You may have noticed a large drop off in the number of impressions shown on Google Search Console.
Don’t fear or panic, it’s a good thing!
Google regularly amends its algorithms and criteria so changes in statistics shown are not uncommon. This particular change is thanks to Google removing known bots from impression figures.
You may see things like ‘Google removing the num=100 parameter’ in online marketing news. This is all that is happening.
With the bots removed from your figures, what you see in your Google Search Console account is far closer to real life (we say closer as it’s possible that some unknown bots etc may still be included).
The main positive from this action is that your site should see an increase in the click through rate (CTR) as now you are focusing on real impressions and real site visitors.
This change will help you make more accurate decisions about your marketing strategies as you will have much better data at your disposal.
If you haven’t seen this change in your website stats yet, check out your Google Search Console account.
Need help with your online marketing, or your understanding of online marketing, get in touch with the team here at Digital Nachos today.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does this drop off in impressions look like?
Here is an example of a site that experienced a very clear sign of this change to Google Search Console.
The purple line showing impressions takes a nose dive mid-September whilst the clicks shown by the blue line remain as expected. The click through rate increased ten-fold since the change was implemented (comparing the 1st of September to the 30th of September 2025).
What is an ‘Impression’?
An impression in this context refers to the number of times the page or site in question has appeared in a search engine.
You can learn more about ‘Impressions’ with our ‘Digital Byte’ here.
When did this change happen?
The removal of bots (the num=100 parameter) happened mid-September 2025.
Where do I see my Google Search Console Account?
Head to your search engine and search for ‘Google Search Console’ or head to the following link.
You may be prompted to log into the related Google account, or you may already be signed in.
Once you are logged in, simply head to ‘Performance’ in the left menu and you will be able to see your site’s ‘Total Clicks’ and ‘Total Impressions’ with the related ‘Average CTR’ and ‘Average Position’.
I don’t think I have a Google Search Console Account?
If you haven’t got a Google Search Console account and would like to – simply get in touch and our team can help you set it up, along with other key analytics tools.
If you aren’t sure whether you have one or not, we can help you confirm this fact, and if there isn’t an account set up for you already then we can set one up for you.
Published: 1st Oct 2025