Google has recently confirmed a significant technical change that, while invisible to the average user, is causing a major ripple effect across the SEO industry. The search giant has officially deprecated the num search parameter, a long-standing but unofficial tool that has been the backbone of SERP data collection for years.
If you work in SEO, here’s what you need to know about why this small change is a big deal.
What Was the ‘num’ Parameter?
For years, SEO professionals and data platforms could use the num parameter in a Google search URL (e.g., &num=100) to specify the number of results they wanted to see on a single page. Instead of the standard 10 blue links, you could request 30, 50, or even 100 results at once.
While never an officially supported feature for the public, it was a highly efficient and widely adopted shortcut for SEO tools (like Ahrefs, Semrush, Moz, and countless others) to gather vast amounts of ranking data quickly. One request could yield data for 100 URLs.
What Has Changed and Why?
Google has now confirmed this parameter is no longer supported. This change aligns with the evolution of the user-facing search results page, which has moved to a continuous scroll format. For a human user, the concept of a “page” with a fixed number of results is becoming obsolete.
However, for the automated crawlers that power our SEO tools, this is a fundamental disruption.
The Impact on SEO Tools and Data Collection
The primary group affected by this change is the ecosystem of SEO tool providers and anyone who runs scripts to scrape search engine results pages (SERPs). The impact can be broken down into several key areas:
- Massively Increased Crawling Demands: Instead of making a single request to get 100 results, data collection tools must now effectively perform ten separate requests to gather the same information. This multiplies the resources, time, and complexity required to collect ranking data.
- Potential for Data Delays: With the crawling process now being significantly slower and more resource-intensive, SEO platforms may struggle to update their ranking databases as frequently as they used to. This means the ranking data you rely on for analysis and reporting might be less fresh.
- Concerns Over Data Accuracy: A more complex and fragmented data collection process increases the chances of encountering inconsistencies or gaps in the data.
- Rising Operational Costs: The cost for SEO tool providers to gather the same amount of data has just increased tenfold. While companies are still adapting, it is plausible that these increased operational costs could eventually be passed on to customers.
What This Means for You
For the average SEO professional, this is a crucial “behind-the-scenes” development to be aware of. While you won’t see the change in your own Google searches, you might notice its effects in the tools you use every day.
Be mindful that ranking reports may take longer to update, and understand that the platforms you rely on are navigating a significant technical challenge. This is not a sign of a failing tool, but a universal shift in how SERP data must now be collected.
In short, Google has reinforced that its priority is the end-user experience, and the SEO industry must once again adapt to a new technical landscape.
