Google introduced a new filter in Search Console on Sept. 24, 2026, to measure traffic from image-based queries, providing publishers with detailed analytics for visual content.
The new multimodal search type filter isolates data from visual search sources, enabling webmasters to optimize their sites for content discovered through images.
This new functionality covers four distinct visual search origins: Google Lens, Circle to Search on Android devices, direct image imports into Google Search, and the “Search this image” feature within the Chrome browser.
Data from these multimodal searches is now accessible within the Search Results performance report and the Generative AI features report, according to Google. Export options are also available for detailed analysis.
Google began the global deployment of this feature on Sept. 24, 2026, though metrics will only appear for sites that receive traffic from these specific multimodal search types.
The company stated that this new data offers measurable insights for publishers to enhance image quality, improve alternative text attributes, and boost the overall indexability of visual content on their websites.
Multimodal data is also provided for various platform properties, including YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok accounts, when these are tracked within Google Search Console.
Publishers can use the new analytics to understand how users discover their content visually, potentially leading to improved search engine optimization (SEO) strategies for images.
Source: Abondance
