How to measure a website redesign after launch
Whether a redesign worked is a question you can only answer if you recorded where you started. This guide covers what to measure, when to compare and how to read the numbers honestly.
Short answer
Before launch, export at least twelve months of search clicks, visits and enquiries. After launch, compare the same measures over matching periods at around two and six weeks, then quarterly. Allow for seasonal patterns and the temporary search fluctuation Google says to expect, and judge by trends rather than single days.
Why measurement matters
A redesign costs money and time. Measuring the result tells you whether it was worth it, shows you problems early and gives you a basis for future decisions. Without a baseline, every judgement is a guess, and guesses tend to be coloured by whether people like the new design.
Measurement also keeps everyone honest. A designer who promised more enquiries should be able to show them. A business owner who feels the new site is "not working" should be able to check whether that feeling matches the figures.
Before launch: record a baseline
The baseline is a snapshot of how the old site performs. Record it before any changes go live, because once the old site is replaced, some of this data becomes harder to separate.
Search data
Google Search Console's Performance report shows clicks, impressions, average position and click-through rate for your pages and the search queries behind them. Search Console keeps data for the last 16 months, according to Google's Analytics Help1. Export:
- Total clicks and impressions by month for the full period
- Clicks and impressions by page
- Top queries
- The split between mobile and desktop
Analytics
From Google Analytics or your analytics tool, export:
- Sessions or visits by month
- Landing pages with their visit counts
- Conversions you track, such as form submissions, bookings or purchases
- The split between mobile and desktop visits
Enquiries and sales
Not every enquiry is tracked online. Record how many phone calls, emails and walk-ins you receive in a typical month, and how customers say they found you. Even rough figures help.
Speed
Record Core Web Vitals for your key page types. To rate as good, a page needs its main content painted inside 2.5 seconds (LCP), taps answered inside 200 milliseconds (INP) and layout movement held to 0.1 at most (CLS), judged at the 75th percentile of visits2. Our Core Web Vitals guide explains each measure.
Known issues
Note anything already wrong: broken forms, error pages, slow pages. Otherwise, problems that existed before the redesign may be blamed on it.
What to expect straight after launch
The first days after launch are the noisiest. Search engines are processing redirects and recrawling pages, and some ranking movement is normal. Google's own guidance on site moves says: "Expect temporary fluctuation in site ranking during the move"3.
In the first week, focus on catching errors rather than judging performance:
- Check Search Console for crawl errors and pages that cannot be indexed
- Watch for spikes in "page not found" responses
- Send a test through every form
- Confirm analytics is recording visits on the new site
If something is broken, fix it straight away. A missed redirect or a broken form costs more the longer it goes unnoticed.
When to compare
Two weeks
Two weeks after launch is a sensible first check. Compare the two weeks after launch with the two weeks before, and with the same two weeks a year earlier if you have the data. Look for large drops on specific pages, which usually point to a missed redirect or lost content.
Six weeks
By six weeks, search engines have usually processed most changes. Compare the six weeks after launch with the six weeks before and the same period a year earlier. This is a fairer picture, though still early.
Quarterly
After that, compare quarter by quarter and year on year. Longer periods smooth out short-term noise and give a clearer view of the trend.
Comparing fairly
Allow for seasons
Many businesses are seasonal. A heating company's enquiries rise in winter regardless of its website. Compare like with like: this June with last June, not this June with this March.
Allow for other changes
If you started advertising, changed prices or opened a new location around the same time as the redesign, the figures will reflect those changes too. Note them in your records.
Look at pages, not just totals
Total traffic can hide what is happening underneath. A rise in visits to new pages can mask a drop on an important old page. Compare the top pages from your baseline individually.
Judge by trends
A single bad day means little. Look at weekly or monthly figures and the direction they are heading.
Be wary of small numbers
If your site receives a handful of enquiries a month, a change of two or three may be chance. Larger sites can draw firmer conclusions from smaller percentage changes.
Reading the results honestly
It is tempting to highlight whichever number looks best. Resist it. If search clicks fell but enquiries rose, report both. If speed improved but conversions did not change, that is useful to know. A redesign that removed obstacles may show its value slowly, over months rather than weeks.
If you are reporting results to others, or using them in your own marketing, be careful. Section 12A of the Fair Trading Act 1986 requires reasonable grounds for claims made in trade4. A percentage taken from a short period, without context, may not meet that standard. See the website claims guide for practical checks.
When results disappoint
If figures drop and stay down after six weeks, investigate:
- Missed redirects. Check Search Console for old addresses returning errors.
- Lost content. Compare high-traffic old pages with their new versions. Was important content removed?
- Indexing problems. Check that no pages are accidentally blocked from search engines, for example by a leftover staging setting.
- Changed titles and headings. Pages that ranked well may have lost relevant wording.
- Broken tracking. Sometimes the site is fine but analytics is not recording properly.
Most problems have a fixable cause. The migration checklist covers the checks in more detail.
A simple measurement plan
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Before launch | Export twelve months or more of search, analytics and enquiry data; record speed |
| Launch day | Test forms, redirects and analytics; submit the sitemap |
| First week | Check daily for errors and fix them |
| Two weeks | First comparison against baseline |
| Six weeks | Second comparison; investigate any lasting drops |
| Each quarter | Year-on-year comparison and review |
Measuring questions
What if I did not record a baseline?
Search Console keeps sixteen months of data, so you may still be able to export figures from before the launch. Analytics data may also still be available. Start recording now for future comparisons.
How soon will I know if the redesign worked?
Errors show up within days. A fair view of search and enquiry trends usually takes at least six weeks, and a full picture can take several months.
Should I measure bounce rate?
In Google Analytics 4, bounce rate is tied to engagement: a session counts as engaged if it "lasts longer than 10 seconds", has a key event, or has at least two page or screen views5. A visitor who finds your phone number and rings within ten seconds may not count as engaged, yet is a success. Use the figure alongside enquiries, not on its own.
Sources
Each source was opened and checked against the sentence it supports on 3 November 2026.
- [GA4] Queries report Platform documentation
- Web Vitals Platform documentation
- Site Moves and Migrations Platform documentation
- Fair Trading Act 1986, section 12A: Unsubstantiated representations Legislation
- [GA4] Session Platform documentation
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