17 Data Reports that Every SEO Should Be Tracking in 2026
SEOs rely on tools like Search Console, Analytics, and Semrush to collect, track, and report data for keyword insights, performance trends, and growth.
17 Data Reports that Every SEO Should Be Tracking in 2026
Most SEOs use a combination of different tools for properly collecting, tracking, and reporting data.
Some of these include-
- Google Search Console
- Google Analytics
- Adobe Analytics
- Bing Webmaster Tools
- Internal Site Search
Third-party tools include Semrush, Ahrefs, and Moz that track keyword growth, positions, and more.
Financial & Markets Data
Financial & markets data reports provide a map of the digital economy, showing where advertising dollars are flowing, where they are pooling, and might flow next.
IAB/PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report
Cadence: Annual; Typical release: April; Access: free, no registration required
IAB has been the definitive source for U.S. internet advertising revenue. Historical data charted the shifts from dial-up to broadband, and then from desktop to mobile.
The report surveys companies representing over 86% of U.S. internet ad revenue, meaning its figures are based on actual, verified spending.
MAGNA Global Ad Forecast
Cadence: Biannual; Typical release: June & December; Access: Free summary, full datasets for IPG Mediabrands clients
MAGNA’s forecast is a detailed blueprint of the next 18 months that aids in anticipating whether paid search costs (CPCs) are likely to spike based on an influx of advertiser demand.
The forecast model relies on historical patterns, economic indicators, and advertiser surveys, subject to revision due to macroeconomic changes.
Global Entertainment & Media Outlook (PwC)
PwC resource provides five-year projections of consumer and advertiser spending data across 14 segments and 53 territories, offering an insight into the evolution of the media and entertainment sector, in terms of global revenue, growth perspectives, consumption by product, internet ads, and global music revenue.
Company Earnings Reports
Market reports provide an overview of the economy, the quarterly earnings from key companies, revealing the reality of the platforms that are important for the industry.
Alphabet Quarterly Earnings (Cadence: fiscal year ends December 31; Typical release: Q1 (late Apr, Q2 (late Jul), Q3 (late Oct), Q4 (late Jan/early Feb); Access: Free)
In alphabet quarterly earnings, the key metric is revenue for the “Google Search & other” segment; its growth rate tells you if the core business is healthy, plateauing, or declining.
The “Google Search & other” bundles search with Maps, Gmail, and other properties, which prevents isolated analysis of search revenue.
Microsoft Quarterly Earnings (Cadence: Quarterly; Typical release: Q1 (Oct), Q2 (Jan), Q3 (Apr), Q4 (Jul); Access: Free)
Microsoft’s report provides a direct scorecard for Bing’s performance via its “search and news advertising revenue” figures, which tells you whether the search engine is gaining or losing ground.
Amazon Quarterly Results
Amazon’s advertising business has grown faster than its renowned AWS cloud unit, which is an indicator of where brands are investing to capture customers at the point of purchase.
Apple Quarterly Results
Apple’s report is a barometer for the health of the mobile ecosystem and the impact of privacy. It includes the App Store, Apple Pay, and their burgeoning advertising business.
Apple’s management commentary on privacy can have meaningful consequences for the digital marketing industry.
Pinterest Quarterly Results
Pinterest’s Monthly active user (MAU) growth shows you market embracing visual discovery, with their MAU growth rates by region revealing geographic patterns in visual search adoption, often reviewing trends influencing how people search everywhere.
MAU counts only authenticated users, excluding logged-out traffic.
Internet Usage & Infrastructure
Digital 2025 – Global Overview (We Are Social & Meltwater) (Cadence: Annual; Typical release: February)
Internet usage & Infrastructure provides country-by-country breakdowns of everything from social media penetration and time spent on platforms to the most-visited websites and most-used search queries.
Measuring Digital Development (ITU)
ITU is a specialized agency of the United Nations that provides the data for sizing total addressable markets for international SEO. Its connectivity metrics show which countries have the infrastructure to support video-heavy or interactive content strategies, versus emerging markets where mobile-first, lightweight content is still essential.
Global Internet Phenomena
Global Internet Phenomena helps you understand what people are actually doing online by tracking which applications are consuming the most internet bandwidth.
Privacy & Policy
Data Privacy Benchmark Study (Cisco) helps turn the idea of privacy into business results that everyone can understand, highlighting how good practices can positively influence sales, customer loyalty, and brand reputation.
Ads Safety Report (Google)
Google’s enforcement data offers a glimpse into what may soon impact organic search results. Often, policies first appear in Google Ads before making their way into search quality guidelines.
Enforcement priorities, not industry violation rates, are displayed in Google-reported data, policies, criteria, and detection techniques are opaque and not completely revealed. There is no independent verification of measurements, and enforcement patterns are unclear.
Media Use & Trust
Digital News Report (Reuters Institute) explores how content discovery differs across countries and demographics, analysing over 40 nations, and details the ways people find information, whether directly, through search, social media, or aggregators.
Survey-based methodology with ~2,000 online respondents per country, excluding offline or low-connectivity users, and overrepresents developed markets.
Edelman Trust Barometer
In the world of AI-generated content and widespread misinformation, trust is more important than ever. Edelman has been tracking public trust in four key institutions – Business, Government, Media, and NGOs, offering a helpful guide for establishing your content’s authority.
Digital Media Trends (Deloitte Insights)
Deloitte monitors streaming service adoption, content consumption trends, and attention fragmentation, influencing your content strategy.
Their analysis of social media patterns reveals declining platform popularity, providing early signals to diversify channels.
Future Aspects
The best SEO and marketing strategies are built on more than instinct, grounded in data that stands up to scrutiny. By incorporating these reports into your normal reading routine, you would have a foundation for well-reasoned conclusions.
Each dataset provides a different lens that enables the growth of macro trends shaping the industry, while micro signals guide your next move
