Google Search Console is a free tool that helps website owners track their website’s performance in Google Search. One of the reports in Search Console is the Link Report, which shows the number of links that point to your website from other websites.
In recent weeks, some website owners have reported that the Link Report in Search Console is showing a fraction of the actual number of links pointing to their websites. Google has confirmed that there is an issue with the Link Report, and they are working on a fix.
What is the Issue?
The issue with the Link Report is that it is not counting all of the links that point to your website. This is because the report is only counting links that Google has crawled and indexed. If a link has not been crawled and indexed by Google, it will not be shown in the Link Report.
Why is This Happening?
Google has not yet released a definitive explanation for why the Link Report is not counting all of the links. However, there are a few possible explanations.
One possibility is that the issue is due to a change in the way that Google crawls and indexes links. Google has been making changes to their crawling and indexing algorithms on a regular basis, so it is possible that one of these changes has caused the issue with the Link Report.
Another possibility is that the issue is due to a bug in the Link Report itself. Google’s software is complex, and it is possible that there is a bug in the code that is responsible for generating the Link Report.
When Will the Issue Be Fixed?
Google has not yet released a timeline for when the issue with the Link Report will be fixed. However, they have said that they are working on a fix, and they hope to have it released soon.
What Can You Do in the meantime?
If you are concerned about the issue with the Link Report, there are a few things you can do in the meantime.
First, you can check the Backlinks report in Search Console. The Backlinks report shows all of the links that point to your website, whether or not they have been crawled and indexed by Google.
Second, you can use a third-party backlink checker tool. There are a number of these tools available, and they can help you track the number of links that point to your website.
Finally, you can wait for Google to fix the issue with the Link Report. Google has a good track record of fixing bugs in their software, so it is likely that the issue will be resolved soon.
Conclusion
The Link Report in Search Console is a valuable tool for tracking the number of links that point to your website. However, there is currently an issue with the report that is causing it to show a fraction of the actual number of links. Google is working on a fix for the issue, and they hope to have it released soon. In the meantime, you can use the Backlinks report in Search Console or a third-party backlink checker tool to track the number of links that point to your website.
Read the blog: Google Search Console Tutorial: Analyzing Traffic Drops