Google Search Console Section
What each metric in the Google Search Console section means and how to interpret organic search visibility.
The Google Search Console section shows how the website is performing in Google organic search: how often it appears, how often people click, and which queries and pages are driving traffic.
Summary metrics
| Metric | What it means | Good or bad? |
|---|---|---|
| Total clicks | Clicks from Google Search to the website | Higher is better |
| Total impressions | Times the website appeared in Google Search results | Higher means more visibility |
| Average CTR | Clicks ÷ impressions as a percentage | Higher is better; typical range 2–10% depending on position |
| Average position | Average ranking position across all queries | Lower number is better (position 1 is top) |
All metrics include a percentage change versus the comparison period.
Average position explained
Average position is a weighted average of where the website ranked across all queries it appeared for. Position 1 means the top result. A position of 15–20 means the website is typically appearing on page 2, which receives very few clicks.
Improving average position — particularly from page 2 to page 1 — has a dramatic effect on clicks even with the same number of impressions.
Top queries
The top 10 search queries driving the most clicks. Useful for:
- Understanding what users are actually searching for before finding the site
- Identifying keywords with high impressions but low CTR (potential for title/description optimisation)
- Spotting branded vs non-branded traffic split
Top pages
The top 10 pages driving the most organic clicks. Combined with query data, this shows which content is performing well in search and which may need attention.
Data processing lag
Google Search Console data has a 2–3 day lag. For daily reports, ReportsMate automatically adjusts the query period back by 3 days to ensure data is available. Weekly and monthly reports are not affected.
Common questions
Impressions are high but clicks are very low The website is appearing in search results but users are not clicking. This usually means the page titles and meta descriptions are not compelling enough compared to other results, or the position is too low (page 2+) to attract clicks.
Average position improved but clicks dropped This can happen if the total number of impressions also dropped (fewer searches for those queries in the period), or if there was a seasonal pattern. Compare the impression count alongside position to understand the full picture.
Daily report shows zero This is expected if the report covers very recent dates. GSC data takes 2–3 days to process. ReportsMate shifts daily dates back automatically to compensate, but if the property has very low traffic, zero data may be accurate.