Google Search Console is a free tool provided by Google that gives website owners direct visibility into how their site performs in Google Search. Unlike third-party SEO tools, Search Console shows Google's actual view of your site — the queries your pages appear for, the pages Google has indexed, the crawl errors it has encountered, and the Core Web Vitals performance of your pages as measured by real users.
The tool has five major report sections, each serving a distinct diagnostic purpose. Understanding how to use each report — and knowing which workflows to apply to which problems — is the difference between using Search Console as a confirmation tool and using it as an active SEO diagnostic instrument.
The 5 Most Important Search Console Reports
Performance Report
Shows impressions, clicks, CTR, and average position for all queries and pages over a selected date range.
Key uses
- → Filter by page to see which queries drive traffic to each page
- → Identify high-impression, low-CTR pages (title tag / meta description issues)
- → Find keywords ranking in positions 11–20 (page 2 quick wins)
- → Compare performance periods to identify traffic trends
Pro tip
Filter by 'Page' and sort by impressions descending. Pages with high impressions but CTR below 2% are strong candidates for title tag rewrites.
Pages Report (formerly Coverage)
Shows which pages are indexed, which are excluded, and the reasons for exclusion.
Key uses
- → Identify pages that should be indexed but are excluded
- → Diagnose 'Crawled but not indexed' issues (content quality signal)
- → Find pages excluded due to noindex tags, canonical issues, or redirect errors
- → Monitor index growth after publishing new content
Pro tip
'Crawled – currently not indexed' is the most important exclusion reason to investigate. It typically indicates Google has crawled the page but judged the content insufficient for indexing — a content quality or duplication issue.
Core Web Vitals Report
Shows LCP, CLS, and INP performance by URL group, based on real-user field data (CrUX).
Key uses
- → Identify URL groups with 'Poor' or 'Needs Improvement' status
- → Prioritise technical fixes by the number of URLs affected
- → Monitor improvement after implementing fixes
- → Distinguish between mobile and desktop performance issues
Pro tip
Focus on URL groups with the most 'Poor' URLs first. A single template fix (e.g., optimising hero image loading) can resolve issues across hundreds of pages simultaneously.
URL Inspection Tool
Allows you to check the crawl and index status of any individual URL, and request indexing for new or updated pages.
Key uses
- → Confirm a new page has been crawled and indexed
- → Request indexing for newly published or updated pages
- → Check which canonical URL Google has selected for a page
- → View the last crawl date and any crawl errors for a specific URL
Pro tip
After publishing new content or making significant on-page changes, use URL Inspection to request indexing. This can accelerate indexing from weeks to days.
Links Report
Shows the external sites linking to your site (backlinks), the most-linked pages, and the most common anchor text.
Key uses
- → Monitor backlink acquisition over time
- → Identify which pages attract the most external links
- → Check for suspicious or spammy anchor text patterns
- → Identify link-building opportunities by analysing which content attracts links
Pro tip
The Links report is less granular than Ahrefs or Semrush for backlink analysis, but it shows Google's view of your link profile — which is more authoritative than third-party estimates.
5 High-Value Search Console Workflows
Find CTR quick wins
- 1. Open Performance report
- 2. Filter by 'Page' tab
- 3. Sort by Impressions (descending)
- 4. Look for pages with Impressions > 500 and CTR < 2%
- 5. Rewrite title tags and meta descriptions for these pages
Find page 2 keyword opportunities
- 1. Open Performance report
- 2. Filter by 'Query' tab
- 3. Add filter: Position between 11 and 20
- 4. Sort by Impressions (descending)
- 5. Identify the pages ranking for these queries and improve on-page content
Diagnose indexing issues
- 1. Open Pages report
- 2. Click 'Not indexed' tab
- 3. Review each exclusion reason
- 4. Prioritise 'Crawled – currently not indexed' and 'Excluded by noindex tag'
- 5. Investigate and resolve the root cause for each
Monitor Core Web Vitals
- 1. Open Core Web Vitals report
- 2. Switch between Mobile and Desktop views
- 3. Identify URL groups with 'Poor' status
- 4. Click into a URL group to see specific failing URLs
- 5. Pass URLs to developer with specific metric failures
Accelerate indexing of new content
- 1. Publish new page or update existing page
- 2. Open URL Inspection tool
- 3. Enter the page URL
- 4. Click 'Request Indexing'
- 5. Check back in 24–48 hours to confirm indexing
Related Guides
How to Measure SEO Performance →
The full four-tier SEO measurement framework
SEO Reporting: What to Track →
Building a monthly SEO report from Search Console data
Technical SEO Audit Checklist →
Using Search Console data in a full technical audit
Core Web Vitals for SEO →
Understanding the CWV data in Search Console
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Google Search Console used for?
Google Search Console is a free tool that allows website owners to monitor how their site performs in Google Search. It provides data on search impressions, clicks, CTR, and average ranking positions; shows which pages are indexed and which are excluded; reports on Core Web Vitals performance; allows manual URL inspection and indexing requests; and alerts site owners to security issues, manual actions, and crawl errors.
How do I find quick-win SEO opportunities in Search Console?
Filter the Performance report by page, then look for pages with high impressions but low CTR. These pages are appearing in SERPs but not being clicked — rewriting the title tag and meta description can improve CTR without any change in ranking position. A second quick-win method is to filter by position (11–20) to find keywords ranking on page 2.
How often should I check Google Search Console?
A weekly check of the Performance report and a monthly review of the Pages report and Core Web Vitals is sufficient for most businesses. Ensure email alerts are enabled for critical issues. After publishing new content or making significant site changes, use the URL Inspection tool to confirm pages are being crawled and indexed correctly.
Get a Search Console Audit Included in Your SEO Engagement
Every Technical SEO Audit includes a full Search Console diagnostic — identifying indexing issues, CTR quick wins, and Core Web Vitals failures that are costing you rankings.
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