report focuses exclusively on the security status of indexed pages, flagging any problems related to invalid SSL certificates, HTTP/HTTPS URL conflicts, or incorrect configurations.

This update not only reduces the confusion that could have resulted from the previous unified page experience report, but also allows for better focus on specific areas that contribute, in different ways, to overall site performance.

The new features introduced for e-Commerce and editorial content position Google Search Console as an even more strategic ally for those who run online stores or create targeted content for mobile audiences. Thanks to greater integration with Google Merchant Center, the platform now offers the ability to directly monitor the performance of product cards associated with our site, providing more accurate control over parameters such as the effectiveness of structured shopping data and digital storefront optimization.

For editorial content, on the other hand, analysis related to performance on Google Discover, the dynamic feed that shows users personalized articles based on their interests, continues to expand. Monitoring in this section allows you to assess which content is best at capturing attention and identify useful patterns for replicating winning strategies.

How to use Google Search Console to improve SEO

Google Search Console plays an important function in optimizing SEO strategy, thanks to its ability to provide detailed data on site performance and highlight critical aspects that need action. The platform is no longer just a monitoring tool, but is trying to evolve into a proactive tool that allows us to improve rankings, visibility and conversions – although it has not yet reached the level of specificity and usefulness of classic SEO tools.

In any case, the ability to analyze content behavior with respect to search queries, identify technical anomalies and implement targeted strategies based on reliable data is definitely a crucial aspect of a complete control over site performance, and there are some ways and best practices to be aware of to make the most of these tools.

Identify optimization opportunities

We’ve already mentioned it: one of the key applications of Google Search Console is its ability to uncover growth opportunities that might otherwise go unnoticed. The Performance Report analysis allows you to identify keywords and pages that can be improved to generate more organic traffic and increase user engagement.

With the data available in GSC, we can identify pages or queries with many impressions but few clicks by analyzing whether the meta title is engaging enough and in line with search intent and whether the meta description clearly highlights benefits or directly addresses user needs. For example, if a page on “schema markup for SEO” appears frequently for queries such as “Schema.org what is it,” but has a low CTR, we can make the title more explicit, for example with “Schema.org: a practical guide to improving SEO.” Also, we can update the meta description to emphasize what the user can get from reading the page.

Another of the most useful tools of the performance report is the ability to filter data according to different parameters, such as:

Search queries: we can find keywords that drive traffic and those that have a high volume of impressions but few clicks, thus identifying specific optimization opportunities.
Pages: identify URLs that could be strengthened for specific keywords.
Devices and Countries: allows us to adapt strategies based on user behavior in different contexts. For example, if we find that a page receives a lot of impressions from mobile users but has a lower CTR than the desktop version, it is a sign that the user experience on mobile, as well as the snippet, requires improvement.

By applying these filters, we can segment our audience and devise highly customized strategies, such as creating mobile-optimized pages focused on localized search intent.

Manage technical errors

Removing technical barriers that hinder indexing or reduce the quality of the user experience is one of the most important activities to achieve solid SEO results. Google Search Console supports us in detecting these issues, providing tools to correct errors accurately and bring the site in line with the standards required by Google.

The indexing report allows us to identify which pages on our site are not being indexed and why. Errors such as page not found (404), incorrect redirects or blockages resulting from rules in robots.txt files can seriously affect the visibility of the site. Each problem is clearly reported, with details guiding resolution action. For example, if a page that is critical to our business (such as a product sheet or landing page) is “detected but not currently indexed,” we can drill down with URL checking and see if there are structural errors, duplicate content, or perceived poor quality. Once the problem is resolved, we can use the manual indexing request function to expedite the page’s re-indexing.

Core Web Vitals are key metrics that measure the quality of user interaction with a page. A practical example: if the report indicates Largest Contentful Paint problems for specific pages in our e-commerce, we can take action by reducing image size or implementing a strategy to preload core content. Google Search Console links directly to the PageSpeed Insights report , which offers specific recommendations for optimizing each metric.

Another technical aspect that Google Search Console helps us with is the implementation of structured data, which is critical for enabling rich results (such as FAQs or reviews). Schema.org-related errors are reported accurately in the platform, allowing us to make immediate corrections to ensure that Google interprets the content correctly.

What Google Search Console data says.

A crucial aspect of understanding the value of Google Search Console is knowing what data it provides, how it collects it, and how to interpret it correctly. The platform is the only tool that provides us with direct and exclusive data provided by Google itself, which means it offers an authentic, near real-time view of site performance against organic search. However, this data needs to be read and contextualized, especially when compared with that of advanced SEO tools such as SEOZoom, which have a different approach to collecting and presenting information.

Specifically, Google Search Console stands out for its ability to provide real data based on Google’s organic search results, collected directly through users’ interaction with site pages in SERPs. GSC’s access to site data is based on two main elements:

Google’s index and crawl logs: the platform collects data as crawlers (Googlebots) crawl the site, constantly updating the information in the SERPs.
User interaction: performance data represent real actions, such as clicks and views, and are therefore an accurate representation of the behavior of users searching for content on Google.

One important aspect is that Google Search Console only records and displays information related to organic search, excluding data from sources such as advertisements (Google Ads) or other search engines.

Also, it is good to know Google Search Console does not provide real-time data, but the reports usually reflect a history with a lag of a few days. In addition, the data is limited to the last 16 months, which makes it essential to download monitoring data periodically for analysis over long time windows.

The difference with data from SEOZoom and other SEO tools.

From these characteristics alone, it is already clear how and why tools such as SEOZoom and Google Search Console differ significantly in their approach to collecting and interpreting data about a site’s visibility in search engines.

