How to Find Keywords in Google Analytics 4

Trying to find your organic search keywords in Google Analytics 4 can feel like a fool's errand. You navigate to your traffic reports, find the "Organic Search" channel, and are met with a frustrating line item: (not provided). The good news is that the keyword data isn't gone, it's just in a different place. In this tutorial, we'll walk you through the single most important step to unlock that data: connecting Google Search Console directly to your GA4 property.

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Why Can't You See Keywords in GA4 Directly?

First, let's address the elephant in the room. The reason a vast majority of organic keyword data is labeled as (not provided) is due to user privacy. Years ago, Google began encrypting search queries for users who were logged into a Google account, meaning that data was no longer passed through to analytics tools.

Instead of sending that information to Google Analytics, Google now houses all of your organic search query data within a separate, dedicated tool for webmasters: Google Search Console (GSC). Think of it this way:

• Google Search Console (GSC) tells you what happens before someone clicks on your website — which queries triggered impressions, what your click-through rates are, and your average ranking position in the search results.
• Google Analytics 4 tells you what happens after someone clicks on your website — which pages they visit, how long they stay, what events they trigger, and whether they convert.

To get a complete picture of your SEO performance, you need to bring these two worlds together. Luckily, GA4 has a native, one-time integration that makes this incredibly simple.

Step-by-Step Guide to Connecting Google Search Console to GA4

Before you begin, make sure you have "Editor" level permissions for your Google Analytics 4 property and are a "Verified Owner" of your Google Search Console property. If not, a little permissions-wrangling with your admin is your first step. Once you're set, the actual process only takes a couple of minutes.

Step 1: Navigate to the Admin Panel in GA4

Log in to your Google Analytics 4 account. In the bottom-left corner of the screen, you'll see a gear icon labeled 'Admin'. Click on it to go to the Admin screen.

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Step 2: Find the "Product Links" Section

The Admin screen is divided into two columns: "Account" and "Property". In the "Property" column, scroll down until you see the subheading 'Product Links'. Under this subheading, you should find an option called 'Search Console Links'. Click on this.

Step 3: Begin Creating the Link

You are now on the Search Console linking page. In the upper-right corner, you will see a blue button labeled 'Link'. Click this to start the setup process.

Step 4: Choose Your Search Console Property

A new window will appear. If you are an owner of one or more GSC properties associated with the same Google account, you will see them here. Click 'Choose accounts' to see a list of available properties you can link.

Select the radio button next to the Search Console property that corresponds to the website you are tracking in GA4, and then click the blue 'Confirm' button in the top right.

Step 5: Select Your Web Data Stream

On the next screen, you'll be prompted to choose your web data stream. A data stream is simply the source of data for your analytics — in this case, your website.

Click 'Select' and choose the appropriate web stream from the list (most businesses will only have one). Once selected, click 'Next'.

Step 6: Review and Submit

The final screen gives you a chance to review your configuration. You will see which Search Console property you are linking and which GA4 web stream it is linked to. If everything looks correct, click the final blue 'Submit' button.

That's it! You should see a "Link created" notification and be returned to the link management screen, where your newly linked GSC property is now listed. It may take up to 48 hours for data to begin populating in your GA4 reports, so don't worry if you don't see it immediately.

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Where to Find Your Keyword Data in GA4

Once you've waited for the data to process, a new set of reports becomes available in your GA4 property. You can find them by navigating to Reports > Acquisition > Acquisition overview. On this dashboard, scroll down and you should see two new cards added:

• Google Organic Search traffic
• Google Organic Search Queries

Sometimes, these reports aren't automatically published to your main navigation menu on the left. If you don't see them under your 'Acquisition' topic, click on Library at the very bottom of the report navigation. You should see the Search Console card there. From the menu on that card, you can choose to 'Publish' it to add it permanently to your navigation.

Understanding the New Search Console Reports

There are two key reports this integration adds:

1. Queries: Google Organic Search Queries

This is the report you've been looking for. It shows you the actual search queries people used in Google to find your website. It includes invaluable SEO metrics pulled directly from GSC:

• Organic Google Search queries: The keyword or phrase a user typed into Google.
• Impressions: How many times your website appeared in the search results for that query.
• Clicks: How many times users clicked on your site from the search results for that query.
• CTR (Click-through rate): The percentage of impressions that resulted in a click (Clicks ÷ Impressions).
• Average position: Your website's average ranking in the search results for the query.

2. Landing Pages: Google Organic Search Traffic

This report lists the pages on your site that users first landed on from organic search. It combines the GSC metrics above with standard GA4 engagement metrics, allowing you to see which pages are your biggest SEO performers and how users behave once they arrive.

How to Use This Data for Real SEO Insights

Connecting the data is just the first step. The real value comes from analysis. Here are some questions you can now answer:

What Are My "Striking Distance" Keywords?

The number one actionable insight is finding keywords with high impressions but low click-through rates. These are your "striking distance" opportunities.

In the Queries report, filter for keywords that have an average position between 8 and 20. These are terms you're already ranking for on the bottom half of page one or page two. Look for queries in this group with a high number of impressions.

If a keyword gets thousands of impressions but very few clicks, it means people see your site but your headline (title tag) or summary (meta description) isn't compelling enough. Improving titles and descriptions for these pages can provide a quick, significant traffic boost with minimal effort.

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Which Content Drives the Most Organic Engagement?

Use the Landing Pages report to see which articles, blog posts, or service pages are pulling in the most organic search clicks. Don’t stop there. Look at GA4 engagement metrics like Engaged sessions and Conversions.

Is your highest-traffic page also the one with the lowest engagement rate? That might indicate a mismatch between what users searched for and what your page delivered. Conversely, a page with modest search traffic but high engagement or conversion rates is a star performer. Lean into what makes that page successful and create similar content.

What New Content Should I Create?

Your query report is a great source of content ideas. Look for queries with impressions but few clicks, likely because your rank is very low (e.g., position 50+). These topics are already associated with your brand, but you lack well-optimized content for them.

You can also filter the report for question-based queries (search for "what," "how," or "why"). Addressing these questions directly via dedicated blog posts or FAQs is a highly effective SEO tactic.

Final Thoughts

Bringing Google Search Console data into GA4 transforms it from a post-click behavior tool into a powerful SEO analytics platform. It combines the "before the click" world of queries in impressions with the "after the click" world of engagement and conversions, giving you a comprehensive view of your organic search performance with smarter, data-driven insights.

While this integration is a huge step forward, it still involves clicking, filtering, and cross-referencing reports to answer specific questions. We built Graphed to eliminate this friction. Instead of hunting through reports, connect your GA4 in seconds and ask simple questions like, "Show me my top 10 organic keywords by conversions last month," and instantly see visualizations and answers. It's about turning hours of manual analysis into seconds, so you can focus on acting on insights rather than just finding them.