Search impressions, explained
Google’s help page says an impression is how often someone saw a link to your site on Google. For some result types, the link has to be scrolled or opened into view before it counts.
On this site the word means the Search Console search total. A separate report counts times a page showed inside Google’s AI features. We do not add those two totals. An impression is demand that was shown. It is not revenue, and it is not a promise for the next site.
Is a search impression the same as a click?
No. A click is someone choosing the link and coming to the site. An impression is only that the link was seen. A page can be seen many times and clicked rarely.
Are AI-feature impressions included?
Not in the search total we cite. Google Search Console keeps a Generative AI features report apart from regular search impressions. We name both, and we do not add them.
Questions
What is a search impression in simple terms?
A search impression is one time your link was shown in search results. It does not mean anyone clicked it or visited the site.
Where do search impressions come from?
On our pages they come from Google Search Console. The report counts how often a link to the site was seen in Google Search.
Do search impressions include AI Overviews?
The main search total does not split that out by itself. Times a page showed in Google’s AI features are a separate report. We keep the two counts apart.
Where we use this term
Sources
- What are impressions, position, and clicks?. Google Search Console Help.
Definition checked against these sources and our own pages on .