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On the one hand, Google Search Console offers data based on real user interactions in Google SERPs, returning an authentic and accurate picture of the queries that generated clicks, impressions, and metrics related exclusively to organic search on Google’s search engine. On the other hand, SEOZoom is based on a statistical and predictive approach , built on constant analysis of SERPs and large keyword databases. Using this framework, it is able to estimate a site’s potential visibility and calculate expected organic traffic, based on both user behavior and Click-Through Rate projections for the monitored keywords.

Another major difference is SEOZoom’s predictive capabilities, which, in addition to monitoring the performance of existing keywords and content, proactively suggests targeted strategies. Through simulations and advanced analysis of behavior in SERPs, it offers guidance on which areas to develop, which keywords to intercept, and which content to optimize to improve overall performance. This type of strategic planning is less present in Google Search Console, which focuses primarily on analyzing collected data and actual metrics, returning a true picture of the interaction between users and the site, with no features dedicated to future projection or planning.

In summary, while Google Search Console provides information about what is happening in concrete and real terms within Google’s SERPs, tools such as SEOZoom broaden the landscape with a predictive, simulative, and strategic focus, offering proactive data and planning models that allow specific actions to be defined to boost a site’s performance.

FAQs on Google Search Console: answers to frequently asked questions.

Google Search Console frequently raises questions about specific features, techniques, and applications. To clarify each aspect, here are the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions that users ask about this tool, useful both for those who are approaching the platform for the first time and for those who want to delve deeper into its functionalities.

How to check if a site has been indexed by Google?

There are two main methods to check if a site or page is indexed:

Use the URL Checker in Google Search Console. By entering the desired address, the platform provides detailed information about the indexing status of the page.
Use the search command on Google itself, such as site:yousite.com. This returns a list of all indexed pages for that domain.

If a page is not indexed, Google Search Console can help identify the cause, such as technical errors, duplicate content, or unintentional application of the “noindex” tag.

What are search query reports used for?

Query reports show the keywords that generate traffic to the site through Google organic search . This data helps us to:

Identify the top queries that drive impressions, clicks and traffic.
Evaluate performance with metrics such as CTR (Click-Through Rate) and average position.
Plan content optimization strategies, improving titles, descriptions and keyword focus.

For example, if a query brings many impressions but few clicks, you can overhaul the page snippet to make it more engaging or relevant.

How can I submit a sitemap to Google?

Sending an XML sitemap is one of the key steps to ensure that Google crawls and indexes all the important pages on your site. Here’s how to do it:

Log into Google Search Console.
Go to the Sitemap section from the left side menu.
Enter the full URL of the sitemap file (for example: https://www.yoursiteo.com/sitemap.xml).
Click Submit.

Google will scan the Sitemap and provide a summary, highlighting any errors in the included URLs. It is advisable to update the Sitemap regularly when new content is added.

What technical errors can be corrected with GSC?

Google Search Console allows you to identify and fix many technical problems, including:

404 errors (pages not found).
Errors in redirects (such as infinite loops or incorrect redirects).
Problems in robots.txt rules, which may prevent Googlebot from scanning some pages.
URLs blocked by noindex tags.
Content generating crawling or indexing errors. With the detailed reports provided by the platform, you can quickly understand the nature of the problem and adopt targeted solutions.

How to monitor problems related to Core Web Vitals?

Google Search Console has a dedicated report on Core Web Vitals, where metrics such as loading speed, visual stability and page responsiveness are analyzed. Common problems such as slow Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) or high Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) are reported with structured details. You can access suggestions to solve them through built-in tools such as PageSpeed Insights.

What is structured data and how to leverage it in GSC?

Structured data (e.g., Schema.org) are code snippets that allow Google to better understand page content and enable advanced features in the SERP, such as rich results (FAQs, reviews, breadcrumbs). Google Search Console flags errors or incomplete implementations in structured data and provides recommendations to correct them.

How to handle “striking distance” queries?

Striking distance queries are those that are in “close to success” positions, typically between 6th and 15th position in search results. Using GSC’s performance report, we can identify these keywords and improve their ranking through:

Content optimization.
The revision of meta title and description.
Better internal link structure to push the content into SERPs.

This is a similar concept to SEOZoom’s “Pages with Potential.”

Why do pages appear as “Excluded” in the indexing report?

Pages can appear as excluded for various reasons, including:

Voluntarily blocked content via noindex tags .
Duplicates of other URLs, for which Google has chosen an alternative canonical version.
Redirects diverted to other pages. For each group of excluded URLs, GSC provides a clear explanation for you to decide how to handle them.

How to use Google Search Console to improve local SEO?

To optimize a site’s performance geographically, GSC offers data that can be segmented by region and device. We can:

Filter traffic by country or region of interest.
Identify local queries, such as with terms related to specific cities or areas.
Analyze performance on mobile devices, critical to an effective local strategy.

What is the difference between Google Analytics and Google Search Console?

Google Analytics and Google Search Console are complementary analytical tools, but with different goals:

Google Search Console analyzes what happens before users arrive on the site: visibility in SERPs, search queries, technical issues.
Google Analytics, on the other hand, measures user behavior within the site: time spent on pages, paths followed, conversions.

Used together, these tools provide a comprehensive view of site performance.

Is it possible to remove a URL from search results with GSC?

Yes, Google Search Console offers a tool to request temporary removal of URLs from search results. Simply go to the “Removals” section, indicate the URL, and submit the request. This approach is useful for managing outdated content or pages that are no longer valid, but you should also apply permanent solutions such as redirects or editing robots.txt files to ensure long-term management.