Mountain View, CA – In a significant move impacting the SEO and data analytics landscape, Google recently deprecated the num=100
search parameter, a long-standing method used to display up to 100 search results on a single page. This change, which took effect in September 2025, is widely seen as a direct effort to reduce the capabilities of automated SERP (Search Engine Results Page) crawlers and large-scale data scraping operations.
What Was the ‘num=100’ Parameter?
For years, the num=100
parameter was a crucial workaround appended to a Google search URL. It allowed users and, more importantly, automated systems to bypass the standard 10-result limit, streamlining several key SEO activities.
The num=100 parameter was a crucial tool for many SEO platforms, rank trackers, and data-gathering bots. It allowed for the efficient collection of extensive ranking data for numerous keywords in a single query. With its removal, those seeking to gather data beyond the default 10 results per page must now resort to paginating through multiple pages, significantly increasing the number of requests required and making the process more cumbersome and resource-intensive.
While Google’s official stance has been that the num=100
parameter was an “unsupported feature,” industry experts and the immediate consequences of its deprecation point to a clear intention to rein in automated data extraction. Several key factors are believed to have motivated this decision:
- Thwarting Automated Scraping: The primary driver appears to be the desire to curtail the rampant automated scraping of its search results. These scrapers, often operated by commercial SEO tools and data firms, place a considerable load on Googles servers. By making it more difficult and costly to gather data in bulk, Google can mitigate this activity.
- Combating AI Data Harvesting: The rise of large language models (LLMs) and other AI technologies has led to an insatiable demand for vast datasets for training purposes. Googles search results are a prime target for this kind of data harvesting. The removal of the num=100 parameter serves as a defensive measure to make it more challenging for AI companies to systematically scrape and ingest its content.
- Improving Data Accuracy in Search Console: The extensive use of num=100 by bots was creating phantom impressions in Google Search Console reports. When a bot loaded a page with 100 results, every site on that page would register an impression, regardless of whether a human user ever saw it. This skewed the data for website owners, creating a misleading picture of their search visibility. By eliminating this parameter, Google aims to provide more accurate and human-centric data to its users.
- Reducing Server Load: Processing requests for 100 results is more resource-intensive for Googles servers than the standard 10-result page. By eliminating this functionality for a practice largely dominated by automated systems, Google can reduce its operational load and prioritize resources for genuine user queries.
Although Google had not officially supported the feature since 2018, it remained functional until its complete removal this month. Any query attempting to use the parameter now defaults to a standard 10-result page.
Motivations Behind the Change
While Google has not issued a detailed statement, the decision aligns with several broader industry trends and strategic goals:
- Reducing Automated Scraping: The update directly impedes the ability of bots and third-party tools to harvest search data on a massive scale, an activity that violates Google’s Terms of Service and increases server load.
- Limiting AI Data Harvesting: With the exponential growth of AI, large-scale scraping of SERPs for training language models has become common. This move allows Google to better control access to its proprietary data.
- Improving Search Console Accuracy: The parameter was a primary cause of inflated impression data. A bot loading 100 results would trigger an impression for every site listed, even those never seen by a human user. Its removal aims to make Search Console metrics a more reliable reflection of actual user behavior.
Widespread Impact on SEO Platforms and Reporting
The effects of this change are already being felt across the industry. Recent analyses indicate that as many as 87% of tracked websites have experienced a drop in impression counts, while 77% have seen a decline in the total number of visible keyword positions reported by their tools.
For website owners and marketing teams observing sudden drops in impression counts and tracked keywords, experts clarify this is a fundamental change in data collection, not an actual decline in search performance. The deprecation forces a re-evaluation of how SEO success is measured.
- SEO Platforms and Tools: Rank tracking software that relied on this method now faces slower data collection, requiring significantly more server requests to gather the same amount of information. This has led to gaps in visibility for keywords ranked beyond the first page.
- Agencies and In-House Teams: Marketers must now re-educate clients and stakeholders, explaining that observed drops in reports are due to a data collection shift, not a performance loss. Audits and content gap analyses that depend on deep SERP data will become more time-consuming.
What Was the ‘num=100’ Parameter?
For years, the num=100
parameter was a crucial workaround appended to a Google search URL. It allowed users and, more importantly, automated systems to bypass the standard 10-result limit, streamlining several key SEO activities:
- Large-Scale SERP Scraping: Efficiently gathering ranking data across hundreds or thousands of keywords.
- Advanced Rank Tracking: Monitoring keyword positions well beyond the first page of results.
- Long-Tail Keyword Analysis: Identifying and tracking performance for less common, highly specific search queries.
- In-Depth Competitor Research: Quickly assessing the complete search landscape for a given topic.
Although Google had not officially supported the feature since 2018, it remained functional until its complete removal this month. Any query attempting to use the parameter now defaults to a standard 10-result page.
Motivations Behind the Change
While Google has not issued a detailed statement, the decision aligns with several broader industry trends and strategic goals:
- Reducing Automated Scraping: The update directly impedes the ability of bots and third-party tools to harvest search data on a massive scale, an activity that violates Google’s Terms of Service and increases server load.
- Limiting AI Data Harvesting: With the exponential growth of AI, large-scale scraping of SERPs for training language models has become common. This move allows Google to better control access to its proprietary data.
- Improving Search Console Accuracy: The parameter was a primary cause of inflated impression data. A bot loading 100 results would trigger an impression for every site listed, even those never seen by a human user. Its removal aims to make Search Console metrics a more reliable reflection of actual user behavior.
The impact on the SEO industry has been immediate and significant. Many SEO tool providers have had to re-engineer their data collection methods, leading to potential increases in subscription costs for their users. The change also means that tracking keyword rankings beyond the first few pages of results has become more challenging, forcing a shift in focus towards higher-ranking keywords and a more nuanced understanding of search performance beyond simple rank tracking.
Strategic Recommendations for a Post-‘num=100’ World
This shift necessitates a more focused and strategic approach to SEO measurement and execution.
- Reframe Reporting Conversations: Emphasize that new data is cleaner and more human-centric. The focus should be on actionable insights from top-performing pages rather than raw visibility across deep rankings.
- Refine Keyword Strategy: With reduced insight into long-tail rankings, double down on high-value, mid-tail keywords where user intent and conversion potential are strongest.
- Anticipate Tool Adjustments: SEO software providers are actively adapting. Expect platform updates, redesigned dashboards, and new methodologies for tracking and reporting on keyword performance.
- Plan for More Efficient Audits: Comprehensive audits will require more resources. Prioritize auditing the most critical sections of a site and keywords with the highest business impact.
This update is a clear signal of Google’s long-term direction: limiting non-human interaction with its search results to preserve data integrity and enhance the user experience. For marketers, adaptability and a focus on meaningful, user-centric metrics will be the key to navigating this evolving landscape.