Is the traffic drop checker free?

Yes. There is no signup and no limit. The check runs in your browser on the file you drop, so we never see your data unless you ask us to email you the report.

Where do I get the Search Console export?

In Search Console, open Performance, set the Date filter to Compare: last 28 days to previous period, then click Export and Download CSV. Drop the ZIP file on this page as it is.

Does my data leave my computer?

No. The file is read and checked in your browser. If you ask for the emailed report, only the short summary you see on the page is sent: the verdict, the pages that lost the most and the fixes.

How much data does it need?

At least 30 clicks in the period before the drop. With less, the check says so instead of guessing. To check for a seasonal dip, also drop a second export set to the last 16 months, without Compare.

Can it tell if a Google core update caused my drop?

It finds the day your clicks started to fall and shows which Google updates were rolling out then, with the dates Google posted. If the dates fit, it says so as a lead, not as proof. Most drops have a cause on the site, so it checks rankings, clicks and indexing too.

Why are impressions up but clicks down?

When impressions hold or grow at the same position but clicks fall, people see your page and stop clicking it. The most common cause is an AI Overview or another search feature that answers on the results page. A title and description that give a reason to click often win some of those clicks back.

What does SEOmatic do with this?

Connect Search Console and SEOmatic runs this check on your live data every week, then drafts the fix for each page. SEOmatic is an SEO agent that works from your real Google Search Console data and makes the fixes on your site; in Approval mode nothing goes live until you click approve.

Why Did My Google Traffic Drop? Free Traffic Drop Checker

Our traffic drop checker reads the Performance report you export from Google Search Console and tells you which of four reasons explains the drop: your rankings slipped, an AI Overview or another search feature took the click, pages fell out of Google, or fewer people searched. It is built for anyone who saw clicks fall and wants the cause before changing anything.

The checker compares two periods (clicks, impressions, position and click rate) in your browser; the file is never uploaded. It names the cause, shows the pages that lost the most, and lists the fixes for that cause, with the Google updates that were rolling out in those weeks.

How to Export Your Search Console Data

You need the Performance report with two periods side by side. It takes about a minute.

Open the Performance Report. Go to search.google.com/search-console, pick your site, then click Performance (Search results) in the left menu.
Compare Two Periods. Click the Date filter at the top. Open the Compare tab, choose “Compare last 28 days to previous period” and click Apply.
Export the Report. Click Export at the top right, then Download CSV. You get one ZIP file. Download Excel works too.
Drop the File Here. Drop the ZIP as it is, no need to unzip. Or drop Queries.csv, Pages.csv and Dates.csv together.

Exported to Google Sheets? Use File, then Download, then Microsoft Excel (.xlsx), and drop that file. To spot a seasonal dip, also drop a second export with the date set to the last 16 months, without Compare.

The 4 Reasons Google Traffic Drops

Almost every drop is one of four things. Each one needs a different fix, so the first job is to know which one you have. The checker reads which one from your export.

Your Rankings Slipped

Your average position got worse on the searches that brought clicks. Another page now ranks above you. Fix: Make your page the best answer again.

Same Rank, Fewer Clicks

Impressions held or grew and your position held, but your click rate fell. An AI Overview or another search feature now answers first. Fix: A title and description that give a reason to click.

Pages Dropped Out of Google

Pages that had impressions now have none. Common causes: a noindex tag, a redirect, a robots.txt block, or a page Google chose not to keep. Fix: Remove the block, then ask Google to recrawl.

Fewer People Searched

Impressions fell everywhere while your positions held. Often it is seasonal: check the same weeks last year. Fix: Nothing on the site. Wait it out and watch.

The Click Math

Clicks are impressions times your click rate. When an AI Overview answers first, the rate falls faster than impressions grow: 10,000 impressions at a 4% click rate is 400 clicks, while 12,000 impressions at 2% is 240 (example numbers).

Was It a Google Update?

Find the week your clicks fell. If it sits inside a rollout, the update is a lead, not proof.

Signs the Update Caused It

The drop starts inside the rollout, or up to a week after it ends.
Positions slip on many pages at once, often by 2 to 5 places.
The pages still get impressions, just lower down.

Signs It Was Something Else

Pages lost all their impressions: that points to indexing.
Same rank, fewer clicks: that is a search feature like an AI Overview.
The same weeks dipped last year: that is seasonal demand.
It started the day you changed the site: a redesign, a migration or a plugin.

Every Google Update Since 2024, with Dates

Dates as Google posted them on the Google Search Status Dashboard, checked Oct 14, 2026.

September 2026 spam update: Sep 24 to Oct 7, 2026
August 2026 spam update: Aug 18 to Aug 20, 2026
June 2026 spam update: Jun 24 to Jun 26, 2026
May 2026 core update: May 21 to Jun 2, 2026
March 2026 core update: Mar 27 to Apr 8, 2026
March 2026 spam update: Mar 24 to Mar 25, 2026
February 2026 Discover update: Feb 5 to Feb 26, 2026
December 2025 core update: Dec 11 to Dec 28, 2025
August 2025 spam update: Aug 26 to Sep 21, 2025
June 2025 core update: Jun 30 to Jul 17, 2025
AI Mode launches in the US: from May 20, 2025
March 2025 core update: Mar 13 to Mar 27, 2025
December 2024 spam update: Dec 19 to Dec 26, 2024
December 2024 core update: Dec 12 to Dec 18, 2024
November 2024 core update: Nov 11 to Dec 4, 2024
AI Overviews expand to 100+ countries: from Oct 28, 2024
August 2024 core update: Aug 15 to Sep 3, 2024
June 2024 spam update: Jun 20 to Jun 27, 2024
AI Overviews launch in the US: from May 14, 2024
March 2024 core update: Mar 5 to Apr 19, 2024
March 2024 spam update: Mar 5 to Mar 19, 2024

Why Use Our Traffic Drop Checker

Your data stays on your device: the export is read in your browser and never uploaded.
Your real Google numbers: it works from your own Search Console export, not from third-party traffic estimates.
A cause, not just a chart: it tells you which of the four reasons it is and what to fix for that reason.
Free, no signup: drop the file and read the result.

How to Export Your Search Console Data

You need the Performance report with two periods side by side. It takes about a minute.

Open the Performance Report. Go to search.google.com/search-console, pick your site, then click Performance (Search results) in the left menu.
Compare Two Periods. Click the Date filter at the top. Open the Compare tab, choose “Compare last 28 days to previous period” and click Apply.
Export the Report. Click Export at the top right, then Download CSV. You get one ZIP file. Download Excel works too.
Drop the File Here. Drop the ZIP as it is, no need to unzip. Or drop Queries.csv, Pages.csv and Dates.csv together.

The 4 Reasons Google Traffic Drops

Almost every drop is one of four things. Each one needs a different fix, so the first job is to know which one you have. The checker reads which one from your export.