Average position

In Search Console, position is the rank of your highest link on a loaded results page. Average position is the mean of those ranks across impressions. An impression counts when a user loads a results page where your link appears. For web search it counts even if they did not scroll to you. Discover and some carousels count only when seen.

One page can be at 3 and at 40 on the same day. If your /pricing URL shows at 3 for "your brand" and at 40 for "pricing widget x", the page could average 8. CTR is clicks divided by impressions, so CTR and position move together loosely but not always.

Search Console uses the highest position per results page. If two of your links appear, only the top one counts for that impression. The average is then the arithmetic mean across all impressions in the date range and filters you set.

1. 1

   Open Performance and set scope

   Open Search results. Set the date to Last 28 days, or Compare last 28 days to previous. Add a Country or Device filter if you sell in one market or have strong mobile traffic.

2. 2

   Read by page first

   Switch to the Pages tab. Pick a key URL like /guides/getting-started. This isolates the page’s own average position and hides noise from other URLs.

3. 3

   Then read by query for that page

   With the page filtered, switch to Queries. Sort by Impressions. Note where average position clusters: typically high for brand terms, and around page one or two for generic terms you could move.

4. 4

   Check cannibalisation per query

   Click a query, then open the Pages tab. If multiple URLs got impressions, your average can wobble. Decide one canonical target and align titles and internal links.

5. 5

   Compare device and country

   Use the Device and Country tabs with the same page or query filter. A page can perform better on desktop than mobile, pointing to layout or speed issues.

A healthy page view often shows branded queries near the very top, a handful of generic queries in the low page‑one to page‑two range, and rising impressions week on week. That pattern is typical, not measured for your site.

• Prioritise striking distance terms: queries where a page already appears around the bottom of page one or top of page two with meaningful impressions.
• Tighten titles: match the top query set. Keep the title under about 60 characters. Update the meta description to earn the click.
• Consolidate duplicates: for a query with two similar URLs, pick one. Point canonicals, update internal links, and merge content.
• Strengthen the page: add a clear H1, answer the query directly, include supporting sections, and link out where useful.
• Fix Core Web Vitals if mobile position lags desktop: check LCP near 2.5 seconds and INP near 200 ms.

• Chasing a sitewide average: there is no universal target. Read position by page and by query.
• Misreading drops: if impressions jump from a new query at a lower rank, your average can fall while traffic rises. Check the Queries mix.
• Forgetting anonymised queries: the Queries table will not add up to the Pages or Summary. That is expected.
• Blaming indexing: if a duplicate shows as Alternate page with proper canonical tag in Page indexing, it is excluded on purpose. It is only a problem if the canonical is wrong.
• Comparing across surfaces: web search counts an impression when loaded, Discover often when seen. Do not compare their positions directly.