Google num=100 parameter removal Causes SEO Keyword Tracking Challenges

With so many changes happening in SEM, at a faster pace than ever, we feel it is necessary to project awareness so all clients have a good understanding of the latest SEO news, challenges and potential opportunities that are emerging across the industry.

Google num=100 parameter removal impacts industry-wide tracking

Google has fundamentally altered how third-party tools access ranking data leading to SEO Keyword Tracking Challenges.

Previously, keyword tracking tools and users could view and retrieve 100 results in a single request. Now they can only track the first ranking page in one view or call. With that, tracking beyond position 10 has become 10x more expensive rendering the option unfeasible.

As a result of this change, we have identified reporting changes in the industry’s most respected keyword tracking tools such as Ahrefs, SEMRUSH and Google’s own, Google Search Console.

The early takeaways from what we are seeing are impressions have decreased while the average rank has increased.

What We Are Seeing in Google Search Console

Despite this, we expect to see stable clicks through to the website.

Although Google have released no information on the change, it’s widely accepted in the industry that the 100 parameter removal was due to the ever increasing number of calls being made from AI bots, researching user generated queries via their respected platforms.

Drop in impressions: Impressions were previously triggered if a page was presented in search results via a call (user or bot), regardless if on 1st page with 10 results or 99th with 100 results.

As users and bots can no longer view 100 results at a time, it is natural that impressions will decrease as a high majority of page views will no longer be seen by Google Search Console.

With these impressions now dropping we are also seeing an increase in the average position. Impressions for very deep, lower-value positions (like 30-100) dragged the “Average Position” metric down. Now impressions are primarily from the top 1 to 3 Google SERP pages, the average position will naturally increase for keyword groups.

CTR (Click Through Rate) would also have been dragged down by the lower rankings therefore, CTR has also seen an uptick.

So far we are yet to see this change have any impact on click stability. In theory and in practice, the data we are seeing in GSC is now more accurate and representative of user behaviour. But, it will take time for the change to level out and for 3rd party tracking tools to find their feet.

Industry Leading Keyword Tracking Tools

This change impacts 3rd party keyword tracking tools. Many tools have not committed to providing reliable data outside of Google’s top 10.

Ahrefs

Semrush

Accuranker, our preferred ranking partner, offers the best solution to date.

For the most part, our reporting is business as usual, as our reports will still give you Month-on-Month keyword ranking insights.

Our rank tracking partner, Accuranker, has confirmed that top 100 data will continue to be available, with crucial page 1, 2 and 3 data readily available on a day-by-day basis:

• The Top 30 will be tracked daily for your keywords – This means you’ll have the exact same insight on the pages that get you the majority of your clicks and opportunities lie. In the top 10 you’ll not lose any visibility on the terms that you own, and keywords ranking 11-30 will give you an idea of where those quick win opportunities are as campaigns progress.
• The Top 100 will be tracked twice a month – We update the full top 100 rankings twice a month. This will highlight what URLs need a bit more of a nudge to get into a ranking position. This means you will still receive your monthly movements in the top 100, and if you request data for a term that’s ranked 31-100 the data will be—most importantly—available, and relatively fresh.

We have found this to be the best solution which will help us and keep accuracy high so we can strategise and make informed decisions as part of our SEO services.

Tracking yet to catch up with modern SERP features

Separately from the &num=100 change, we have found that tracking tools are slow to track and rank shopping-related SERP features.

For example, when a website appears in “Popular Products”, they aren’t being picked up and ranked accordingly in tracking tools.

This is the same for the “Also Buy From” feature, which can appear on non-branded queries.

The above issues all tracking tools are facing is largely due to the dynamics in the SERP features and structures for eCommerce sites. We are actively looking for a means to better track these dynamic features at scale in order to ensure full visibility of SERP ownership.  But for now, this does muddy the clear waters we have been used to over the last decade of accurate tracking data.

PPC News: AI Max is not the full ticket (yet)

Google Ads AI Max is an optional enhancement for Search campaigns that uses artificial intelligence to broaden reach and improve performance by automatically expanding keywords, optimising creative assets, and offering more control and transparency.

Well, that’s what Google says at least. The truth of the matter is that our tests have found errors and hiccups that confirm that human oversight is still crucial.

From oddly worded Ad copy to seemingly random campaign targeting, AI Max is not yet a core part of our toolkit.

We will keep testing it, and are attending a Google Partner online event specifically to talk out issues with the Google Team.

Other big SEO Updates

• ​Google’s August 2025 Spam Update Finished Rolling Out – This update went on deep into September. Based on industry insights, it appears that this update targeted sites deemed to be abusing content production, launching pages created at scale, with non-unique, low quality non compliant EETA content, including spammy comments.
• ​Google launches Search Live in the U.S. – There is a new AI search update that’s starting to go live in the US in which you’ll be able to use your camera and microphone to query Google. While, much like AI Overviews, this mode will be very query-based, it will no-doubt have commercial searches like “Can I get this dress in the shop window cheaper online”. We look forward to its expansion into the UK.

What we’ve been working on

On top of our SEO & PPC work, we have been working on improving our reporting, boosting our productivity, and of course making sure Boyd is a great place to work.

Here’s a quick line on some of our team achievements, in and out of the world of SEO.

PPC reports

Our custom PPC reporting suite is in final development. Soon, you’ll access a fully customisable dashboard featuring cost per acquisition, conversion tracking, CTR, CPC, and website-specific event metrics. PPC clients: watch your inbox.

SEO reports

With more and more organic traffic being split up into various channels:

• Up to 50% landing in direct
• Organic Google shopping (popular products) growing
• A higher % falling into unassigned
• The rise of AI traffic

It’s no longer viable to report on the organic channel only. We are working on creating grouped channels where organic-led data is combined so we can better report, analyse and make more informed decisions. We will also create grouped paid channels (Paid, Paid Shopping, Cross network) so there is full visibility across the two parent channels.

The AI charge and adopting more Python automation

We’re leveraging AI and Python to eliminate time-intensive manual work like mass 301 redirect mapping, title tag optimization at scale, and bulk product description creation for e-commerce sites.

Our content team has also increased output efficiency by 66% while maintaining high EEAT quality. We look to scale this further as technology evolves. All efficiencies are fed back into your campaigns so all investments are fully maximised.

Coffee morning

We held a MacMillan Coffee Morning at our office in September, with a range of sweet treats. With cash and online donations we’re sitting at around £200 so far. We’re really pleased to be able to support people living with cancer, and their loved ones.

Inflatable 5k

The SEO team conquered an inflatable 5K at the end of August with zero injuries. A victory by any measure.

We’re on-hand if you need us

With the search landscape being as fast-changing as it is, we are always happy to discuss how changes affect your site.

If you have questions about these updates, please do not hesitate to reach out to the team.