Google Lists the Referrer Values Search Traffic Sends and Explains Why Some Visits Have None
TLDR
A Google Search help page explains the referrer values Search traffic sends, why some visits arrive without one, and why analytics counts can differ from Search Console.
Optimixed Overview
Optimixed's original report on this story.
Google published a Search help page covering the referrer values that Search traffic sends, why some visits arrive with no referrer, and why counts can differ from Search Console, as Search Engine Journal reports.
How we got here: earlier coverage
- Nov 12Google Explains Why Analytics Click Counts Diverge From Search Console
Google says Analytics and Search Console click counts differ because publishers receive only the domain in the referrer, not the query, and Discover and Images clicks share that same referrer.
- Nov 5SERP Data Providers Report Google Throttles Goto Links Per Results Page
SERP data providers say Google appears to throttle goto redirect links per results page, so some rank data may store Google redirect URLs instead of page URLs.
- Oct 23Rank trackers explain how they detect and handle anomalous Google search results
Rank trackers outline their processes for identifying and managing instances of abnormal or suspect Google search results.
- Oct 17Rank tracker logs Google indexing gaps; ChatGPT tracking tags disappear; Google and Bing update AI search links
Rank trackers detected indexing fluctuations on Google, ChatGPT lost tracking parameters on some links, and Google and Bing altered their AI search result links.