Google Search Console

❧

Wikipedia

Google Search Console
Type of site
Webmaster tools
OwnerGoogle
URLsearch.google.com/search-console
Commercialyes
Launched2006; 19 years ago (2006)

Google Search Console (formerly Google Webmaster Tools) is a web service by Google which allows webmasters to check indexing status, search queries, crawling errors and optimize visibility of their websites.[1]

Until 20 May 2015, the service was called Google Webmaster Tools.[2] In January 2018, Google introduced a new version of the search console, with changes to the user interface. In September 2019, old Search Console reports, including the home and dashboard pages, were removed.[3]

Since 2019, Search Console has supported Domain properties, which combine all protocol and subdomain variations (such as http, https, www, and non-www) into a single property, simplifying site management and reporting.[4]

Features

The service includes tools that let webmasters

  • Submit and check a sitemap.[5]
  • Check the crawl rate, and view statistics about when Googlebot accesses a particular site.[6]
  • Receive alerts when Google encounters indexing, spam, or other issues on your site.[7]
  • Show you which sites link to your website.
  • Write and check a robots.txt file to help discover pages that are blocked in robots.txt accidentally.[8]
  • List internal and external pages that link to the website.
  • Get a list of links which Googlebot had difficulty in crawling, including the error that Googlebot received when accessing the URLs in question.
  • Set a preferred domain (e.g. prefer example.com over www.example.com or vice versa), which determines how the site URL is displayed in SERPs.
  • Highlight to Google Search elements of structured data which are used to enrich search hit entries (released in December 2012 as Google Data Highlighter).[9]
  • View site speed reports from the Chrome User Experience Report.
  • Page Experience Report including - Core Web Vitals, and HTTPS.[10]
  • Receive notifications from Google for manual penalties.[11][12]
  • Provide access to an API to add, change and delete listings and list crawl errors.[13]
  • Check the security issues if there are any with the website. (Hacked Site or Malware Attacks)
  • Add or remove the property owners and associates of the web property.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Linking Google Analytics to Webmaster Tools". Google Developers. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  2. ↑ "Announcing Google Search Console - the new Webmaster Tools". Retrieved 2015-05-21.
  3. ↑ "Saying goodbye to the old Search Console". Retrieved 2019-09-10.
  4. ↑ "Domain properties in Search Console". Google Search Central Blog. Retrieved 2025-10-26.
  5. ↑ "SEO Starter Guide: The Basics | Google Search Central". Google Developers. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  6. ↑ "Crawl Stats report - Search Console Help". support.google.com. Retrieved 2023-04-05.
  7. ↑ "About Search Console - Search Console Help". support.google.com. Retrieved 2023-09-02.
  8. ↑ "How To Use Search Console | Google Search Central". Google Developers. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  9. ↑ Boudreaux, Ryan (2013-06-18). "How to use Google Data Highlighter, part 1". TechRepublic. Retrieved 2015-09-04.
  10. ↑ "Page Experience report - Search Console Help". support.google.com. Retrieved 2023-04-05.
  11. ↑ DeMers, Jayson. "3 Steps to Take When You Suspect an Algorithmic Penalty From Google". searchenginejournal.com. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  12. ↑ Cutts, Matt. "View manual webspam actions in Webmaster Tools". Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  13. ↑ "Webmaster Tools API | Google Developers". Google Developers. Retrieved 2015-06-02.