How long does it take for GSC to show data?

Performance data typically appears within 24-48 hours, but can take up to 2-3 days. Coverage and URL inspection data updates more frequently, often within a few hours.

Why are my impressions high but clicks low?

High impressions with low clicks usually means low CTR. Check your average position - if you rank on page 2-3, few users will click. Improve rankings or optimize titles/descriptions to boost CTR.

What's the difference between submitted and indexed URLs?

Submitted URLs are those you listed in your sitemap. Indexed URLs are those Google actually crawled and added to its index. A big gap means crawl/indexing issues.

Should I request indexing for every new page?

No need if you have a proper sitemap and good internal linking. Use URL Inspection's 'Request Indexing' for urgent updates or important new pages.

How do I fix 'Crawled - currently not indexed'?

This often means low quality or duplicate content. Improve content quality, add more internal links, ensure proper canonicals, and make sure the page provides unique value.

Google Search Console Guide

Google Search Console (GSC) is the essential tool for monitoring your site's search performance, indexing status, and technical issues. Master it to improve SEO systematically.

1) What is Google Search Console?

GSC is a free tool from Google that lets you:

Monitor how Google crawls and indexes your site
See which search queries bring traffic
Identify and fix technical SEO issues
Submit sitemaps and request indexing
Track Core Web Vitals and mobile usability
Analyze backlinks and internal linking

Unlike Google Analytics (which tracks user behavior on your site), GSC focuses on how your site appears in Google Search.

2) Why GSC Matters for SEO

GSC provides data you can't get anywhere else:

Real search data: See actual queries people used to find your site
Indexing insights: Know exactly which pages Google has indexed (or why they haven't)
Early warnings: Get alerts for coverage errors, security issues, manual actions
Performance tracking: Monitor Core Web Vitals directly from Google's perspective

Bottom line: if you care about Google search traffic, GSC is mandatory.

3) Setup and Verification

To start using GSC, you need to verify ownership of your site.

Step 1: Add Property

Go to search.google.com/search-console and add a new property. Choose:

Domain property: Covers all subdomains and protocols (requires DNS verification)
URL prefix: Single protocol and subdomain (e.g., https://www.example.com)

Recommended: Use Domain property if you control DNS, otherwise use URL prefix.

Step 2: Verify Ownership

Common verification methods:

HTML file upload: Upload a verification file to your root directory
HTML meta tag: Add a meta tag to your homepage <head>
DNS record: Add a TXT record to your domain (required for Domain property)
Google Analytics: If GA is already set up with the same Google account
Google Tag Manager: If GTM is installed with the same account

For developers, HTML meta tag is usually the easiest:

html

<meta name="google-site-verification" content="YOUR_VERIFICATION_CODE" />

Step 3: Submit Sitemap

Once verified, submit your sitemap (e.g., https://example.com/sitemap.xml) under Sitemaps in the left menu.

4) Key Features

4.1) Performance Report

Shows how your site performs in Google Search over the last 16 months.

Clicks: How many times users clicked your result
Impressions: How many times your URL appeared in search results
CTR (Click-Through Rate): Clicks / Impressions. Higher CTR = better title/description.
Average Position: Your average ranking for queries. Lower number = better.

How to use it:

Filter by query to see which keywords drive traffic
Filter by page to see how individual URLs perform
Compare date ranges to track growth or declines
Find queries where you rank 11-20 (page 2) — easy opportunities to optimize

4.2) Coverage (Index Status)

Shows which URLs Google has indexed and any indexing errors.

Four categories:

Error: Pages with critical issues (404, server error, etc.)
Valid with warnings: Indexed but with minor issues
Valid: Successfully indexed
Excluded: Not indexed (could be intentional or a problem)

Common exclusion reasons:

Noindex tag: Intentional (robots meta)
Crawled - currently not indexed: Low quality or duplicate content
Duplicate, Google chose different canonical: Google picked a different URL as canonical
Blocked by robots.txt: Check your robots.txt file

4.3) Sitemaps

View submitted sitemaps and their indexing status.

See how many URLs were discovered vs. indexed
Get errors if sitemap has issues (invalid XML, unreachable URLs, etc.)
Submit multiple sitemaps (main, news, image, video)

Tip: If your sitemap has 1000 submitted URLs but only 100 indexed, investigate Coverage report for issues.

4.4) URL Inspection

Inspect individual URLs to see:

Whether the URL is indexed
Coverage status and indexing errors
Canonical URL Google chose
Mobile usability issues
Structured data (Schema) detected

You can also click "Test Live URL" to see how Googlebot renders the page right now (useful for debugging CSR/SSR issues).

After fixing issues, use "Request Indexing" to ask Google to re-crawl. Note: this doesn't guarantee immediate indexing, but it helps.

4.5) Mobile Usability

Reports mobile-specific issues:

Text too small to read
Clickable elements too close
Content wider than screen
Mobile viewport not set

Fix these to improve mobile rankings (Google uses mobile-first indexing).

4.6) Core Web Vitals

Shows LCP, INP, and CLS performance for your URLs, categorized as Good / Needs Improvement / Poor.

Data is grouped by similar pages (e.g., all blog posts)
Based on real user data (CrUX report)
Click through to see specific URLs with issues

For more details, check our Core Web Vitals guide.

4.7) Links Report

Shows:

External links: Which sites link to you and which pages they link to
Internal links: Which pages on your site link to each other

Use this to:

Identify your most-linked pages (often your strongest content)
Find orphan pages (pages with few/no internal links)
Monitor backlink growth

5) Troubleshooting Common Issues

Issue: "Crawled - currently not indexed"

Cause: Google crawled the page but decided not to index it (low quality, duplicate content, thin content).

Fix:

Improve content quality and uniqueness
Add more internal links to the page
Check if canonical is set correctly
Ensure the page provides unique value

Issue: "Submitted URL not found (404)"

Cause: A URL in your sitemap returns 404.

Fix: Remove the URL from your sitemap or fix the broken link.

Issue: "Duplicate, Google chose different canonical"

Cause: Your page has a canonical tag pointing to itself, but Google thinks another URL is the canonical version (usually due to near-duplicate content).

Fix: Either consolidate duplicate pages or use rel=canonical more aggressively. Check URL Inspection to see which URL Google chose.

Issue: "Server error (5xx)"

Cause: Your server returned a 500-level error when Googlebot tried to crawl.

Fix: Check server logs, fix the error, and request re-indexing.

Issue: "Blocked by robots.txt"

Cause: Your robots.txt file blocks Googlebot from accessing the URL.

Fix: Update robots.txt to allow crawling of important pages. Don't block critical CSS/JS needed for rendering.

6) Advanced Tips

Use filters to find quick wins

In Performance report, filter by Position 11-20. These are keywords where you're on page 2 — small improvements can move you to page 1 and drive significant traffic.

Compare date ranges

Compare this month vs. last month (or year-over-year) to spot trends. Look for sudden drops — they often indicate technical issues or algorithm updates.

Export data for deeper analysis

Click "Export" in Performance or Coverage reports to download data as CSV/Excel. Combine with Google Analytics data for full funnel analysis.

Set up email alerts

GSC will email you about critical issues (manual actions, security issues, coverage errors). Make sure alerts go to the right team.

Use Search Console API

For large sites or automated reporting, use the Search Console API to pull data programmatically.

Monitor competitors (if you have access)

If you manage multiple sites, compare performance across properties to identify what works.

FAQ

Common questions about Google Search Console.