Google adds a branded queries filter to Search Console
Google has announced a new branded queries filter in Search Console that automatically separates branded and non-branded search traffic inside the Performance reporting. The announcement appears on the Google Search Blog here: https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2025/11/search-console-branded-filter.
The feature is designed to make it easier to understand how much of your performance is driven by people already looking for you by name versus people discovering you through generic, topic-led searches.
What Google is changing and where you will see it
A new filter within Performance reports
The branded queries filter can be applied within the Search Console Performance report, letting you segment data such as clicks, impressions, average position, and click-through rate by branded versus non-branded intent. Google has indicated it can be used across search types, including web, image, video, and news where those views are available in Search Console.
An AI-based classification rather than manual rules
Google is using artificial intelligence to detect what counts as “branded” for your property. This typically includes your primary brand name, common misspellings, abbreviations, multi-language variants, and related product or service names that Google associates with your brand.
A reporting feature, not a ranking factor
Google has been clear that this is a measurement improvement. It does not change rankings or visibility. It changes how you can slice the data to understand performance.
Why this matters for SEO reporting
Separating demand capture from demand creation
Branded queries often reflect existing awareness: a user already knows the organisation, product, or service and is navigating towards it. Non-branded queries are usually where SEO demonstrates its ability to earn visibility for topics, problems, and comparisons that users search before they pick a brand.
With an automated split, SEO teams can show leadership a cleaner view of growth that comes from non-brand discovery, rather than conflating it with traffic caused by offline marketing, PR, word of mouth, or existing customer behaviour.
Making CTR and position trends easier to interpret
Branded clicks tend to have higher CTR and stronger average positions because the query is navigational and the brand is a natural match. Non-branded performance is often more sensitive to snippet changes, SERP features, competition, and content relevance. Viewing these trends separately can prevent false alarms, such as assuming an SEO drop when branded demand simply softened after a campaign ended.
How the AI classification may affect your analysis
You cannot override branded vs non-branded labelling
Google’s classification is automatic and, at launch, you cannot manually adjust which queries are treated as branded. That means your analysis should allow for occasional edge cases, such as product names that also function as generic terms, or ambiguous abbreviations that overlap with other entities.
Expect some ambiguity with product-led brands
If your brand includes a word that is also a common noun, some queries may be classified in surprising ways. For example, a company called “Orbit” selling travel software could see “orbit pricing” treated as branded, while “orbit travel software” might vary depending on how strongly Google associates the term with the company and its offerings. The important step is to watch consistency over time rather than reacting to a single query.
Availability may depend on property type and volume
The feature is rolling out gradually and is expected to appear first for top-level properties that have sufficient impressions and query volume. If you do not see it yet, it may simply be that your property is not included in the initial rollout.
Practical ways to use the branded filter for better SEO decisions
Use non-branded trends to guide content strategy
Non-branded growth is often the clearest indicator that your topical coverage, internal linking, and content quality are improving. If non-branded impressions rise but clicks do not, it may suggest your snippets are not compelling, your rankings are stuck just outside the top results, or SERP features are absorbing attention.
As an example, if your non-branded impressions increase for “how to choose a payroll provider” but clicks remain flat, you could test stronger titles and descriptions, add concise definitions that suit featured snippet patterns, and strengthen supporting pages that address pricing, compliance, and implementation timelines.
Diagnose brand demand shifts without blaming SEO
If total clicks fall while non-branded clicks hold steady, the issue may be reduced brand interest rather than loss of rankings. This can happen after seasonality, the end of a paid campaign, or a shift in public attention. Having branded and non-branded separated makes that conversation clearer and faster.
Report SEO impact more credibly to stakeholders
Many executive dashboards overvalue branded traffic because it is stable and high-converting. Segmenting the data lets you present two narratives: brand strength and brand discovery. A mature SEO report will usually highlight non-branded performance as the core measure of organic acquisition, while still monitoring branded traffic as a signal of reputation and retention.
Questions and answers
Does the branded queries filter change how Google ranks my pages?
No. Google has described this as a reporting and analysis feature. It is designed to help you understand performance, not to influence it.
If I cannot edit the classification, how should I handle mistakes?
Focus on directional insights rather than perfect labelling at the individual query level. If you notice consistent misclassification around a specific product name, treat the segmentation as a helpful approximation and validate with additional views such as landing page performance, Search Console query exports, and analytics data. Over time, changes in the split can still be meaningful even if a small set of queries is imperfectly labelled.
What counts as “branded” if we have multiple brands or products?
Google’s systems may include related product and service names, abbreviations, and variants it associates with your property. If your organisation runs several distinct brands, you may find the branded segment captures more than the corporate name alone. This can be helpful for understanding whether demand is tied to the parent brand or to individual offerings, even if you still need separate internal reporting for each line.
How can we use this to improve non-branded visibility?
Use the non-branded segment to identify where you are gaining impressions without winning clicks, then tighten relevance and presentation. Strengthen pages that already appear for non-brand queries by aligning headings to user tasks, adding clear definitions and comparisons, improving internal links from authoritative pages, and ensuring the content satisfies the query intent without forcing users to hunt for key details.
What to do next in Search Console
Check whether the filter is available for your property
Open the Performance report in Search Console and look for the branded versus non-branded filtering option. If it is present, capture a baseline of the split for the last 28 days and the last 12 months so you can spot meaningful changes in brand demand and discovery.
Set expectations for how success will be measured
Agree internally on which metrics will be evaluated using the non-branded segment, such as non-branded clicks, non-branded impressions, and non-branded share of total clicks. This keeps SEO goals aligned with discovery and growth rather than navigational demand that may be driven by other channels.
