What is Google Search Console and what is it for?
First steps in Google Search Console, verifying your site and understanding the dashboard - in plain language, step by step. If you want to know how Google sees your website, this article is for you.
Google Search Console is one of the most useful free tools you can use as a website owner - and yet most people either don't know about it, or they add their site and never open it again. This article shows you exactly what it is, how to set it up, and what you see inside once you're in.
Google Search Console is available at search.google.com/search-console - you can register for free with a Google account.
What is Google Search Console?
Google Search Console (abbreviated: GSC) is a free tool maintained by Google for website owners. The idea is simple: it shows you how Google and users see your website during a search query.
Specifically, GSC answers the following questions:
Before 2015, Google Search Console was known as Google Webmaster Tools. If you see this old name somewhere, it refers to the same tool. Today it's referred to as GSC or Search Console.
What is Google Search Console for - concrete examples
Instead of abstract definitions, let's look at the specific situations where GSC helps:
Example 1 - Why am I getting no organic traffic?
If you have a website but almost nobody finds it through Google, GSC shows you whether the problem is at the indexing stage (Google can't find your pages), with the keywords (you appear in searches but at bad positions), or with the click-through rate (you have a good position but nobody clicks).
Example 2 - Traffic suddenly dropped on a page
If the traffic to a specific blog post or subpage has dropped suddenly, GSC shows you which keywords that page was appearing for previously and at what position - so you can see exactly what changed.
Example 3 - Getting new content indexed
If you've published a new article, with GSC's URL Inspection tool you can request Google to index the page, instead of waiting weeks for Googlebot to find the new URL on its own.
GSC vs. Google Analytics - what's the difference?
This is one of the most common questions: if I already have Google Analytics, why do I need Search Console too? The two tools measure completely different things, and both are necessary.
| What does it look at? | Google Search Console | Google Analytics 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | What happens BEFORE the click | What happens AFTER the click |
| Data source | Google search engine data | Website behavioral data |
| Keywords | You can see them exactly | You can't see them - "not provided" |
| Technical errors | Indexing and speed-related errors | Does not show technical errors |
| User behavior | Does not show user behavior | Page views, conversions |
| Historical data | 16 months | Depends on retention settings |
GSC and GA4 can be connected to each other - a separate article in this series will cover that. After connecting them, you'll also be able to see search data inside GA4, giving you a much more complete picture of your visitors' journey.
Verification step by step
Google Search Console only shows data once you prove that the website actually belongs to you. This is called verification (or ownership confirmation). There are several methods available. The most common ones are shown below:
The first step: choose whether you're adding a Domain property or a URL prefix property. Where possible, Google recommends the Domain version.
Go to search.google.com/search-console and sign in with the Google account you want to use to manage your website.
Domain property (recommended): covers the entire domain (e.g. mindiaries.com), including the www and non-www versions, and both http/https variants. URL prefix: covers only a specific URL (e.g. https://mindiaries.com).
If you chose Domain property, Google provides a TXT record that you need to add at your domain registrar (e.g. GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap). This is the most reliable method and also covers all subdomains.
If you chose URL prefix, the simplest method is the HTML tag: Google gives you a meta tag that you insert into the <head> section of your website. On WordPress, the Yoast SEO or Rank Math plugin handles this for you without any code.
Verification usually happens immediately with a DNS record, and within a few minutes with an HTML tag. After that, you need to wait 2-3 days for the first data to appear.
If you accidentally delete the DNS record, Google loses the verification and data collection stops. Always make sure DNS settings are saved before modifying anything at your domain registrar.
The dashboard - what you see after logging in
If you're entering GSC for the first time and your domain has been verified for a few days, you'll be greeted by a screen like this:
The GSC Overview screen divides data into three main blocks: performance, indexing, and page experience.
In the left-hand navigation menu you'll find the following main sections:
Understanding the data - what does it mean exactly?
The GSC Performance report contains 4 main metrics. Many people confuse them, but it's important to understand exactly what each one measures:
At the top of the Performance report you'll see the four main metrics. The default time period is the last 3 months. You can change this to 16 months, or compare different time periods.
GSC data is not 100% precise. This is not a bug. A few known limitations: (1) Keywords with fewer than 10 impressions don't appear in the list, (2) Personal search history affects positions, (3) Data typically updates with a 2-3 day delay. It's excellent for trend analysis, but don't expect perfectly exact numbers.
What to do first in GSC?
If you've just verified your website, here's the recommended order to follow:
Go to Indexing > Sitemaps and paste in your sitemap URL (usually: yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml). This helps Google find and index all of your pages.
Go to Indexing > Pages. Check whether there are any pages Google hasn't indexed, and if so, what the reason is. The most common reason: "Discovered - currently not indexed" - this means Google knows it exists but hasn't shown it yet.
If your site isn't brand new, in the Performance report you can already see which keywords you appear for. Filter to pages in positions 3-10 - these are the ones most easily pushed up through content optimization.
Under Settings > Associations you can connect GSC to GA4. After that, you'll also see search data in GA4, giving you a much more complete picture of your visitors.
This is the first article in a multi-part series
In the mindiaries.com Google Tools series, after GSC comes complete guides to Google Analytics 4, Google Business Profile, Google Ads, Google Tag Manager, and Google Trends. Every article with the same level of detail, data, and screenshots - so you actually understand what you're doing, not just copying steps.
Frequently asked questions
Useful external resources
Official documentation and further reading: Google Search Console official help - GSC developer documentation - Open Search Console
