How to Export Keyword Map from Google Analytics

Trying to find which organic keywords drive traffic to your site in Google Analytics can feel like looking for a needle in a haystack - only to discover the needle isn't even there. If you've been frustrated by the endless rows of "(not provided)" in your reports, you're not alone. This article will show you exactly how to access and export a detailed keyword map by connecting Google Analytics with another free tool from Google, revealing which queries are bringing users to which pages.

First, Why Can't You See Keywords in Google Analytics?

Let's address the elephant in the room: the infamous "(not provided)" keyword. Around 2011, Google began encrypting search queries for users who were logged into their Google accounts. This was a move to protect user privacy by using secure search (HTTPS). When a logged-in user searches on Google, the keyword they used is no longer passed along in the data sent to Google Analytics.

Over time, this practice expanded until today, where nearly 100% of organic keywords are hidden behind the "(not provided)" label in GA. It's not a bug or an error with your setup, it's an intentional feature designed to safeguard searcher privacy.

So, does this mean your dream of a keyword map is dead? Not at all. You just need to pull the data from the right source.

The Real Source of Truth: Google Search Console

While Google Analytics is fantastic for understanding what users do on your site, Google Search Console (GSC) is designed to tell you how your site performs in Google search results. It’s the definitive source for understanding your organic search presence, and it's where all your precious keyword data lives.

The best practice is not to choose one tool over the other, but to use them together. By linking GA4 and GSC, you can pull your search performance data directly into your GA4 reports, allowing you to analyze keyword data alongside user behavior metrics.

How to Link Google Search Console to GA4

If you haven't already connected these two powerful tools, this is your first and most important step. It's a quick, one-time setup that unlocks all the functionality we'll cover next.

1. Navigate to the Admin section of your Google Analytics 4 property (the gear icon in the bottom left).
2. In the Property column, scroll down to the Product Links section and click on Search Console Links.
3. Click the blue Link button. A new panel will appear.
4. Click Choose accounts and select the Search Console property you manage that corresponds to your website. Check the box and click Confirm.
5. Click Next, then select the Web Stream for your site.
6. Click Next again, review the configuration, and click Submit.

That's it! Google will start processing the connection. It can take up to 24-48 hours for data to start appearing in your GA4 reports.

Enabling the Search Console Reports in GA4

Out of the box, GA4 doesn't automatically show GSC reports in the main navigation. You'll need to enable them from the Report Library.

1. From the left-hand menu in GA4, click Reports.
2. At the bottom of the reports menu, click Library.
3. Find the card under Collections labeled "Search Console."
4. Click the three vertical dots on the card and select Publish.

A new section called "Search Console" will now be permanently available in your Reports navigation, containing two reports: Queries and Google Organic Search Traffic.

How to Create and Export Your Keyword Map

With GA4 and GSC linked and your new reports published, you're ready to build and export your keyword map. The map will connect the specific search queries users searched for with the specific landing pages they arrived on.

Step 1: Navigate to the Queries Report

In your GA4 property, go to Reports > Search Console > Queries. Here, you'll see a list of the search terms that resulted in a page from your site being shown in Google's search results. The default table includes four key metrics from GSC:

• Organic Google Search Clicks: How many times users clicked on your site from search results for that query.
• Organic Google Search Impressions: How many times your site was shown in search results for that query.
• Organic Google Search Click-through rate: The percentage of impressions that resulted in a click (Clicks / Impressions).
• Organic Google Search Average position: Your average ranking position in search results for that query.

Step 2: Add Landing Page as a Secondary Dimension

This is where the "map" comes together. You'll add the landing page dimension to see which URLs are ranking for which keywords.

1. In the Queries report, click the blue plus (+) button above the first column of the table (next to the "Google Organic Search Query" title).
2. A side panel will open. In the search bar inside this panel, type "landing page" and select Landing Page + query string.

Your table will now update, showing a second column for "Landing Page" next to each "Search Query." You now have a direct line of sight from the exact keywords people use to the exact pages they land on.

Step 3: Export the Data

Now that you've built your raw keyword map inside GA4, it's time to export it for deeper analysis, filtering, and sorting in a spreadsheet.

1. In the top right corner of the report, look for the Share this report icon (a box with an arrow pointing up).
2. Click the icon and select Download File.
3. Choose between "Download as a CSV" or "Download as a PDF". For our purposes, select Download CSV.

A CSV file containing all the data from your report will download to your computer, ready to be opened in Google Sheets, Microsoft Excel, or any other spreadsheet program.

Analyzing Your Keyword Map in a Spreadsheet

Exporting the data is just the starting point. The real value comes from slicing and dicing the information to find actionable SEO opportunities.

1. Identify Your "Striking Distance" Keywords

Content that ranks on the second or third page of Google (positions 11-30) is often described as being in "striking distance" of page one. A small optimization effort can often provide the boost needed to crack the top 10 and see a significant traffic increase.

In your spreadsheet, add a filter and sort your data by Average Position between 11 and 30. This list is your low-hanging fruit. For these keywords and their corresponding landing pages, consider:

• Improving on-page optimization for that keyword.
• Adding more internal links pointing to the page.
• Expanding the content to be more comprehensive and helpful.

2. Find Pages with High Impressions but Low CTR

A page getting a lot of impressions but very few clicks is a classic sign of an unappealing title tag or meta description. Your content is ranking and people see it, but they're not motivated to click your link over a competitor's.

Filter your sheet to show keywords with a high number of Impressions (e.g., greater than 1,000) and a low Click-through rate (e.g., less than 2%). Look at the landing pages and their current title tags and meta descriptions in search results. Are they boring? Vague? Do they fail to capture the user's intent? Rewrite them to be more persuasive and directly address what the user is searching for.

3. Group Keywords by Landing Page with a Pivot Table

A pivot table is an excellent way to consolidate all the keywords a single page ranks for into one view.

• In Google Sheets or Excel, select all your data and choose the option to create a pivot table.
• Set Rows to be "Landing Page".
• Set Columns to be "Google Organic Search Query".
• Set Values to be "SUM of Organic Google Search Clicks" and "SUM of Organic Google Search Impressions".

This creates a powerful grid showing you every keyword that drives traffic to each page, helping you spot opportunities to consolidate content or create new articles based on related keyword clusters.

A Note on Paid Search Keywords

It’s important to distinguish between organic and paid search. While organic keyword data is found in Search Console, paid keyword data from your Google Ads campaigns is readily available within GA4, assuming you have linked your Google Ads account.

To find it, navigate to Reports > Acquisition > Overview. Scroll down to find the card titled "Sessions by Session Google Ads keyword text." Click the link at the bottom of the card ("View Google Ads keywords"), and you'll get a detailed report of which paid keywords are driving sessions, engaged sessions, and conversions. The export process is identical to the one described earlier.

Final Thoughts

While Google Analytics' "(not provided)" keyword can be frustrating, it doesn't mean you have to be in the dark about your SEO performance. By bridging the gap between user behavior in GA4 and search performance in Google Search Console, you can build and export a detailed keyword map that delivers truly powerful and actionable insights.

Of course, manually exporting this data and wrangling spreadsheets is a recurring task that can drain hours from your week. That's why we built Graphed. By securely connecting our platform to your tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console, you can simply ask for the report you need in plain English - "Show me my top 50 keywords by clicks, and group them by landing page." Graphed instantly builds a live, interactive dashboard visualizing your keyword-to-page map, saving you from the tedious export-and-pivot-table cycle and letting you find those optimization insights in seconds, not hours.