Does Google Analytics Show Keyword Rankings?
The short answer is no, Google Analytics doesn't show your keyword rankings. Its main job is to show you what happens after someone clicks through to your website. This article will clear up the common confusion between Google Analytics and its sibling, Google Search Console, showing you exactly where to find the ranking data you need and how to connect both tools for a complete view of your SEO performance.
Why Doesn’t Google Analytics Track Keyword Rankings?
It's a reasonable question - if Google Analytics tracks organic traffic, why can't it just show you where that traffic came from in the search results? The separation comes down to the different purpose each tool was designed for.
Think of it like this:
Google Search Console (GSC) is your expert on everything that happens before a user clicks to visit your site. It measures your visibility in Google's search results, including impressions, click-through rates, and, most importantly, your average keyword ranking positions. It’s focused entirely on your relationship with the Google search engine.
Google Analytics is your expert on everything that happens after a user lands on your site. It tracks user behavior - which pages they visit, how long they stay, what buttons they click, and whether they complete goals like signing up for a newsletter or making a purchase. It analyzes on-site engagement.
Separating these "pre-click" and "post-click" worlds helps define the tools' roles. Search Console tells you how you're performing on the search engine results page (SERP), while Analytics tells you how effective your website is once you've earned that click.
The Case of the “(not provided)” Keyword
If you used older versions of Google Analytics (like Universal Analytics), you likely remember seeing "(not provided)" fill up your keyword reports. This wasn't a bug, it was a deliberate change made by Google back in 2011 to protect user privacy.
When users are logged into a Google account and perform a search, their search query is encrypted. Google Analytics would receive the traffic but could not access the specific term the user searched. Over time, as nearly all web traffic moved to secure HTTPS connections, the amount of visible keyword data inside Analytics dropped to almost zero, making the organic keyword report practically useless on its own. This is the primary reason why marketers and SEOs now rely on Google Search Console for this kind of information.
Meet Google Search Console: Your Go-to Tool for Keyword Rankings
If you're serious about SEO, Google Search Console is non-negotiable. It's a free suite of tools and reports that helps you monitor, maintain, and troubleshoot your website's presence in Google search results. It’s the definitive source for understanding which keywords you’re actually ranking for.
Here are the core metrics you'll find inside GSC's Performance report:
Total Clicks: The number of times a user clicked through to your site from a Google search results page.
Total Impressions: The number of times a link to your site was seen by a user on a Google search results page. An impression is counted even if the user didn't scroll the link into view.
Average CTR (Click-Through Rate): The percentage of impressions that resulted in a click (Clicks ÷ Impressions). A higher CTR generally means your page title and meta description are compelling to searchers.
Average Position: Your site's average ranking for a specific keyword query. This is the "keyword ranking" metric you're looking for! If one query returns your page at position 3 and another returns it at position 7, your average position would be 5 ((3+7)/2).
How to Find Your Keyword Rankings in Google Search Console
Finding this report is straightforward. Just follow these steps:
Log in to your Google Search Console account.
In the left-hand navigation menu, click on "Performance" under the "Search results" section.
By default, you’ll see the Total Clicks and Total Impressions data charted over time. Click on the boxes for "Average CTR" and "Average position" to add those lines to your graph.
Scroll down below the graph. You'll see a table with different data tabs like "Queries," "Pages," "Countries," etc. You should be on the "Queries" tab by default.
That's it! This table shows you every search query your site has ranked for during the selected date range, along with its clicks, impressions, CTR, and average position. You can sort this list by any of these metrics to find your highest-ranking keywords, keywords with the most impressions, and more.
The Power Couple: Connecting Search Console to Google Analytics 4
While you can’t see keyword rankings in GA4 natively, you can bring all that rich Search Console data into your Google Analytics reports. Connecting the two platforms is one of the most valuable, and simple, things you can do to get a comprehensive view of your marketing funnel, from impression to conversion.
When you successfully link the two, GA4 creates two new reports in your "Acquisition" overview:
Google Organic Search Queries: This report shows your top search queries from GSC alongside GA4 metrics like users and engagement.
Google Organic Search Traffic: This report is similar, but it shows the performance of your landing pages in organic search.
Linking GSC to GA4 lets you analyze your search performance within the same interface you use to track user behavior, making it much easier to connect the dots.
Step-by-Step Guide to Link GSC and GA4
The process is incredibly simple, but you'll need admin permissions on both accounts to complete it.
Navigate to your Google Analytics 4 property and click the "Admin" gear icon in the bottom-left corner.
In the "Property" column, scroll down to the "Product Links" section and click on "Search Console Links."
On the next screen, click the blue "Link" button in the top right.
A new panel will slide out. Click "Choose accounts" to select the Search Console property you manage that you want to link. Select the correct one and hit "Confirm." Then click Next.
Next, you'll choose your website's web stream for the data link. Select it and click "Next" again.
Finally, review your choices. If everything is correct, click "Submit." You have successfully connected Search Console and Google Analytics 4! Once the link is established, data may take up to 48 hours to start appearing in GA4's reports. Note that this data does not apply retroactively, so you cannot see SEO performance from before you made the connection.
Final Thoughts
While Google Analytics alone does not track keyword rankings directly, the true power comes from connecting it with Google Search Console. This enables you to bridge the gap between what users see in search results and what they do on your site.
By linking Analytics and Search Console, you gain a more complete view of your entire SEO strategy. The combined insights allow you to refine your tactics, optimize content, and ultimately drive business outcomes more effectively. Use tools like Graphed to connect your analytics practices and benefit from a cohesive experience that ensures you understand and improve your online presence.