In April 2026, Google acknowledged a logging error that had affected how Search Console reported impressions. If your impression numbers changed sharply this year, or you were confused by a strange email from Search Console, this is the background you need. The short version: impressions were affected, clicks were not, and the safest way to read your data is to lean on clicks.
What happened
Google added a note to its Search Console help page on April 3, 2026. It said a logging error was preventing Search Console from accurately reporting impressions from May 13, 2025 onward. Google said the problem would be fixed over the following weeks and warned that site owners might see impression counts fall in the Performance report. It also said clicks and other metrics were not affected, and that the issue only involved how impressions were logged.
Search Engine Journal covered the story on April 14, 2026, when a separate problem surfaced. Some site owners received a message saying Google had begun collecting impressions for their site on April 12, 2026. That wording made it look as if impressions had never been recorded before, which was not the case. John Mueller of Google described the message as an ordinary glitch that was unrelated to the logging fix.
Timeline
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| May 13, 2025 | Start of the period Google later said was affected by the logging error |
| April 3, 2026 | Google publishes its note about the error on the Search Console help page |
| April 12, 2026 | Some site owners receive a message saying impressions started being collected |
| April 14, 2026 | Coverage explains the message was an error, per Mueller |
What it means for your numbers
- Impressions may have dropped. Google warned about this during the fix. A fall in impressions after that point does not automatically mean your rankings dropped.
- Clicks are your safer metric. Google said clicks were not affected, so compare clicks over time first.
- Year-on-year comparisons are unreliable. Comparing impressions from before the fix with impressions after it can mislead you. Use clicks, or compare only periods that fall after the correction.
- Other reporting changes exist. Some agencies also linked impression drops in September 2025 to Google removing a search parameter that tools used to load 100 results at once. That explanation is reported by others and is not confirmed by Google, so treat it with caution.
What to do now
- Focus on clicks and click-through rate. Impressions are useful context, not a scorecard.
- Annotate your reports. Note April 2026 as a period when impression counts changed for reporting reasons.
- Cross-check with analytics. Compare organic visits from Search Console clicks with your site analytics.
- Avoid panic edits. Do not rewrite pages because impressions dipped without clicks or positions also falling.
- Track positions and queries. A ranking loss shows up in queries and average position, not only in impression counts.
If you run a new site
Low or zero impressions on a new site are usually about indexing and competition, not this logging error. Read 7 reasons for no impressions in Search Console, and remember that new pages can take weeks to appear, as explained in how long Google takes to index a new website.
Frequently asked questions
Were my clicks affected? Google said clicks and other metrics were not affected by the logging error.
Did Google fix it? Google said the fix would roll out over the weeks after its April 3 note. Check the help page for its latest wording.
Should I trust impressions at all? Yes, as a directional signal. Just do not treat small changes as meaningful, and give more weight to clicks and positions.
The takeaway
Google confirmed that Search Console impressions were logged incorrectly from May 2025 onward and said clicks were unaffected. Read impressions with care, use clicks as your main measure, and record the April 2026 period in your notes so future comparisons make sense.
