Google has confirmed a logging error in Search Console that has been affecting impression data since 13th May, 2025.
That’s nearly a year of inaccurate data sitting inside one of the most widely used tools in SEO reporting.
Here’s what happened, why it matters more than it might initially seem, and what to do with your data now.
What Google Actually Said About Inaccurate Impression Data
Google’s official statement confirmed:
“A logging error is preventing Search Console from accurately reporting impressions from May 13, 2025 onward. This issue will be resolved over the next few weeks; as a result, you may notice a decrease in impressions in the Search Console Performance report. Clicks and other metrics were not affected by the error, and this issue affected data logging only.”
Clicks were not affected and that’s an important distinction. But impressions were inflated, and that has a knock-on effect that goes beyond the impression number itself.
The CTR Problem Nobody Is Talking About Enough
Click Through Rate is calculated by dividing clicks by impressions.
If impressions were artificially inflated for nearly a year, every CTR figure produced during that period was calculated against an inaccurate baseline. That means CTR appeared lower than it actually was, consistently, across the board, for months.
So, Google stating “Clicks and other metrics were not affected by the error” Is maybe not so accurate.
And this matters for a specific reason.
SEO teams have spent the past year defending lower CTRs in a climate already shaped by zero-click behaviour and AI driven SERP changes. SparkToro’s research found that 58.5% of searches in the US ended without a click in 2024. That context made declining CTR conversations harder to navigate as it was. Inflated impression data since, has made them harder still.
Some of those performance conversations, internal reports, and strategic decisions may need revisiting with fresh context.
A Year Is a Long Time
The scale of this matters. This isn’t a week of skewed data or a minor blip. This is close to twelve months of impression figures that were being used to report performance, track visibility trends, set benchmarks, and inform strategy.
Anyone using Search Console impressions to measure share of voice, evaluate content performance, or report to stakeholders has been working with data that didn’t reflect reality.
The timing adds another layer. This confirmation landed in the middle of the March 2026 Google core update, following the Google Spam Update (which surprisingly to a majority SEO’s) only lasted 19 hours . For SEO teams already managing volatility and uncertainty, the addition of a year long data integrity issue, this timing is significant.
What to Do Now
There are a few practical steps worth taking in light of this:
- Review any CTR benchmarks or targets set since May 2025. These were calculated against inflated impression data and may need to be recalibrated once accurate figures are restored.
- Revisit performance reports that flagged declining CTR. If you or your team used impression based CTR data to explain performance issues or make strategic pivots, those conclusions deserve a second look.
- Use clicks as your anchor metric for now. Google confirmed clicks were unaffected, which makes them the most reliable signal in your Search Console data while the fix rolls out.
- Flag the context in any ongoing reporting. If you’re presenting SEO performance to stakeholders, it’s worth noting the data integrity issue and its potential impact on impression and CTR figures from the affected period.
- Monitor GSC for the correction. Google has said the issue will be resolved over the next few weeks. When impression data normalises, you may see a visible drop in reported impressions, that’s the correction, not a performance decline. (Assuming your website hasn’t been impacted by either the Spam or Core update – understand what to do in a core update whilst we try to navigate the next few weeks of data )
Search Console is the primary source of truth for most SEO reporting. When the data inside it is compromised, decisions made on the back of it carry risk.
This is a good reminder that SEO data should never be read in isolation. Cross-referencing Search Console with other tools, tracking trends rather than absolute numbers, and understanding the context behind the figures has always mattered. This situation reinforces why. Volatile impressions aren’t always down to a bug or an update either. Sometimes two of your own pages are competing for the same term, which is worth ruling out as keyword cannibalisation before drawing conclusions.
Clicks are intact and strategy based on impressions alone deserves a review.
If you have questions about how this affects your reporting or want a second opinion on your Search Console data, get in touch, connect with me on LinkedIn and join in the conversation on this
