The question of how to read Search Console usually comes up after something has gone wrong: traffic dropped, a new page isn't showing up in search, or an email arrived from Google with the subject "issue detected." Yet this tool is far more valuable when you glance at it once a month before problems appear. In this article we explain where a manager who isn't an SEO specialist should look in Search Console, and what they don't need to worry about.
Search Console is different from Google Analytics. Analytics shows what happens after someone enters your site; Search Console shows the part before they enter, that is, what happens in Google search.
The performance report: four numbers, read correctly
This is the first screen you see, and it shows four numbers:
- Impressions: Your page was listed in someone's search results. That doesn't mean it was seen; it may have been far down the page.
- Clicks: The person clicked the result and came to your site.
- Click-through rate (CTR): Clicks as a share of impressions.
- Average position: Your average ranking in the results.
The most common interpretation mistake is reading average position on its own. If your site starts appearing at position 50 for many new, loosely related searches, average position "gets worse," but visibility has actually increased. So always read position together with impressions and clicks.
Below the chart there are tabs: Queries (which searches), Pages, Countries and Devices. The most valuable use is selecting a page and seeing which queries it is found for. Queries you didn't expect point to content opportunities.
Separate brand and non-brand searches
People who search for your company name already know you. To understand whether the site is bringing in new customers, use the query filter to look at queries that do not contain your company name. If non-brand clicks grow over time, your content and technical work is paying off.
Page indexing: which of your pages does Google know about?
The index is the list of pages Google has stored so it can show them in search. A page that isn't in the index doesn't appear in search.
This report splits pages into "indexed" and "not indexed" and lists the reasons pages weren't indexed. Not every line here is a problem:
| Status | What it usually means | Should you worry? |
|---|---|---|
| Alternate page with proper canonical tag | The same content exists at another address, and the right one was chosen | Usually not |
| Page with redirect | The old address redirects to the new one | No |
| Not found (404) | The page was deleted | Yes, if it is an important page |
| Crawled, currently not indexed | Google saw it but didn't find it worth adding | Yes, for important pages |
| Discovered, currently not indexed | Google knows the address but hasn't visited yet | Yes, if it takes a long time |
| Excluded by noindex tag | The page is deliberately kept out of the index | Yes, if it was added by mistake |
Following this report is especially important after a site redesign. Failing to redirect old addresses to new ones can wipe out search visibility built up over years in a short time.
URL inspection: checking a single page
When you type an address from your site into the search box at the top, Google tells you what it knows about that page: whether it is in the index, when it was last crawled, whether it looks mobile-friendly and which address it treats as "canonical." For an important new or updated page, you can request indexing from here. It is a request, not a guarantee; using it over and over for every page is unnecessary.
Sitemaps, experience and security
- Sitemaps: The file that tells Google the list of pages on your site. It is submitted once; checking now and then that its status is "Success" is enough.
- Page experience and Core Web Vitals: Real-user speed data measured by Google. If any page groups are marked "Poor," pass them on to the technical team.
- Security issues and manual actions: These should normally be empty. If you see an entry here, it is a priority; the site may have been compromised, or something that violates Google's rules may have been detected.
Monthly Search Console checklist
- Have non-brand clicks been rising or falling over the last 3 months?
- Are the 10 pages with the most clicks the ones you would expect?
- Are your important pages in the index?
- Is there a sudden rise in pages not indexed?
- Is the sitemap status "Success"?
- Are the security issues and manual actions sections empty?
- Do more than one person (at least one person at the company plus the technical team) have access to Search Console?
The last item matters: if the Search Console account is left only in the hands of a former employee or a former agency, getting access back takes time. The company should be the owner of the property.
How we do it at Globya
On the sites we build or maintain, we connect Search Console to the company's own Google account, and we work as an authorized user. In site migrations and redesigns, we plan the redirects for old addresses from the start and monitor the indexing report in the weeks after launch. Growing search visibility is the focus of our SEO and GEO service, while maintaining the site's technical health falls under hosting and maintenance. To read Search Console data together with GA4, see our article on GA4 essential reports.
Frequently asked questions
Why doesn't the number of clicks in Search Console match organic traffic in Analytics?
The two tools count different things in different ways. Search Console measures clicks in search, while Analytics measures sessions on the site; visitors who don't give cookie consent may be missing from Analytics.
How far back can we see the data?
According to Google's documentation, the performance report keeps about 16 months of data. If you want longer comparisons, you need to export the data regularly.
What should we do about pages marked "Crawled, currently not indexed"?
First, check whether the page is really valuable. Thin, repetitive or very similar content usually ends up in this group. Strengthening the content or merging similar pages is often the solution.
We don't know who has access to our Search Console account. What should we do?
Reach us at +90 850 432 55 13 or through our contact page, and we will help you put access in the company's name.
The Globya assistant is online 24/7; it answers right away and passes your question to the team if needed.